NEWPORT NEWS-There’s a new paint and sip art studio opening on the Peninsula.
The Virginia Peninsula Chamber and Brandon Gist, owner of the new establishment, invite the public to a ribbon cutting ceremony from noon to 1pm on Friday, November 18 to celebrate the opening of Wine & Design located at 882 J. Clyde Morris Blvd. in Newport News. The studio will offer a wide range of affordable private and public paint and sip parties for all ages, groups, and talents.
The franchise owner said he’s been hosting “On Wheels” pop up paint parties at local venues on the Peninsula while he patiently awaited the opening of his first brick and mortar.
“We’ve done two at Crane Cafe in Yorktown, and we’ve been to Jose Tequilas and Dawg Houz Cigars in Williamsburg multiple times,” said Gist.
Gist has worked a full-time job at Casey Toyota in Williamsburg for the past ten years. He was introduced to sip and paint parties about six years ago and was attracted to a celebratory backdrop the artistic events lend.
“The first event that I went to was someone’s birthday and the second event someone was proposed to and got engaged,” said Gist. “Wine & Design offers a fresh way for people to connect, and I just love that sort of environment.”
The opportunity to immerse himself and others in an environment of self-expression brings balance to working within a busy automobile service department.
“Unfortunately, I don’t work in a happy place, sometimes people would rather go to the dentist than get their vehicle serviced,” Gist joked. “There’s a tremendous amount of talent around here and I’m looking forward to providing an artistic base in the area.”
Wine & Design will be open seven days a week from noon to 5pm and will host painting events in the evenings.
“During the day, people are welcome to come in and have a glass of wine, sit down with the artist and just have at it,” said Gist. “We’ll also have a splash room at our location where customers can take a canvas, along with paints we provide, and throw paint at it. It’s kind of similar to a destruction room.”
The studio will offer painting classes every evening at 6:30pm in addition to classes for kids at 2pm on Sunday, and classes at 9:30pm on Friday and Saturday for couples looking to make memories within a date-night atmosphere.
The first Wine & Design sip and paint studio was established in 2010 by Harriet Mills in Raleigh, NC. After two years in operation, Mills realized her dream was to assist other entrepreneurs and Wine & Design’s first franchise was opened in Cary, NC.
Members of the community who are interested in attending the ribbon cutting are asked to register for the event on Virginia Peninsula Chamber’s website.
Wine & Design is located next to H&R Block and Sam’s Hot Dog Stand in the Newport Square Shopping Center. For more information about the studio, call 757-771-9905 or visit its website.