'Paint-and-sip' studio opening at W. Manchester center
The guided painting studio is expected to open in August.
West Manchester Town Center is about to get in on the trend of "paint-and-sip" guided painting studios. Pinot's Palette, a Houston, Texas-based franchise, will open at the town center in August.
The studio gives people who don't necessarily think they have artistic talent a chance to create a painting worth hanging on the wall, said store owner Jeremy Sherwood.
"You do not have to be an artist," Sherwood said. "It's an instructed class, but there's no wrong or right — it's about having fun."
The two- or three-hour classes can include groups of 48 or more. Guests are encouraged to come in groups and are welcome to bring a bottle of wine or other drinks, he said. That will be an easy feat, he pointed out, since West Manchester Township's Fine Wine & Good Spirits store is scheduled to move from White Street to the town center this summer.
This is the first Pinot's Palette in York County, but it isn't the first guided painting studio in the area, said Stacey McConnell, who owns her own studio, A Splash of Art, in New Freedom.
In recent years, guided group painting has become a popular choice for ladies' nights, date nights and parties, McConnell said. People sometimes come in nervous, but they usually walk out with a sense of accomplishment.
“People look at all the artwork on the walls that our artists have created, and they get very apprehensive, but when they are finished, after their session, they’re so excited," McConnell said.
Because the paintings are pre-designed, even inexperienced painters can follow specific steps to make a decent painting, said Rita Whitney, a York-based artist who has done private guided painting parties.
Though it can take years of study to become a skilled painter, she usually teaches people a few tricks that can quickly improve painting quality. She emphasizes basic concepts such as color choice, working from background to foreground and placing the overall shapes on the canvas prior to focusing on details.
Sherwood said he plans to hire 10 to 15 artists to run the classes in West Manchester, and he will post the jobs within a couple weeks. Artistic ability is certainly a plus, he said, but a big part of those jobs will be to have fun and interacting with guests.
"We’re looking for people who love to paint," he said. “You don’t have to be the best artist in the world."
To learn more:
- Go to www.pinotspalette.com/york
- Search for "Pinot's Palette York" on Facebook