How about a date night activity that gives you a souvenir from your time together?
Driftwood Ceramics in North Kansas City is a pottery studio that offers classes and open workshops. On Friday and Saturday nights they have a Pots & Pints class. You learn how to make a cup, bowl or plate while sipping a pint of beer (or glass of wine) if you like. My husband and I had never done anything like this before, and it was a lot of fun! I was surprised at how hard—and yet how easy—it was to shape the clay. It takes some getting used to, as does the pottery wheel. Once you’re finished, you leave your pieces there to cure, get fired in the kiln and be glazed in a color of your choice. The whole process takes about three weeks, then you can pick up your finished pieces.
Located in the historic Englewood neighborhood (Independence), just a couple doors down from the old Ben Franklin store, is Englewood Arts Center. This place has got it all: glassblowing, ceramics, woodworking, textiles, painting, performing arts and more. It’s a place for artists to hone their craft. It’s also a place to learn about and engage in the arts through classes, exhibits and arts camps for kids. We tried our hand at glassblowing recently through a Make-Your-Own class, and wow! Such a fun and unique experience. The process takes about 30 minutes from start to finish. Kevin, the instructor, has been blowing glass for 18 years, so we were in good hands. He was great at explaining everything and made us feel relaxed. I have to admit I was a little nervous. But as long as you follow Kevin’s instructions, there’s no need to be. It’s all very hands-on, from rolling the hot glass into colored shards, to heating the glass in the furnace, to blowing into a tube to form the bowl. The reward is getting to see your finished product several days later. Beautiful!
Embers Candle Bar in downtown Lee’s Summit offers a pour-your-own-candle experience. We recently tried it, and it couldn’t have been simpler. First, you choose your candle jar—these range in price from $16 to $50+ depending on size. (You can also opt to do a room spray or wax melts.) Next, you choose 2–3 of their 60+ scents, which include fragrances like rain, Meyer lemon, leather and margarita. Once you’ve made your choices, you locate the corresponding oils and concoct your perfect blend. (I used coconut and island sunset, while my husband opted for blackberry suede and sel de mer.) This is added to your jar of hot wax and left to set for 60–150 minutes. We sadly had to leave our candles there overnight as we were one of the last appointments of the day. But we were not at all disappointed when we got them back. They both smell amazing!
Hannah Berry is a freelance writer who lives in the Northland with her husband. They love to explore Kansas City and try new restaurants and activities. Check out her Facebook page, Out & About in KC.
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Driftwood Ceramics
Pottery studio dedicated to teaching a wide variety of classes and providing an open studio for artists.
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Embers Candle Bar
Embers Candle Bar is a Pour Your Own fragrance and candle experience. Define your fragrance.
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