Feature: Creative Nest Studio
It was approximately five years ago that Diana Petainen took a leap of faith and followed her heart to pursue a very different career path.
Leaving a successful career in nursing to open at first, a primarily home based business making various handcrafted pieces involving scrap-booking, paper art, vinyl, heat-pressing then finally stencils, wood and paint, she soon came to love what started as unfamiliar, even uncomfortable territory. And the more she created, the more she realized that it was a calling.
She soon had many people requesting custom orders and as she added more services, business steadily grew. During the process, Diana realized that she really loved creating the signs and got very comfortable with the process. She felt why not share this fun, creative process with others and thus in 2017, the Creative Nest Studio in its current bricks and mortar location, was born!
Located at 112 March St. in the Sault’s downtown, one of the first things you will notice is the homey, welcoming atmosphere that Diana has created in the space. From the paint splattered tables to the rustic signs adorning the walls, the space is warm, friendly and welcoming, much like Diana herself.
Speaking to Diana, one is quickly struck by her genuine, lovely, and warm personality which is exactly the right blend for a business like the Creative Nest Studio.
One of the most popular services available at the Creative Nest Studio are private parties where groups can get together and have private wood sign painting workshops. The ideas for these are endless — from family get togethers, birthdays, bachelorettes, sports team moms, bridal showers, corporate or team building, fundraisers or whatever else you can think of to get together and create a stunning piece to show off in your home or anywhere else.
These parties only require a minimum of eight guests at a minimum purchase price of $35+hst/guest and all supplies are provided. No prior experience is necessary and Diana and her friendly staff go to great lengths to ensure that the process is very easy and people feel comfortable and not intimidated in any way.
Participants receive guided hands on friendly instruction. It is also possible to bring in your own food/snacks and an option for a liquor permit is also available — just ask for details.
One of the most rewarding parts of the experience for Diana and those who work for her is seeing people’s creative side come out especially the nervous, reluctant ones. There is no greater joy than watching the reaction of people when they see what they helped to create — pure joy!
Daytime and evening corporate private bookings for team building have also become very popular and are a great way to do something fun with the people you work with and then get to take home something amazing to boot!
Looking for a fun idea for your child’s birthday? Look no further! Creative Nest Studio does birthday parties at a very affordable price for those children between the ages of 6 and 16! Who wouldn’t want to leave the stress of hosting a group of little darlings to someone else and kids love to be creative, thus it’s a win win!
As a do-it-yourself studio, there are also regularly scheduled daytime and evening sign painting workshops that allow you to pick a time and date that works for you to create your masterpiece and meet new people in a fun, warm, supportive environment.
Of course, for some people, time is limited and as such, Diana does stock many popular designs in the retail area and can also accommodate custom orders with minimum spend as well.
So, stop in during their studio hours to see what they have or contact Diana via e-mail at [email protected] to inquire about what you are looking for.
For a weekly schedule, visit the Creative Nest’s Facebook page or check out the chart below.
Diana is a true example of a hard working entrepreneur who supports other entrepreneurs and has been quoted as saying “community over competition” and “collaboration over competition” and it is no wonder that on January 10 of this year, she was the winner of the Excellence in Entrepreneurship award at the Algoma Visionary Awards presented by Strive, Young Professionals Group.
In an effort to collaborate and support other local entrepreneurs doing creative things, she has invited several of them to showcase and sell their work out of the studio.
To see local vendors featured at the Creative Nest, stop by and see for yourself and while there, take a peak at the numerous signs available for purchase in the retail area as well.
To learn more about the “Nest” as Diana lovingly calls it, visit the website at www.creativeneststudio.com or call 705-987-1124.
Diana and her staff invite you to contact them so that they can help you discover the creative side you never knew you had and have a lot of fun in the process!
