This is a decision guide from us, and we should say that up front: we run the workshops described below. It is written for someone who has never taken a craft class and does not know where to start, so it includes the parts most studios leave out, like which classes are loud, which are messy, and who each one is wrong for.
Our in-person studios are in New York (Midtown and the Financial District), San Francisco (SoMa and the Financial District), San Jose, Honolulu, Los Angeles, Irvine and Austin. We also run live virtual classes.
The minimum age for our in-person workshops is 10. That is the single most common reason a booking turns out to be wrong, so it is worth knowing before you read any further.
Three Questions That Decide It
- How much mess and noise are you comfortable with? Some classes are quiet and tidy. Others involve soil, melted wax, adhesive, or a loud tufting gun.
- Do you want a living thing that needs care, or an object that needs nothing? This one question separates the terrarium from the moss art, and people regularly pick the wrong side of it.
- Do you want to sit and focus, or be on your feet?
If you are in a hurry: moss wall art for calm and no upkeep, rug tufting for the most physical option, the Turkish mosaic lamp for the most impressive thing to carry out. The rest of this walks through each one properly.
How Our Classes Work
Every workshop assumes you have never touched the tools or materials before. An instructor demonstrates each step, then works at your pace.
For in-person sessions, all materials, tools and safety gear are included, and you complete your main project in one visit. If something needs curing or drying, that happens at home, but the piece leaves the studio with you the same day.
Class sizes and exact durations vary by location, and so does pricing — the same workshop is not the same price in every city. Check your local studio page for current rates and times rather than assuming.
Most seated classes are calm and easy to talk through. Rug tufting is noticeably louder and more active than everything else we run.
Choosing by Feel
Each craft has a feel in the room, and that matters as much as the finished object.
- Calm and meditative: moss wall art, aromatherapy perfume, and the Turkish mosaic lamp once you find a rhythm.
- Hands in the materials: terrariums with soil and plants, candle making with melted wax, clay and marbling.
- Loud or physical: rug tufting, and some woodburning setups.
- Strongly sensory: candle and perfume for scent, mosaic for colour and light, terrariums for texture.
If you are tired after a day at work, pick something seated. If you want to move, pick tufting. A 2025 systematic review of 19 studies in the Australian Occupational Therapy Journal found short-term improvements in anxiety, stress and well-being from craft-based activities, though the authors were careful to note the evidence does not show those benefits last long-term.
What You Actually Do in Each One
Rug tufting
You sketch or choose a design, stretch fabric onto a frame, and use a handheld tufting gun to punch yarn through the backing while standing. Then you glue and finish the back. Bold shapes and colour blocks work far better than fine detail on a first rug.
You take home: a custom tufted rug or wall hanging. The backing glue keeps curing at home.
The feel: loud, social and physical. You are standing for much of it and managing the weight and vibration of the gun. This is active making, not quiet crafting.
Not for you if: you want a quiet seated experience, or you cannot stand at a frame for the length of the session. No prior tool experience is needed — instructors set the gun and tension for you.
Turkish mosaic lamp
You choose a lamp shape, arrange pre-cut coloured glass tiles and beads onto a glass globe with adhesive, then grout and clean the surface. Symmetric or repeating patterns work better than complex images on a first attempt.
You take home: a working mosaic lamp, wired and ready to plug in.
The feel: fully seated and calm, focused on small pieces and pattern. It is the fiddliest thing we run and the one that most rewards patience.
Not for you if: you are impatient, in a rush, or easily frustrated by small pieces.
Terrarium
You layer drainage, substrate and decorative stone into glass, then select and plant small living plants and arrange moss and accents. We run several versions, including a self-sustaining signature terrarium, a Victorian-style Wardian case, and an aquatic terrarium built around water-loving plants.
You take home: something alive. It needs indirect light and occasional attention, and you get care instructions.
The feel: seated, tactile, focused on arrangement and plant choice.
Not for you if: you want a maintenance-free object, or your home has no natural light. This is the most common mismatch we see, and it is worth being honest with yourself about it before booking.
Moss wall art
You choose a frame, arrange preserved mosses in different textures and shades, and add accents like branches, bark or stones. The moss is preserved, so it needs no watering, no trimming and no light.
