Wine and Canvas

took a class at a Mexican restaurant in long beach. we did the Koi Pond. we were packed in there like sardines. their music system is the WORST I’ve ever heard. it was too loud and it crackled lots of times. just do without the music. it’s a distraction anyway.
the instruction itself was okay. first the teach was too slow and then when we got to the details of the painting, time was running out and he started rushing through. I liked the project but we didn’t need two 10 minute breaks.

Have to say… this is one of the worst living social deals I’ve purchased. When I initially bought the deal, they offered a Beverly HIlls location. They then proceeded to cancel that location so I was left with either Santa Monica or Westwood (which both are offered rarely)…or I could travel out to Pasadena or Ontario or Woodland Hills. These locations are ridiculously far, especially in the rush hour traffic. I tried emailing and it took several attempts to get a response from Marlee, who basically offered no solution to the problem at hand.
Will NOT be recommending this to any friends and thought it important enough to give you all a heads up on my experience!

I purchased a Living Social deal for this place for myself and a friend. We were so excited and immediately jumped online to check out the calendar. For starters, despite the fact that the deal was for Los Angeles, many of the classes listed are in Brea and Ontario. WTH? Being on the westside, even Pasadena is a huge trek.
The other sadness is that the schedule never changes (except for the paintings), meaning that if, say, you work weekends and can’t get to your local studio those days, you’re going to be SOL next month and the month after that too. Ultimately, my friend and I were never able to find a class that didn’t involve more than an hour in the car on a date that worked for both of us. I ended up using both certificates myself.
I sent an email asking for an extension on the expiration date so that I could get the class I wanted on a day I didn’t work. Never got a response.
I kept trying to find a night and a location that worked, and a few months later sent a second email. This time, Marley responded right away and told me that no, she would not extend the expiration date, but that I was «welcome» to sign up for a class in Orange County. Oh that’s nice. Am I also «welcome» to sign up for a class in San Francisco? No biggie, just purchase a plane ticket and go redeem my deal?
The concept of a painting party with wine is super fun, and that’s why this place gets two stars. I also thought the studio assistants and bartender in Pasadena were adorable and helpful and kept everybody laughing. But misleading people about the wine being included (so for Cookies and Canvas – do we have to pay for the cookies?), the complete lack of flexibility from the manager, and the assumption that folks are willing to drive to other counties to redeem their Living Social deals, makes me unable to recommend this business to anyone.
You all should go to Paint Lab in Santa Monica. The wine is included, as are some lovely nibbles – cheese, crackers, and fruit, and you don’t have to deal with any crappy shenanigans.

MISLEADING NAME: Wine and canvas (but wine NOT included). They should change their name, all you get when you get there is the canvas. Wine and drinks are separate and they don’t even offer good deals. The painting part is fun and relaxing although be prepared to be rubbing elbows with your neighbor. Fortunately had purchased a living social so saved some money, but was definitely expecting at LEAST a complimentary wine. More like «canvas and chips» only because the location we had it at served free chips.

3^rd time painting w/​Wine & Canvas. «Koi Pond»
Chris is probably my favorite instructor so far as he walked around more to see if students had questions. In fact, he offered to help those who had mentioned this was their 1^st time painting or who seemed unsure and offered to show how a technique was done on the students’ actual canvas. Julie, his assistant, was quick to squeeze more paints on our plates if she saw we were almost out.
I brought my last painting in to add touch-​ups. Though I didn’t ask for help, Chris was offering tips which was nice.
Venue: Jerry’s Deli
Cozy and private. My gripe was that they didn’t change some of the lights that went out so it REALLY affected my color palette. Servers went around to take orders.
Street parking enforcement is until 8 pm or 12pm and only 2 hours. Therefore, I parked in the Broxton parking lot ($ 3 after 6pm). I still prefer the Pasadena art studio for wine and canvas.

Let’s just be clear that there is no wine included in Wine & Canvas — just canvas. Misleading and false advertising, IMO. Even if we each got a glass of two buck chuck, I would be fine with that. I’m not asking for a top pour, just provide some sort of wine if the first word in the name of your company is wine… not sure it’s worth the $ 35 dollar price tag without wine included.
Also, there were so many people cramped into such a small space that it was really hard to paint. The canvases need to have more than 6″ separating them, especially if you’re hosting the event in a restaurant. There was absolutely no room for our drinks, let alone food. If I hadn’t been sitting in an aisle so I could pull up an extra chair as a table, I would have been screwed.
This company is a really good idea in concept, but the execution is poor.

I attended an event at Mimis in Huntington Beach. My friend and I had a great time and would definitely do it again. I mostly like the paiting I took home and I’ve gotten a lot of positive feedback on it.
I really think they need to change their name. Wine and canvas is super misleading. Wine is not provided at all, but you can buy it. I know they also have cookies and canvas, and I assume they provide the cookies, so it seems weird not to provide wine.
The lighting was dark in our location which may things hard to see. The people closer to the instructor/​light turned out with better paintings.
Overall, it was fun and I’d do it again, but really hope they consider changing their title.

