It has been a pretty hot summer here in Southern California, so I decided to ditch the OC Fair and check out the sip and paint Event at Pinot's Palette at the Bella Terra Center in Huntington Beach. This is a new Pinot's Palette location that just opened up. I signed up for the Cherry Blossom Tree Event which was their first "Official" opening event on August 5, 2017.
They had everything set up for me when I arrived. If you join the Pinot's Perk club, then you can collect cork points toward future discounts and specials. Additionally, by joining you can also make special seating requests (for those coming in large groups and want to be seated together).
Each person had their place ready for them with their name written on the table. It is a cute way to make sure every guest is set up and ready to go. You can order your beverage of choice as soon as you arrived, which is what I did. It was too hot a day for me to order wine, so I ordered sparkly water.
Since this was their first "official" event (they had a few soft opening events earlier in the week). They set the class up a little differently than the normal class would flow.
Each teacher did a different part of the class so students could be introduced to a variety of teaching (presentation) styles.
So the first instructor started us off with a toast.
The next instructor should us how to start the painting.
Every 20 minutes or so, they switched out the teachers until we were finished with our paintings.
This continued until the entire class was finished. We all had a chance to finish our paintings. The staff was so wonderful and helpful. Each teacher took the time to interact with each guest. They also kept checking to see if we need more paint and/or more beverages. You can't beat that type of atmosphere.
One of the things that I like about this particular company is that the instructors do not force you to do it their way. This is about having fun. They inform everyone that if they do not want to do the painting the way it is being demonstrated or if they want to change the subject matter on their own canvas that it is ok to go ahead and be creative. Basically, they just want their guests to have a fun evening and create something of their own. The Pinot's Palette in Huntington Beach does have a Facebook page where they post discounts and upcoming events.
If you check out the Pinot's Pallet website page, you can see upcoming events and the varied painting styles that are offered.
Additionally, I thought that the selection of wine and beers was really good.
I loved that they offer mimosa Sundays (events on Sundays are around 11:00 am so the timing is great). I had a headache (from the Summer heat) so I choose to not wear my glasses while painting nor enjoy a nice glass of wine. I found that despite my limited visual ability, my painting came out pretty good and I was really happy with it. Plus I had a really fun night surrounded by some very creative people. If you want to know when their next class is, my advise is to either get on their email or check out their facebook page.
Disclaimer: I was not paid for this review. I paid for my class with my own money. These are my own experiences with this company which may vary from others. The best way to figure out if this type of event is for you is to check one out in person.
There is another Pinot's Pallet location in Tustin, California that offers different paint subjects.
