Trading spaces – Creative Spirits and Oregano’s swap locations

We are excited to share the news that we’ll be trading spaces with Oregano’s Pizza Bistro (west side) at 605 W. Riordan Road in mid-April. The amazing team at Oregano’s approached us about the switch before Christmas, and we’re so excited to have the opportunity to move in to the historic house they’ve occupied for so many years.

Originally built in the 1920s in the ‘arts and crafts’ style of architecture, the former Riordan Mansion Gate House currently occupied by Oregano’s will provide us with the perfect atmosphere and ambience for BYOB paint and sip parties. We are so excited to move into a space that offers such incredible character, history and unique charm.

  • Creative Spirits will trade spaces with Oregano’s in mid-April
  • If all goes well, we will plan a grand re-opening and $25 studio sale night on Saturday, April 21
  • We still paint three nights a week in downtown Flagstaff
  • See our full schedule at www.CreativeSpiritsAZ.com/calendar

Creative Kids Summer Camp to be held in new studio location

This will be our last summer with Maddie Adams – she’s graduating from NAU in May! Join Maddie and Keli, last year’s summer camp instructors, for ONE WEEK of fun June 11-15. Children ages 5-8 will meet each day that week from 9 a.m. to noon. Older kids ages 9-13 will meet in the afternoons from 1-5 p.m.

$165 for the week includes a camp T-shirt and all materials. All your kiddo needs is a snack and water bottle! Your child will have fun with acrylic and watercolor painting; drawing/sketching; learning about famous artists; tie-dying camp T-shirts; and creating art projects they get to take home. This year’s curriculum includes different lessons from last summer, so if you joined us then, come back for more fun!

Register now at www.CreativeSpiritsAZ.com/calendar. You can pay in full for the week, or make a non-refundable $50 deposit to hold space in this year’s camp. Remainder of payment due the first day of camp.

We’ll be in our NEW location at 605 W. Riordan Road (formerly Oregano’s Pizza Bistro) with plenty of space to enjoy indoor and outdoor activities. We might even produce some squirt-gun watercolor paintings…

Thanks for an amazing first year!

Happy Holidays and Happy New Year! Just before Christmas, we celebrated our one-year anniversary of the purchase of Creative Spirits. We are planning to ring in the New Year together, fondly remembering what was probably our 5th straight 18-hour day when we toasted an almost-done studio at midnight on January 1, 2017. We were able to reopen with our first customers on Jan. 5, and have had such a great year with you all since.

We’ve hosted birthday parties, team-building events, kids’ art classes, a children’s week-long summer camp, and bachelorette parties. We’ve built a team of incredibly talented local artists: Lainey, Destanee, Dana, Andrew, Eric, Maddie, Savannah, Jenaye and Emily! They each have unique teaching styles and we love them all. We’re now painting in three downtown Flagstaff locations, enjoying partnerships with Blendz, Vino Loco, and Cuvee 928. We’ve even traveled to Prescott for paint events!

One of our goals as business owners was giving back to the community; in 2017, we donated almost $6,000 to area non-profits through gifts in-kind and cash donations. Shortly after we opened, we began hosting monthly fundraising nights for local non-profits through our downtown paint events. Each month, we picked a wine bar and each week, $10 of every paint night registration there went to a different deserving group, including High Country Puppy Rescue, Victim Witness Services of Coconino County, The Arboretum at Flagstaff, Arizona Nation of Patriots, Feeding Northern Arizona’s Future, North Country HealthCare’s Maternal and Child Health Department, Coconino Community College Foundation, Quality Connections and Red Feather Development Group.

We’ve also donated gift certificates for various fundraisers as well as painted canvases that are produced by our artists as part of each class. For example, we donated about 100 paintings to Sharon Manor, a safe haven for domestic violence survivors, with the intention of providing décor for resident apartments or to help raise funds in their thrift store, Sharon’s Attic. We also took up collections for hurricane relief as part of community canvas painting events in downtown Flagstaff. The Hurricane Harvey canvas from Flagstaff is hanging in the Houston Northwest Chamber of Commerce!

We can’t wait to see what we can do with the help of the Flagstaff community in 2018! We’re already planning to benefit organizations including Flagstaff Shelter Services, Go Baby Go-NAU, and Literacy Volunteers.

Please save the date for our children’s summer camp the week of June 11-14, 2018. We will likely split into two groups again this year so save mornings from 9 to noon for 5-8 year olds and afternoons from 1-5 for 9-12 year olds.

Happy New Year!

Houston feels the Flagstaff love!

The community canvas that was created on First Friday in downtown Flagstaff for Hurricane Harvey relief is now hanging in the Houston Northwest Chamber of Commerce. Check out their Facebook page at @HoustonNWChamber – there is a post about Flagstaff from October 18. Great job, Flagstaff community!