The best discovery I’ve ever found on Living Social. I had no idea that this type of one-​time painting class existed in easily accessible locations around Orange County. It’s a great idea for an evening out with friends, a fun date, or some time alone. I always take home a piece of work that I’m proud of.
/​/​Directions /​/​
Usually I write driving directions, but since this has many different locations, these are sign up instruction instead. Go to their website and pick Los Angeles from the Locations Menu. Go to the Calendar page. Pick a painting/​date you like and fill in your rsvp information. At the event itself, look for the private room and check-​in with the workers setting up. Pick a seat and order some food/​wine if you’d like. People looking to organize private parties or corporate events can email the business — they are very quick to reply.
Pros:
— The cheapest price for this type of activity in Orange County (their main competitor in OC charges $ 65, while Wine and Canvas charges $ 35).
— All supplies (canvas, paint, brushes, apron) provided. You don’t need to do anything except show up and follow instructions. Paint is refilled as well.
— Artists provide easy instructions and sometimes a bunch of witty jokes on the side.
— Some restaurant venues provide snacks (like El Cholo in Irvine).
Cons:
— NO WINE. A glass of wine is not included in your class; you must order it from the venue where the class is located. For a business that’s called «Wine and Canvas,» this is very misleading. While they do warn you that wine is not included on their website, a lot of people get confused.
— The assistants are hit or miss; some of them can be annoying.
— Time limitations. The classes usually start late to accommodate people arriving late, and the artists often rush at the end. This means that the background is always given a lot of attention, but the front objects end up looking childish due to the lack of time and advice about those details.
— Some restaurant venues are very cramped in terms of space (like Mimi’s Café in Costa Mesa) or suffer from poor lighting.

Deal Alert Update:
Just got an e-​mail that you can purchase a certificate for $ 25.00 to be used for a regularly priced event ($ 35.00) for today (July 20^th) only on their website.
If any of my Unilocal friends want to sign up for one in Pasadena let me know and I’ll sign up. Van Gogh would be nice or some of the Paris scenes.

Definitely a MUST DO with Girlfriends, Boyfriends, or any Friends. I happened to stumble upon this deal on Living Social and immediately had to buy it. My friend and I went into this class excited and a little nervous. We enrolled in the Starry Night class. A bit of a reach but hey why not. We both haven’t painted since oh gosh knows when. Little did we know, we had a bit of Van Gogh in us after all: D
Instructor and the staff were really friendly and helpful. He, the instructor, took his time showing us «tricks» of the trade he’d call it. Everyone was provided an easel, canvas, apron, brushes, and paint. Best thing besides getting a painting class step by step help was the fact that we didn’t have to worry about any clean ups! WooHoo. Just come, paint, enjoy, relax, and have a worry/​mess free time. :P

You should know that wine isn’t really included in this. I found this greatly disappointing. You do, however, have the opportunity to purchase wine at the venues they’re in, but it is a bit misleading in the title (that’s the main reason I took away stars). My friend and I picked up the Living Social voucher. I came along because she really wanted to do it, and it’s an excuse to hang out. The thing we had to paint was pretty ugly, but the instructors break it down so that nearly anyone can learn how to paint decently. My friend, who claims she’s not artistic at all, was able to follow everything and ended up with great results.
The 3 hours goes by pretty quickly. This is sort of an art class and sort of not. There’s no time spent on technique or anything. It’s really more like a paint-​by-​numbers style of teaching. It’s not a serious class at all, but more like a social activity. Good idea for a date!

I snagged two of the living social vouchers for this when it came up, one for me and one for the bf. We used it for our late anniversary celebration last night and it was SO MUCH FUN. We were late arriving but they still allowed us to come in and caught us up pretty quick. We picked a easier painting, Le Chat Noir, so it was easy to catch us up. Had we picked one of the harder ones, like Starry Night, I don’t know if we would have been able to. Anyways, everyone was provided an easel, canvas, apron, brushes, and paint. It was so much fun to paint, I haven’t done anything since art class in high school! There’s all levels of talent here, so you don’t feel out of place if you’re really good or really bad, lol. Everyone was just there to have fun, and the instructors are more than willing to come and help you personally when you ask for it. In the end we were able to catch up to everyone and now we have 2 lovely kitty paintings to show for it too! I would love to do it again, perhaps one of their ‘date night’ ones where you and your date paint complementary paintings that will go together at the end of the night! Much more practical than having 2 of the same painting, lol.
One thing with the voucher was that, we had ordered drinks thinking it was part of the ‘wine and canvas’ voucher we had purchased, but turns out it isn’t. But that was our own fault, so it wasn’t a big deal, and not like it costed much more anyways.
I highly recommend this for a date night!

