Painting & Vino

You know you’ve heard about it.  You ask a friend what he or she is doing tonight and “painting and vino!” is the reply.  But after hearing your grade school art teacher’s voice in the back of your head, telling you not to quit school when you turned in an art project, you know that you have zero skill as an artist.  So you just tell your friend to have fun, thinking that you shouldn’t waste your time and pay money to see yourself fail.

But think again.  Creating your very first painting might be easier than you think.

Painting and Vino, which has various locations in around San Diego, mostly in North County, is “the marriage of an entertaining painting class, sipping wine, listening to good music, and having a great time with friends.”  The class is taught over a three-hour period by one of three local artists: Kari Powell, Deron Cohen, and Lovejoy.  All of these artists have incredible backgrounds in painting and are eager to pass along their knowledge to you.  No experience is necessary.

For the price of admission, all supplies, excluding wine, are included for the project: aprons, paint, brushes, easels, and canvases.  While the instructor guides the class step-by-step to create that night’s painting, the experience is organic and each painter has free reign to deviate in any way he or she is moved.

I had the pleasure of attending a class recently.  Kari was our teacher and instructed us on how to paint “Moonlight Tree”.  The class took place at Tomiko in Encinitas where they served us food and drinks at happy hour prices all night.  I can honestly say that I have not picked up a paintbrush since my last high school art class, but found myself not only easily following the instructions, but also feeling incredibly relaxed.

Please note that most of the classes take place at venues where you must be 21 or older to participate due to the presence of alcohol.  On the Painting & Vino website, you can visit the calendar to see which painting is scheduled for each venue and whether there is an age requirement or not.  Finally, be on the look-out for Groupon and Living Social deals, which you should enter when you register on their website.

So don’t let your fear of painting stop you any longer; check out Painting & Vino today, because their classes sell out fast.”
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A Wisconsin native, Darcie Czajkowski has resided in San Diego since she was eighteen.  While she is an attorney by day, her fascination with relationships has led her to write women’s fiction at every change she gets.  An avid reader since she was a child, she also writes book reviews for Book Mama Blog.  When she’s not reading or writing, you can find her in the kitchen, cooking up a healthy meal for friends and family, hiking at Torrey Pines State Reserve, frequenting North County’s best happy hour spots, and traveling the world.