Dozens of locals paint together at Paint Nights with Sara’s new location

WASILLA — Numerous Valley residents showed up at Paint Nights With Sara, Monday evening.

Each attendee had their own canvas and a selection of paints to work with as studio instructor Laurie Lashlee walked them step by step to paint a wintry scene featuring the Aurora Borealis.

The lesson was called “Colorful Northern Lights Paint Night” and it was open to all ages and experience levels. This was evident by the diverse crowd of painters, ranging from young children to those enjoying retirement.

Attendees came from all walks of life and they came with varying levels of art experience. They all were there for the same reason, to have fun with some paint with simple to follow instructions.

Creating an open and welcoming atmosphere for all levels of artists is exactly what owner Sara Squartsoff-McKinley envisioned when she created Paint Nights With Sara, according to her sister Lacy McKeown.

McKeown became a studio instructor in October of 2019. She said that she can relate to her sisters’ overall enjoyment with the atmosphere that serves as a hub for her lessons and her own creative process.

“I think this is kind of her oasis,” McKeown said.

“Colorful Northern Lights Paint Night” was one of many classes held since Paint Nights With Sara moved into its new location off Parks Highway in December of 2019.

On top of having more space to work in, the bright lighting is a huge perk to the new location, according to McKeown

“It’s kind of like being under a happy lamp,” McKeown said with a laugh.

McKeown said Squartsoff-McKinley plans to change the name of her business to “Paint Nights with Sara and Co.” Being part of the “and Co.,” McKeown said she really enjoys the space with a class or by herself to work on a project.

“It’s a nice area for us to have a creative outlet,” McKeown said.

McKeown and Lashlee are multi-disciplinary artists and aim to offer a wide range of workshops with varying styles of art for locals to partake in. This could be an alcohol ink class or something more crafty like making a terrarium.

McKeown said they hope to foster an “art collective” with numerous types of art class available to the community.

“Everyone has their own creative directions,” McKeown said.

McKeown said she’s watched her sister grow her creative passion from an occasional workshop here and there at various places to a full-blown operation with waves of interest rising up from the community each week.

McKeown said she’s witnessed Squartsoff-McKinley lead workshops to upwards of three times a day, five times a week. She said the most admirable part is that her sister keeps up with the demand while never losing her love to paint.

“I think we have a cool thing going here. My sister’s created a whole thing and a big following. Overall, she’s done a really awesome job and I’m glad to be working with her,” McKeown said.

Paint Night With Sara offers classes throughout the week. They have a number of classes lined up this week. They host classes in and out of the studio for public and private parties, including birthdays, church events and office get-togethers.

They also create custom artwork by request. For example, they recently painted a “unicorn pug on a sprinkle donut” for a customer.

For more information and class schedules, call 907-521-4094 or visit paintwithsara.com. They can also be looked up on Facebook. They post events on a regular basis.

Contact Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman reporter Jacob Mann at jacob.mann@frontiersman.com