Add Colour @ Paintlounge

We decided to splash our world with some colour at Paintlounge, Toronto - This place is the perfect mix of happiness and relaxation. It really is THE lounge for social painting; de-stress, get messy and let loose!

GET TO KNOW SAMANTHA CHAN

The lovely Founder of Paintlounge

All smiles with Samantha,  an inspiring entrepreneur 

Tell us a bit about yourself 

I painted all my life - I took painting and art classes ever since I was 2 up until getting into university. I also really liked Math and Physics so I ended up taking industrial engineering in University. Some people say that art and engineering are so different. But I’d say that engineering is actually a really creative field. In industrial engineering we go into different businesses and we act as consultants. We look at the problems they have and think of solutions to fix them. So, I think that’s pretty creative, right?

When I graduated, I worked as an industrial engineer for a year and then decided I want to try something else. Once you come out of school you want to explore different options. So, I went into investment banking. I did that for 3 and half years in Hong Kong. Then it was time for me to come back to Toronto.

Throughout my life, I always wanted to start something. I always loved art. My parents were entrepreneurs and they were always talking about starting a business, so I decided that; “okay, I’m going to start a business. ” I wanted something creative and this idea came along. I got inspired by places in Hong Kong while I was there. There were places I could go in and paint for fun. But it was kind of serious when I went in. So, I wanted this place to be super casual. I think it’s best for people who don’t have the opportunity to paint all the time. We’re super chill - all our staff are artists. And there’s a café where you can grab tea or coffee while painting.

Was there a certain moment that inspired you?

Well, being an investment banker in Hong Kong was super stressful - working long hours and facing numbers all day. I just wanted to de-stress, so I went to paint. I thought; “this is amazing, we need to create this in Toronto!” There are accountants, bankers, teachers, and a lot of working individuals who want to de-stress

Who’s your favourite artist?

Monet. I like his kind of style, dreamy… When I was a kid, my dad got me this stationary set that had Monet everything. I started collecting everything Monet after that.

Do you ever come here and paint in your free time?

Not really, but I should! Whenever we paint in here it’s just for work and prepping workshops. But, we are having a staff party tomorrow and normally we would go to a restaurant. This time we decided to stay at Paintlounge, we are going to order in and paint! 

How does Paintlounge bring people together?

People usually come to paint with other people. You can also come on your own, because we encourage people to talk to each other. We have an event called Espressions where we have a local musician perform live while people are painting and for that event you don’t have to come with a friend; you can come on your own. While you are painting you can walk around to someone else and be like; hey, and just talk.

What is creativity to you?

Well I think everyone is creative. People would come in and they say they're not creative, sometimes I feel they're shy because they don’t want to be judged. 99.9% of the time people come in and say they don’t know how to paint, some people really do think that. But I don’t think anyone is not creative. We are born creative creatures. I mean, there are different ways that people express art. Even planning your day, sometimes you have to use a little bit of creativity in there.

How is Paintlounge different than other art studios?

I think Paintlounge is more about social painting. Here, it's stress free, you come in and paint for a few hours and you leave. We have 2 services and styles of painting where we encourage creativity and imagination: Freestyle Painting Sessions – paint anything you like, which I personally love. And, we have Painting Workshops, an option with guidance where you can sign up for a painting on our website and then within those 2 or 3 hours you can learn how to paint that painting specifically.

Tell us about your favourite memory at Paintlounge.

We did some speed dating nights at Paintlounge, but with painting - every five minutes you get a different partner. Girls would be stationary at an easel and guys would rotate every 5 minutes to a different easel, we do that once in a quarter. So, 4 years ago, a guy who used to come here a lot met a girl who he had proposed to and they got married because of Paintlounge and that was the greatest thing in the world! I don't hear all the success stories, but this couple actually came back and kept in touch so, it’s sweet. And then, she had her bachelorette party here!

What kind of obstacle(s) did you have to overcome?

When we first opened I wasn’t so sure about what I wanted to do, it was half studio and half café. Then we ended up getting a lot more people painting than sitting in the café. I felt like they were two competing concepts and as the amount of people who wanted to paint grew, we kept expanding the painting area bigger until it scrapped off the seating area for the café. And some people working in the seating area wanted others to be quiet, but that wasn't the nature of the space. We still serve coffee and tea for the artists but that was one thing that was a struggle. And it worked out; the business grew a lot bigger once we took out the seating area. I’d like to think this is an art studio where people can have a drink and now you don’t have that misconception or confusion anymore.

What’s your favourite tea?

I like Masala Chai and we also have something called the Berry Rooibos, it’s basically a green rooibos. You know what red rooibos is? It’s an African type of tea not made from regular tealeaves; it’s a bush from Africa. So there’s green rooibos version with added dried berries in there. It’s really good!

Any advice for anyone who wants to be more artistic?

Just do it!

A SWEET PEAK INTO OUR ADVENTURE

@ PAINTLOUNGE

Would you walk in? 

Showing Samantha our self-timed ways; nothing is funnier than racing time with a beeping tripod.

Don't fear the mess.

A reminder from Paintlounge to you

Here's how you can get messy at Paintlounge!

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Stay gold, 

Selftimers