by Haley Christofilis
There are plenty of places that offer painting classes, but Paint Parties To Go is the only company in the area to offer them in a personal, comfortable and relaxed setting: your home! These art parties are an innovative and creative way for friends to spend time together in a private setting while creating an original masterpiece in just a couple of hours.
The woman behind Paint Parties To Go, Cheryl Green, never expected to be doing what she loves as a career. From an early age, teachers and family recognized her skill as an artist, but she wasn’t ever planning to pursue art as a lifelong profession. “I always drew for fun, and my first experience with painting was in the 5th grade. When we did oil painting my teacher entered mine into an art competition in Houston, and my painting won for the citywide event. For so many years after that I wondered what could have been…I didn’t major in art in college because I thought there wasn’t any money to be made. I went to Corpus Christi A&M for premed, then I decided on nursing. After a year of that I transferred to UTSA for one semester, then I landed a job at USAA and decided to go to Incarnate Word, where I majored in business management.”
Cheryl has two young boys, five and eight years old. After the birth of her first son, she quit her job at USAA and stayed at home to take care of him. Remaining at home with him caused her to become occasionally restless, so when she had time she sought out a different outlet to engage in and to get out of the house. One of the outlets she found was taking art classes, which she enjoyed for four years. She also loves to exercise, so she became certified to teach fitness classes. Cheryl explains, “One of the women in my neighborhood who knew I painted had been to a painting workshop the night before she came to my class. The next morning, she approached me and said, ‘You could do that! You could come out and teach art classes!’” So began the small endeavor, to try something new and fun, that has since turned into a mobile business that Cheryl takes all over the San Antonio and Boerne area. Since the first party at the woman’s house who gave her the idea nearly a year ago, Cheryl’s parties have been a huge hit – she now books about seven parties a month, all by word-of-mouth referrals.
She has had parties for all kinds of occasions – girls’ night out, children and adult birthday parties, and bachelorette parties. She charges $30 per adult guest and $20 per kid. She shows up before the guests arrive, sets up the easels and canvases as well as the paints and brushes you’ll use. She supplies all of the materials; all you need to do is clear one of your rooms, supply the chairs, food and beverages, and Cheryl comes in and turns your home into a private art studio! Cheryl helps determine what the group will paint based on a conversation with the host before the party. She brings a model of the painting that everyone will recreate, and then paints another version of it as an example. Then she leads you and your friends step-by-step through how to make your own unique creation. Since she uses acrylic paint, the creations are dry by the end of the evening.
“I never saw myself as a teacher, since I didn’t think I’d have the patience, but it’s where my life has taken me, and I’m having so much fun doing it.”