Thanksgiving, a bit early

With your support, we have been able to work toward one of our missions from the start – giving back to the community. Since February, we have been raising money for local organizations in various ways. Each month, we pick events at either Blendz or Vino Loco to benefit a different group. $10 of each participant’s registration that night goes to these groups.

Additionally, Creative Spirits was able to donate gift certificates for classes as well as over 200 painted canvases throughout the Northern Arizona community. The canvases were used to spruce up interior spaces, sold at several silent auctions to raise money for various efforts, or even painted over as blank canvases to be used in art programs. During September’s Art Walk, Creative Spirits and Blendz hosted a Community Canvas painting opportunity at the wine bar, located across from Heritage Square. Creative Spirits collected donations for the American Red Cross to provide Hurricane Harvey relief. We are so proud to say we’ve been able to partner with the community to do these things, all in our first year of business!

Together, we’ve raised over $1,300 for the community. Here are the organizations you’ve helped us touch so far, one canvas at a time:

High Country Puppy Rescue – Saves the lives of young puppies across Arizona from neglectful or harmful situations and finds them homes in a new loving, caring environment

Victim Witness Services of Coconino County – Offers compassionate support and resources to victims, witnesses and survivors of crime and crisis through effective response and community outreach

The Arboretum at Flagstaff – Home to 750 species of plants in greenhouses, gardens, and natural habitats, located on 200 acres in the Coconino National Forest

Nation of Patriots Arizona– Works on a national level to promote the awareness of and financially support the physical, emotional, and economic misfortune that our wounded veterans and their families live with

Feeding Northern Arizona’s Future – Provides around 2,000 elementary age students in Flagstaff, Winslow and Williams with meals and snacks over the weekend, when they otherwise might not see a meal from Friday’s lunch at school to Monday’s breakfast at school

North Country HealthCare’s Maternal and Child Health Program. Program funds go to Healthy Steps and Health Start to purchase car seats for families that need them.

Our benefit nights are scheduled through the remainder of the year, and here are the organizations who will be recipients of a portion of your registration on our designated fundraiser nights:

  • October (Vino Loco wine bar, Wednesday nights)  – Coconino Community College Foundation. Promotes the purpose and goals of Coconino Community College and enhances the opportunities of Coconino County residents.
  • November (Blendz wine bar, Monday nights) – Quality Connections. Provides services to local individuals with a wide variety of disabilities to help enhance their quality of life. Through employment and training services, Montessori-based learning programs, and residential programs, QC strives to provide their clients with a sense of independence and self-esteem.
  • December (Vino Loco wine bar, Wednesday nights) – Red Feather. Red Feather partners with American Indian nations to develop sustainable solutions to the housing needs within their communities. Serves the Hopi and Navajo Nations in Arizona, and the Northern Cheyenne in Montana.

June, July fundraising benefits

In June, $10 from all Vino Loco nights registrations also benefitted the Arboretum. In July, $10 of all Blendz night registrations will benefit the Nation of Patriots. To learn more, visit http://arizonanationofpatriots.com/about. Additionally, Creative Spirits will hold fundraiser painting classes for Nation of Patriots on July 8 at the Elks Lodge at 2101 N San Francisco St. Watch our website for more details!

 

Painting for Puppies-March 2017

Through March 2017, 50% of all Creative Outlet sales will benefit High Country Puppy Rescue. Every time we host a class, one of our artists paints a new demo painting that we put up for sale afterward. We have a TON of paintings for sale! Buy one for $30, or save and get two for $50! Also, $10 of every $30 Blendz event registration during March will benefit HCPR. Find out more about the rescue at www.highcountrypuppyrescue.org.

Loyalty cards are in!

Next time you are at the studio, don’t forget to ask for a loyalty card! They just arrived this week. Moving forward, with each paid registration for an in-studio, 16×20 canvas class, receive one stamp. Buy five classes, get the sixth free! When you’re ready to redeem, bring your completed card in and we’ll get you registered in the studio for that class. Or, call us and let us know when you’d like to redeem your card. 928.600.9291

Hanging canvas panels

Painted with us on a canvas board? You have some options if you’d like to hang your piece of art! Your canvas board will fit into a frame. Frames usually come equipped with saw-toothed hangers or some type of flat hook that will allow you to easily hang it. If you choose not to use a frame, any hardware store or even Target and Walmart will have a section of hooks, adhesives, etc. Command Tape is always a good option, as it simple to use and won’t ruin your walls. Another option is to adhere saw-tooth hangers to the back (using a reliable glue/epoxy) and hang from a small nail in the wall.