“I want people to come in to escape from the problems of their world or their life,” Garrison said. “[Painting With a Twist] is a good opportunity for carefree escape.”
Classes and events are BYOB, but the business provides customers with all other supplies, Garrison said, from paints and canvases to glasses and corkscrews. While Friday and Saturday nights are usually the busiest evenings, Garrison said the studio’s most popular offering, hands down, is its “Paint Your Pet” class.
“We’ve had [people paint] dogs, cats, hamsters, rabbits, a raccoon, geckos—we actually had a goldfish once,” she said.
The business has also done several Texas-themed evenings and even offered a Galentine’s Day session featuring nude male models, which sold out, Garrison noted. She said the company’s next big holiday is Mother’s Day.
“[People] can paint with Mom, they can give gift certificates, or they can just buy a class for Mom, send her and be her designated driver,” Garrison said.
The coronavirus pandemic could have been a real crisis for Garrison’s business, but Painting With a Twist was successful in pivoting to virtual events and kits for painting at home last year, she said.
“The Richardson community supported us amazingly,” she said. “We were very impressed with what they did ... to take care of us and keep us in business during that time.”
That support meant a lot to Garrison, who said she was also drawn to Painting With a Twist because of how it promotes giving back to the local community.
“We do what we call ‘Painting With a Purpose’ fundraisers, and we have raised a lot of money for the community,” Garrison said.
Garrison, who also owns a Painting With a Twist location in Mansfield, said her studios have held fundraisers for victims of Hurricane Harvey; Operation Kindness and other animal rescues; breast cancer charities and more.
Painting With A Twist
819 W. Arapaho Road, Richardson
469-802-6333
www.paintingwithatwist.com/studio/richardson
Hours: Tue.-Sun. hours vary, closed Mon.
