4Cats Arts Studio (Uptown Victoria)

The clay wheel class is a great time. Martin was our instructor and he was super friendly and helpful. Looking forward to the glazing session!

My friend and our daughters (6 and 10) attended a unicorn mug workshop. When we arrived and signed in nobody told us the space was open. We stood around in the entrance for about 10 -15 min and finally asked if we could go in. The space was so crowded it was ridiculous. I had a tiny corner of the table that was impossible to work on. I actually ended up leaving the table during painting to stand at a counter. I could not see or hear the instructor at all due to the crowding. I was floundering the whole time. I was also trying to help my 6 year old. I more than once asked one of the instructors to help her and they would say yes and walk away. My friend was constantly getting elbowed by the stranger beside her. This made her project very difficult to do. My friend, her 10 year old and I all were very frustrated the entire time. At the end when we were putting our mugs on the tray the instructor made a comment about my daughters mug being very likely to break due to how it was made. I left without comment. This was not a pleasant experience and I would not go back. Have not received the final product yet so I am unsure how it turned out.

We had my daughter's birthday party here today, it was awesome! The kids all had such a great time. Teddy Spaghetti ( our art instructor) was amazing and super helpful and patient when the kids needed help ( I cannot say enough how great he is).

Overall 4Cats (and the now 25Cats for Adults) is a fun spot. I've only attended adult classes - both clay and painting. They've added a glazing time for clay classes (an extra 30 minutes after the clay has its first firing that you book for another day) and an extra 30 minute lab time for painting. I think they are working hard to address the overall class issues. This location is nice and bright. The painting classes can be a bit crowded, but still fun. The staff are fun. They don't always step up when you are out front, but are fabulous in class. These are beginner classes or just for fun" classes."

It’s fun. The space is nice and since my first time they’ve changed the classes around so there’s more time to paint which is awesome! The first time I went it was too stressful to do painting and making the mug in one hour. The people that work there are always nice but they 100% need a new communication system. I feel like when it’s as busy at it is they need to actually take people’s names down when booking, checking in and picking up so the customers don’t have to do the work in guessing when their art work is done. Make it $40 for two people and pay for an online system + staff training.

Such an amazing place an space! The environment teems with creative energy and memory markers of past projects, such as the layers of paint in the splatter rooms! :)The workshops are various and change every month to keep it interesting and provide a unique experience every visit. They listen and respond to feedback very well, and are as accommodating as can be.The staff is super engaging and helpful, and my partner and I both love the personal element they bring to the classes.Sometimes it can be very busy, so be prepared for cozy company in popular classes ;)I am super excited to go back with my partner for the coming October workshops! Allllllll the Halloween inspired art! :D

Very disappointed in my experience here. Took my family in to make monster mugs in October. Seemed like the instructor did not care how these turned out... We were hurried and not given helpful instruction.After we completed the sad looking mugs we had to wait many weeks before we could pick them up.The final product was not good... The paint looked bad, the shape of the mugs was clunky and there were many rough and sharp edges. Just feel it was a waste of our time and money. Totally turned me off this art studio. Maybe it's better for kids parties...

Had my daughters birthday party here and did splatter paint. The kids had a blast!!. We had a staff member with us the whole time. My daughter got to get a huge painting that all the kids tell make and each kid got their own smaller one. The cost was good. I felt better paying here since everyone got to bring something home.

My overall experience was disappointing. We started the class and 15 minutes in, our instructor announced the clay was no good as it had been used before. We now had to rush a 60 project into 40 minutes. At the end of the class we were told our creations would take 2 weeks to bake. My friends were leaving at the end of the week to go back to Ontario. We never heard from 4 cats to know when our things were ready. Apparently their system changed for notifying customers their mugs wear ready. I went today, a month later to finally pick up our mugs (took 4 weeks to bake, 2 weeks longer than they told us). Of our three mugs I could only find my own because none of them were labeled. We looked for 30 minutes. As I walked out with my mug I realized it had been broken during the last 4 weeks and had been glued back together carelessly. I guess they really didn't care at this point as they had already made their money. Needless to say I won't ever be going back and I threw my mug in the garbage!