You take home: a framed moss piece ready to hang, which will not change much over time.
The feel: seated, calm and low-pressure. It is about composition rather than precision.
Not for you if: you specifically wanted to keep a living plant. This is the exact opposite of the terrarium, and people sometimes book it expecting one and get the other.
Candle making
You melt soy wax, blend fragrance and pour into containers. Some studios offer the option of a handmade mosaic candle holder instead of clear glass. Your candles finish setting at home.
The feel: seated, warm, scent-led.
Not for you if: you are sensitive to strong fragrance or heated wax.
Aromatherapy perfume making
You smell individual notes, blend oils into a base, test, adjust and bottle a custom scent. No glue, no wax, no soil.
The feel: the least messy thing we run, and entirely seated.
Not for you if: you have a reduced sense of smell or a fragrance sensitivity.
The rest of what we run
Depending on the city and the season we also run air-dry clay (seated, tactile, no kiln), block printing (carving a design and printing onto paper or fabric), woodburning (heated tips on wood, with safety instruction), Turkish water marbling or Ebru (floating pigment on water, visually dramatic), lantern making, and a Turkish coffee ceremony brewed on hot sand.
Availability genuinely differs by city, so check your local page rather than this list.
In Person or Virtual
Several of these run as live virtual classes as well. A kit ships free to the participant and a live instructor guides the session over video.
Plenty of online craft courses are pre-recorded. Ours are not, which is the whole point: you can ask a question mid-step and get an answer. That makes virtual the sensible option for remote teams and for anyone not near one of our studios.
In person gives you instructor feedback in the room, the energy of a full studio, and access to larger equipment like tufting frames, which do not travel.
Comparison
| Class | Activity level | Mess | Living or object | You take home | Not for you if |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rug tufting | Standing, physical | Medium | Object | Custom rug or wall hanging | You need quiet, or cannot stand |
| Turkish mosaic lamp | Seated | Low to medium | Object | A working lamp | You are impatient |
| Terrarium | Seated, light | Medium to high | Living | A planted glass garden | You want zero upkeep |
| Moss wall art | Seated | Low | Object, preserved | Framed moss art | You wanted a living plant |
| Candle making | Seated | Medium | Object | Scented candles | You are scent-sensitive |
| Aromatherapy perfume | Seated | Very low | Object | A custom perfume | You are scent-sensitive |
| Clay, printing, marbling, woodburning | Varies | Varies | Object | A finished piece | Check your city page first |
The trade-offs are consistent. More active crafts are louder and messier. Living crafts need ongoing care. Detailed crafts reward patience but take time. Zero-upkeep crafts are calmer and more forgiving of a first attempt.
What Every Class Has in Common
No prior experience is required. All tools and materials are provided, either in the studio or in the posted kit. Instructors demonstrate and then support you step by step. You leave with a finished piece the same day, with minor curing at home where needed.
The minimum in-person age of 10 applies in every city and to every craft. Check your location page for schedules, current projects and any accessibility notes.
Quick Answers
I have never done any art. Will I be behind? No. Every class is built for first-timers, and everyone in the room is starting from the same place.
What works for a group with mixed interests? Moss wall art, terrariums and candle making tend to suit varied groups. Avoid tufting if anyone cannot stand comfortably.
Can children join? The minimum age for in-person classes is 10. Check the individual listing for any additional notes.
How messy will I get? Terrariums involve soil, candle making involves wax, and mosaic uses adhesive and grout. Perfume and moss art stay tidy.
I have scent sensitivities. What is safest? Skip candle and perfume. Moss wall art, rug tufting and the mosaic lamp are unscented.
Can I bring my own drinks? BYOB is welcome at our New York Midtown studio in the Garment District and our New York Financial District studio. Please check with the studio for any other location rather than assuming.
How do I know what runs in my city? Check your city page and booking calendar. If you want a workshop you cannot see listed, email us and we will tell you when it is next scheduled.
The Short Version
Pick moss wall art if you want calm and nothing to look after. Pick rug tufting if you want to be on your feet and make something big. Pick the mosaic lamp if you want the most impressive object to carry out of the room.
And if you are choosing for someone else, the safest question is not which craft they would like. It is whether they want to end the evening with something alive or something finished.
