What is Petroglyph Ceramic Lounge?
Petroglyph is an upscale paint-your-own ceramic studio. We have four locations in Northern California: in Santa Cruz, Los Gatos, San Jose and Roseville.
How does it work?
You select a piece of unfinished white ceramic, called “bisque.” (If it’s made out of ceramic, and goes in your home, we probably carry it.) We set you up at a table with water, paints, brushes, and all the supplies you need to decorate your object. Take as long as you’d like. When you’re done, we clean up, glaze your piece once it’s dry, and fire it in our onsite kilns. In a couple days your professional-looking custom ceramic piece is ready to be picked up. (See also How It Works)
What does it cost?
Each ceramic piece has its own price – from $5 to more than $50—and there is a studio fee to paint. The fee is a pass that is good all day. Adult day passes are ($9.75) and kids 11 and under ($7.00). You can come and go as you please that day. It’s both an activity and a store.
How long does it take?
As long as you’d like? Some kids paint a small piece in 10 minutes, some adults can work on a mug for weeks… on average, however, give yourself an hour or two to have a full session in the studio. [We’ve seen parents come afterschool with kids, leave before dinner time, and return that evening—for free—with their adult friends.]
What is bisque?
Bisque is hard, white, unfinished ceramic. Pieces begin life as “greenware,” or wet clay, and cleaned and fired once to become bisque, our inventory.
What kind of ceramic is this?
This is slip-cast “earthenware”, known as “low-fire white.” Contrast this with “stoneware,” which is a high-fire clay body.
How come there aren’t really red reds?
In many cases, paints are made with particulate metals—and different combinations of metals produce different color effects. Unfortunately, the really great reds are produced by various amounts of lead, and we use lead-free colors. Consequently, some colors don’t have the vibrance you sometimes see in ceramics; that’s the trade-off for being food-safe.
How do I know what colors will look like after the piece is fired?
One of the fun and interesting aspects of painting ceramics is that the colors you paint don’t look exactly like the colors that result after glazing and firing. We maintain color tiles that demonstrate how each paint color will look after firing, and using these as guides it is very easy to paint.
How long does it take to get my finished piece?
We print on your receipt the time we guarantee your piece will be available. It is usually two days from the time you complete it. (Once your piece is finished, and totally dry, it is glazed, then loaded into a kiln and fired at high temperature for about 8 hours. Then it takes another 4 hours to cool off enough to handle.) In busy holidays seasons it can take an extra day or so. In quiet times it can be ready the next evening. But it’s always printed on your receipt.
Is my piece foodsafe? How about microwave save? Bake safe?
The paints and glazes we use are all approved as lead-free and food-safe. This means that no toxins leech into the foods and liquids that come in contact with the surfaces. In general, earthenware such as the kind you paint at Petroglyph is microwave safe, but not so much for ovens. Large and quick shifts in temperature, however, can cause ceramics to crack and are not recommended (stoneware is better suited for baking dishes, for instance.)
What happens if it chips?
Galazed and fired earthenware is effectively covered with a layer of glass, and can chip and ding if handled roughly. Petroglyph can touch up and refire objects that have small regions where ceramic and glaze have chipped.*
How hot do the kilns get?
1800 degrees F. It takes a few hours to get to that temperature, then it is held for many hours before cooling begins.
How do you finish the pieces?
Our staff will take your painted object and glaze it for you. We fire them in our kilns, and then inspect each piece for small dimples of glass that form (by gravity) in the firing. We sand off those bits and have your piece waiting for you at your pick up time.
Studio
What are your hours?
We’re open 7 days a week and on many holidays. All our studios open at 10am each day;
Can I have a party at Petroglyph?
Absolutely. We love parties!
Can I rent the studio out for a party (with no ceramics)?
Certainly. Our studios are cool spaces for partys of all kinds. Check with your local studio for prices and details.
How many bisque pieces do you carry?
Our selection of ceramics is always changing, but we have between 300 and 500 pieces at any given time.
Where do you get the pieces?
Most are from small vendors across the US, although many are imported from Italy or China. We have to test new pieces which might look the same, but may not 'fit' with the glazes we use.
What kind of items do you carry?
Dinnerware of all kinds, certainly. But also vases, mugs, bowls, candleholders, banks, bathroom and kitchen items, and many many decorative pieces and figurines.
Can I bring food?
Sure. Many people bring in snacks from home, or pick up a bite nearby and bring it in. Parties, of course, tend to have pizza and cake, but adults often arrive with veggies, adult beverages, crackers and cheese, and more. Because the paints and materials are all food-save, there is no risks with having food in the area.
Do you have gift certificates?
Yes. We have Petroglyph Gift Cards that you can get in any denomonation you'd like; we also have special hand painted Gift Tiles in $50, $75 and $100 values.
What’s the Kids Cave? Can I bring my own DVDs?
A hallmark of Petroglyph is our famous Kids Cave. It's a little kid-sized carpeted nook where children can watch a few minutes of a movie while their parents finish up their own creative projects. Because kids and adults often paint at different rates, with different attention spans, the Kids Cave has been a valuable asset in keeping kids entertained while keeping the ambient sounds of movies at a minimum. The cave holds a small number of kids at a time, and we rotate a set of kids-appropriate titles through the day. And yes, if you have your own DVD you'd like to bring, we can play that as well.
What is a Frequent Fire Card?
Every time you paint at Petroglyph, we can stamp a Frequent Fire Card -- three stamps and the card is redeemable for a full studio day pass for either an adult or child. Three visits and you get one free. It's a great deal!
Business
What does “petroglyph” mean?
The dictionary definition is "writing on stone", and along with "pictographs", they are often described as "rock art." Technically, petroglyphs are made by scratching away at the rock and pictographs are made by painting on the rock. The word is very visual, evokes a sense of creativity without "artistic pretense", and given a little creative license, could nicely describe painting on ceramics.
How long have you been in business?
Petroglyph was incorporated in 1993 and our first studio opened in Santa Cruz in 1994. We opened in Los Gatos in 1996; San Jose and Rosevile in 1997.
What is a “contemporary ceramics studio”?
In 1993 there were only a couple places in the US where you could paint bisque pottery in the way you do at Petroglyph. By 1999 there were hundreds, and a trade organization opened for the independent studio. Not sure what to call the generic studio (and since "Ceramic Lounge" is a trademark of Petroglyph), these paint-your-own pottery studios began calling themselves "contemporary ceramics studios," and the Contemporary Ceramics Studios Association (CCSA) was created in 1997 to help them. You might see the term "contemporary ceramic studio" or PYOP studio used.
Are all Petroglyph studios related? (or) Are you a franchise?
Petroglyph is a privately owned business, a C-corporation, and none of our studios are franchises. This allows us to maintain quality and consistency throughout our regional business. We started in 1993, incorporated by Jennifer and Michael Rubin - who still manage the company and run operations.
Can I open my own Petroglyph Ceramic Lounge?
Not today, but we're always interested in hearing from you if you have a proposal.
I have a complaint or compliment; who do I contact?
For almost all feedback or problems, it's best if you contact the staff or manager of your local studio. If you have a far more serious problem, or an issue with the manager, don't hesitate to contact headquarters. 831-458-1117. You can also email the manager of any studio, with the city name " at petroglyph.com" -- santacruz, losgatos, willowglen or roseville.
I’d like to work at Petroglyph. Are you hiring?
We are always interested in meeting bright, creative, and motivated people who are interested in joining our studios. Even if no positions are open, we encourage you to leave a resume with the store staff. When positions do open, we usually post a sign in the store. We tend to advertise for management positions on Craigslist, although we prefer to promote our best staff to those openings when they occur.