Paint a Piece, Germantown

Creativity takes shape in ceramics, glass, and silver at Paint a Piece. Aspiring smiths craft pendants and charms from moldable nuggets of silver clay, stamping them with names, numbers, and even thumbprints before turning them to the staff to be fired and polished. During glass-fusing classes, students assemble colorful, translucent shapes to be melted into dishes or striking puddles. More than 100 pieces of white bisque await pottery painters, who not only train glaze-coated brushes on their dishes and figurines but also use stamps, stencils, stickers, and carbon paper. A kiln waits to receive projects in its 1,850-degree embrace.

To foster that artistic spark, the studio hosts parties and field trips, as well as summer day camps for children. A year-round calendar of special events successfully spackles over boredom with BYOB nights, storytelling sessions, and tween workshops.