Customize furniture at Painter’s Café

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This article was published 25/09/2017 (2967 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

There’s a unique new store in town, specializing in painting furniture and signs with chalk and milk paints. 

The Painter’s Café, at the corner of Grassie Boulevard and Plessis Road, is the unique creation of sisters Michele and Angie Zubrin. Their store is the only business in the city that offers regular classes, workshops, open studio time, custom signs and furniture in one place.

Michele is the carpenter and handles the business end of things, while Angie, a graphic designer, takes care of the creative side and painting. Each item is hand-painted, without the aid of stencils. Her beautifully painted signs, home decor and furniture are for sale in the store. Or, you can work with Angie to custom design to your own specifications. 

Michele’s enthusiasm for their shop is contagious. I’m excited to sign up for a class there. Every second Tuesday they host a Chalk Paint 101 course where they teach the techniques of painting and applying the protective wax coatings.

They purchase their chalk paint from a Canadian company in British Columbia, The FAT Paint Company. The paint has no VOC (volatile organic compounds) and The Painter’s Café offers all 42 colours to use in the studio or purchase to take home.  The beauty of chalk paint is that it can be applied without prior sanding, stripping, or priming, and it can be painted on a variety of materials, such as wood, glass or metal. 

In the new year, The Painter’s Café will add classes in milk paint techniques. Manufactured by another Canadian company, Homestead House, milk paint is biodegradable and also has no VOC. Milk paint is the oldest natural paint and contains milk protein, limestone, clay, chalk and natural pigments. When applied, this powder-based paint will develop a unique crackle on its own and, when it is sanded to a smooth finish, a rainbow of pigments are revealed. 

Every Friday evening, The Painter’s Cafe hosts a Fun Fridays workshop. No experience is necessary. It’s like those popular “paint nights” but, instead of painting canvas, you paint a wooden home décor item. Each week a new project is available to paint and take home, such as a message board or a stencilled serving tray. And, of course, beverages are served.

For an hourly fee, The Painter’s Café also offers open studio time. You can bring in your own piece or purchase one of their “grab and go” premade pieces. Buying studio time allows you full access to all their products to complete your project. 

To reserve a spot in a workshop, sign up online at www.thepainterscafe.com

Suzanne Hunter is a community correspondent for Transcona.