Last week, Ms.G took Nick, Jeanetta, and I on a walk around midtown to drop a few DRAW cards at places. After awhile she decided to take us to see the inside of R&F Handmade Paints and Bailey Ceramics. I was really excited about visiting both places. I've always walked past them but was too nervous to actually go inside to see what they did.

We went to R&F first as it was the closest. The small store near the front door of the building was filled with so many different types of painting materials. I was tempted to buy it all but the majority of it, sadly, was out of my price range. We also got to go deeper inside and see one of the art spaces they provided. There were small paintings hung all around the room. At the very back was a wall that was just dedicated to shelving their different pigment sticks. Many of which were in colors you can't find anywhere else. I was amazed to later learn that R&F works with the school and allows students to use their spaces to work on art. The visit made me wish I had put Chem For Artists on my schedule just so I could go back there.

After that we continued walking until we got to Bailey Ceramics. I had passed by the building prior to visiting with Ms.G but I never actually realized what it was. When you first enter, you're immediately greeted with a display case that is packed with ceramics of all kinds. There were the usual ceramic vases but they were painted with vibrant colors. There was even a tiny tea set and melting ice cream made out of clay being shown in the glass case. We got to walk around the showroom for a bit to see all the ceramic tools and look at more art. It was absolutely amazing. I could've wandered around forever just looking at the tools, kilns, and art.

Overall both trips were extremely fun and informative experiences. Both companies showed two different sides of art and made me want to try both more seriously. I would definitely love to go back again.

Allysia Stephenson

D.R.A.W member