Want to get those creative juices flowing but don’t know where to begin? The Boston area is brimming with drop-in arts and crafts studios for you and your kids to get artsy — no appointment necessary!

Clay Dreams

183 Massachusetts Avenue, Arlington

Use your imagination while painting a unique pottery piece that can be enjoyed for years to come! Groups of five or fewer are walk-in only; reservations are required for groups of six or more. Take-home crafts are also available if you would like to complete your projects at home!

Look What I Made!

4 Lowell Road, North Reading

Choose from a wide variety of projects, including glass fusing, clay pottery painting, string art, board art, canvases, and so much more! You will surely be telling your friends to look at what you made! A variety of take-home crafts are also available if you would like to be creative in your own space.

Made by Me

1685 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge

Come in anytime, browse the shelves, and pick out the piece you’d like to paint. There are loads of things to choose from — mugs, cases, cookie jars, flowerpots, pet dishes, sushi plates, party animals, and so much more! Studio artists are available to help with tips and tricks! Groups larger than six are asked to make a reservation. “Port-A-Pottery” take-home kits are available if you would like to do your projects at home instead!

Magic Brush Pottery

361 Main Street, Tewksbury

Drop in to create your own ceramics, fused glass, canvas, and mosaics! Artists are on staff and available to help with any creation! Magic Brush Pottery also offers a variety of to-go packs, so you can create your masterpiece at home if you wish! 

Muckykids Art Studio

2404 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge

The drop-in studio at Muckykids offers art projects that are adaptable to just about all ages. No prior registration is required, and all are welcome to stop by during drop-in studio hours on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Artists are invited to do one of the projects, or roam the tables and do them all! A variety of projects are set up simultaneously and change weekly.

The Painting Place

380 Washington Street, Wellesley

Drop on in to paint pottery, plaster, or canvas, or to make candles, mosaics, or slime! Reservations are available online, and walk-ins are always welcome. “Take out” orders are also available if you would like to pick up your projects and work on them at home!

Parts and Crafts

561 Windsor Street, Suite B402, Somerville (in the Taza Chocolate building)

With a focus on creating, making, inventing, building, questioning, discovering, and being excellent to each other, ourselves, and the planet, Parts and Crafts is a welcoming environment for artists of all kinds. All activities are opt-in and child-directed, with the exception of cleanup time. All are welcome to drop in and create during open shop hours, which typically take place on Saturday afternoons and are free by donation. Check the website for a full schedule.

Pinspiration

3 Roche Bros Way, Easton

Select a project from dozens of current craft options, including art, decor, gifts, candle making, and accessories. They even have a splatter room if you want to get messy! Each person in your group can select their own unique craft. Reservations can be made online, and walk ins are welcome.

Deanna Greenstein
Deanna is a mom of five (yes, five) children, who lives in Brockton with her small circus of kids, her husband, their dog Penny, and a few cats. Her life is loud, energetic, mostly fun, often gross (did she mention four of those kids are boys?), and she wouldn't have it any other way. In between carting kids to school, baseball, gymnastics, guitar, dance, track and field and every other kid activity known to mankind, she works as a school bus driver for the city of Brockton, and is the Director of Religious Education at the Unity Church of North Easton, a Unitarian Universalist congregation. Deanna also holds degrees in Elementary Physical Education and Dance Education, which she plans to put back into use one day. At parties, Deanna can often be found hanging out with family pets. She follows her children around with a camera like the paparazzi, is pretty sure that 97% of her blood stream is made of coffee, and her laundry is never done. You can also find her blogging at https://eighteenmoreyearsofburpsandfarts.wordpress.com