Art and Creative Classes

Winner: Tomato-Tomato Creative Space
Hosted within Creative Moms Toys in Renton, Tomato-Tomato Creative Space is certainly a spot to visit if you’re looking to pick up some crafty new skills with your tot. Design maven Kelly Affleck offers a variety of paint- and glitter-filled classes, including button making, screen printing, spin art and much more. Readers noted that Affleck always has the “best creative twists on even the most basic of projects” and that “she thinks up the neatest crafts that are just perfect for little hands.”

Finalists:
Roaring Mouse Creative Arts Studio in Seattle gets a big old shout for its “experienced teaching staff, great families” and “homespun excellence,” offering creative classes for the preschool set ages 3 to 5.

Say yippie-kai-yay for Black Horse Art Studio in Sammamish, a favorite among voters for its combination of art and horseback riding classes.

Featuring a variety of arts, play and enrichment classes and camps, Orange Blossom Society in Redmond hits a sweet spot for its “amazing instructors, creative space” and “nice people.”

Bainbridge Island’s IslandWood, a 255-acre outdoor learning center, gets votes for its unique nature craft projects and ethnobotany activities, with one parent saying, “What better place to learn how to express yourself than out in nature?” (IslandWood also ranked high among finalists for its day, overnight and nature camps as well.)

Thrive Art School offers two Seattle locations for mini, growing and fully-grown Monets of all skill levels. Boasting an array of camps and classes for both beginners and masters-in-training, voters love that the instructors “teach fine art skills while promoting creativity.”