ABQ Canvas and Coffee

Love birds, put this place on your date spot list. Parents, get ready for some quality time with the kiddos. You won’t be selecting anything from your Recently Watched queue, there’s no streaming video or wi-​fi involved whatsoever, just something apparently referred to as the Creative Process, and I’ll be damned if this stuff ain’t worth a million hits of dopamine Likes. It’s just good old fashioned painting and crafting, no booze involved, and I loved it.
Terry and Steve own a seriously eclectic, dynamic little hole-​in-​the-​wall on 4^th, a natural reflection of their personalities; Steve’s the more measured artistic type, somewhat calculated, whereas you get the feeling Terry could flip her festive Greek switch at any moment. They teach painting classes together in the back room of their paint and antique store, and recently they’ve been wandering into multi-​media territory on the canvasses. I was a lucky guest at their first course ever, actually. I loved the intimate setting (12 people maxed the room out), the laid back less-​regimented rhythm (our class ran three hours; painting classes are at least two), and I truly enjoyed my little masterpiece, a sweet lil’ birdy sittin’ on a branch, singin’ a love song. It’s going up in my daughter’s bedroom, stat.
As I mentioned, the place doesn’t serve wine or any other booze by principle: they wish to be considered a family-​friendly space, and that was evident to me as I watched the mom next to me getting her craft thing on with her unbelievably talented little girl. But this is a truly stellar place to get to know or reignite your lovely. They do private classes, too, including birthday parties for kids, and from what I hear they have a mighty fine time. I’m just thrilled this biz is yet another solid local addition to a stretch of the North Valley that, I’m convinced, will be a huge hot spot once construction makes it bike and pedestrian friendly.

I went to a fun girls night painting event. We had such a good time. We had dessert and we laughed, and we all left with beautiful paintings. I can’t wait to go again.
I brought my kids to one of the kids painting classes before. They had a ball and got to eat cookies and have tea while they painted. They both wish they could come every weekend. Terry and Steve are super nice and do a good job helping when you need it.