I purchased a groupon for one of the painting event. Regular price $ 35. The event was at El Toritos Grill in Torrance.
I chose the event based on the painting, not the location.
Quality: They provide aisle, different size of paint brush, apron, paper plate as pallet for paint, and decent quality of canvas. The art teacher goes around and talks to you individually about your painting.
Location: Although wine is not included in this event, which I am slightly disappointed because the name of this company is «WINE and canvas». But it wasn’t stated in the event description, so I am okay with that. You can order drinks and appetizer/​food while you paint. The great thing is that you can be comfortably munch on food and zip your wine while painting.
This is a great event to go to! I enjoyed it so much. Mostly because I literally went there right after work. You don’t need to bring anything to attend the class, they provide everything that you need, and the good thing is that you don’t have to clean up afterward. You leave the place with an amazing painting that you created, and the apron covers from chest to your ankle. So you won’t get dirty either.
Parking situation was good, no valet or parking fee.
Advice for if you are going to attend the class:
–Sign up early! The classes fill up pretty fast.
–The table is a bit small, only a wine glass can fit in between the aisle without causing anything to fall out. I would recommend sitting on the booth if you have a friend to go with, table is a bit bigger.
— If you are an artist or paint by number nerds, bring your own brush for smaller and more detail works. They do provide #0 brush though.
–Bring an extra plastic cup for rinsing brushes. I walked to the bathroom 2 – 3 times to change the water.
Make sure to arrive on time. Because the teacher goes over the technique pretty fast (Enough to paint, but they don’t wait for you to start the class!)
If you are nervous, just order some wine and keep painting ;)

I went last night to the Tiato in Santa Monica, believe me it was a ridiculous drive from Glendale, but luckily I had the day off and afforded the time to sit through traffic.
GREAT location — completely free validated parking, and attentive wait staff at Tiato and from Wine and Canvas as well. They really prepe everything form start to finish and if I needed more paint or water or anything, they were right there to assist 40 of us. Amazingly organized and Tiato even had a special menu for the Wine and Canvas people — 4 $ for sweet potato fries? uh yes please.
The only qualm i would have is that we spent too much time in the beginning drawing the sky and clouds and at the end which required the most detail felt very rushed. But overall, AMAZING experience. loved it :)

I had a fantastic experience. It was really enjoyable. Wine and Canvas apparently goes to different locations within the LA County area. Last night, it was held at El Cholo in Pasadena.
There was a host present at El Cholo. He kindly told me that the Wine and Canvas event was held in a private room and directed me to that room. Once I had arrived at the room, the instructor and assistants checked me into the venue. On the website, it says that people should arrive at least 15 – 30 minutes prior to starting to ensure a good seat. Well, I got a good seat right next to the instructor’s easel but the venue was rather empty until a couple of minutes before the start. Even after the start time, the painting session started late (approximately 15 minutes). I wish they started on time so I had more time to paint instead of feeling rushed.
When they check you in, they provide you with a canvas that is 16×20. The paint is already there next to the easel where you will be placing your canvas. Oh, the Wine and Canvas painting session does not include the alcohol. In fact, El Cholo has a happy hour from 3−7pm so it was advantageous of me to order my drinks before 7pm to take advantage of the happy hour pricing. I would recommend anyone engaging in this to drink before you start. One lady was freaking out that she would not be able to do it and I told her to have some drinks.
Even though I had gotten a great seat, there was not much room between you and your neighbor and the table itself. Throughout the night, I was thinking whether someone would tip over their drink or water bucket on my canvas due to the close proximity of everything. I wish the venue was larger than the room we were in.
The instructor goes through the painting step by step. Overall, the instructor was pretty thorough with the kind assistants helping people with more paint and instruction. Since I was next to the instructor, I just asked her instead. On some of the steps, I felt a little rushed… but again, we would have had more time if we had started on time. Towards the end with my buzz, I was able to complete my tree painting. It had turned out nicely although it could have been better.
After looking at the image of the painting that we were trying to mimic online after I had gotten home, I noticed different colors of the leaves. The instructor had only mentioned two but clearly there were three. I wish we had an image (postcard size) by our easel to look at, especially if I were a person who did not get a good seat or is visually challenged.
Other than that, I had a great time with help from my margaritas and the staff at Wine and Canvas. When I left, even with validation I had to pay an extra $ 6. The best part was looking at some of the paintings after they were completed. One lady had the misfortune of painting a dead looking tree with a clear absence of foliage. Oh well, at least she tried, but her painting made me laugh. I would love to do this again.

AWESOME Experience. I went to the Torrance location last night and the instructor and «assistants» were great. Such a fun time and my painting turned out amazing. I cant wait to sign up again (and Ive already recruited all my friends)