AR Workshop {Mill Creek}
Ladies night out, date night, or just a night on the town, AR Workshop is a super fun DIY class anyone will enjoy. No artistic skill necessary! I was invited to try a class at the Mill Creek location, and couldn’t believe how wonderful my project turned out. You have seen me paint and stain my way around my home, but I have never made any type of wood signs nor have I ever white washed or distressed a piece of wood. Needless to say, I was super excited to try this class and make my own custom wood sign for the very first time!
The first thing I noticed when I walked into AR Workshop Mill Creek was all the beautiful wood projects surrounding the workshop to find inspiration from. You pick your project ahead of time when you register for your class, but once you arrive you are given an impressive array of beautiful paints and stains to choose from.
At your workstation you will find your project waiting for you, and if you booked a class with friends they will be seated at your table to enjoy the fun along side you.
Everything you need is at your table. Your wood, your stencil, and all your tools. They bring the paint and stain swatches to your table and with their artistic expertise, help you choose the perfect colors for your project.
I selected this sign from the pieces in the workshop and asked for help creating this look. I really didn’t think I would be able to do it since it involved white washing and distressing, which I have no prior experience doing.
But the awesome artists working here assured me I could achieve this look, got me situated with the perfect colors and showed me exactly what I needed to do. I started off by staining a coat of Driftwood onto my planks. After allowing the stain to dry, they helped me select two shades of whites and greys to wash over my planks and showed me the proper technique.
Next, I was shown how to distress the planks.
After the wood was stained, washed, and distressed, it’s time for the stencil! Using their tools they show you how to carefully prepare and lay your stencil.
Finally, its time to paint over the stencil! The amazing artists at AR Workshop Mill Creek even showed me a fun blending technique using two beautiful shades of grey.
And of course, you get to stamp and sign your project and add hardware, too!
I am so happy with how my project turned out! It looked exactly as I had imagined. Even though I believed I would not be able to achieve this look, with the help of the talented artists at AR Workshop Mill Creek I was in fact able to create this!
A special thank you to Ronda, the owner of AR Workshop Mill Creek, for inviting me to try this fantastic class at her store. I had an amazing time and loved the project your talented team of artists help me create. I can’t wait to return for my next project!
13 Comments
Riana
What a fun experience! Your sign looks great, by the way!
Nati
What a beautiful project! This is really nice and an activity that I and my friends will surely enjoy! thanks for the advice!
Andrea Larson
Yes, that blue is just perfect. I generally love wood as a material. Anything beautiful looks even more beautiful when done on wood. I would love to try this one day.
Didi Marie
Is this facility in Washington? I would love to do this! I’ve done paint nights many times, but this is so SPECIAL and something I would absolutely display in my home!
Bree
This facility is located in Mill Creek, Washington but there are many other locations! 🙂
chelf
what a lovely, creative space! I wish we had something like that where I live! These classes sound like a fantastic idea, perfect for unwinding while doing something creative at the same time!
Liza Perry
OMG I LOVED everything ! That blue color is so amazing and tHAT place! I could spend hours there haha thanks for sharing!
Natural Beauty And Makeup
This looks so much fun 😍 I would love to attend such interesting DIY classes in future! Beautiful pics 💕
Flossie McCowald
I have never seen a place like that!!! If there were a DIY studio for wood signs near where I live, I would def go check it out sometime!!!
Philomath
Amazing and such a fun thing to do. I hope I can do such a thing because I like to be creative and do something on my own like that.
Maysz
I would love to try this workshop someday so crafty and beautiful awesome photos.
Nicole Gilbert
I’ve done so many wine and sip classes with my girlfriends, and while I love them… THIS IS SO MUCH BETTER!! A finished product that you actually want to hang in your home! Gorgeous.
Stephanie
I would love to do a workshop like this, too. Your sign is gorgeous and it’s so much better when something is homemade.