Just Add Paint: New Location helps accommodate growing aspirations

WASILLA — Just Add Paint, the do-it-yourself pottery studio, moved to a new location, adding about 50 percent more total space. After three years of running the studio, owner Noelle Umbarger said that the goal remains the same.

Help anyone feel like an artist.

“You don’t have to be an artist to do something like this,” Umbarger said.

Umbarger opened Just Add Paint in May of 2015. The original location was nestled in a strip mall in downtown Wasilla, just off Main Street. She moved her studio to the Philips Plaza off Bogard Road in August of 2018.

“It was a quick move,” Umbarger said.

Umbarger said the old studio was just shy of 1,000 square feet. She said that the limited space restricted how many people she could have in the studio. Plus, anytime there was a busy day, elbow room was space as customers carefully moved around each other to avoid knocking into a busy painter or knocking a product off the shelf. The parking space was also fairly limited, sharing space with multiple businesses like Donut King and Clean Slate Tattoo.

“When it got busy, it was pretty cramped, pretty crowded. It was a little claustrophobic,” Umbarger said with a laugh.

Umbarger said that the new studio is a little under 1,500 square feet. The studio is split into three different rooms. There is the main lobby and painting area, the party room and the firing room in the back. The firing room features two kilns.

She said that she was able to add another kiln after the move, which helped speed up the process significantly. Whenever anyone needed to run their painted products through the kiln, she said that she normally told people it would take seven to 10 days. Now, she tells them it takes five to seven days.

Umbarger started a handprint wall inside the studio for the children of regular customers, taking advantage of the extra wall space.

“It’s been a lot of fun. The kids really like it. I think it makes them feel like they’re just as much part of it as we are,” Umbarger said.

Just Add Paint has a plethora of pre-sculpted items that customers have at their disposal, from plates and trays to animal figurines and wall outlet covers. Umbarger holds regular painting parties, lending help to anyone who need it.

Anyone who wants their painted dishware to be food safe always has that option. Anyone who wants to use strictly acrylics so they can take it home that day can go that route as well. Umbarger said that her top selling items are mugs and other types of dishware. For the kids, she said her mini figurines are the most popular. She calls them “party animals.” These “party animals” are a spectrum of figurines that range from cats and dogs to unicorns and princesses.

Umbarger said that she now offers canvases for people to paint on, having hosted numerous canvass parties. She said that she will soon offer other mediums for customers to utilize, including board art (wooden slats) and clay. She said that she has step-by-step instructions for customers needing extra help for their canvass projects. Much like a customer using just acrylic paint, customers using canvass have the benefit of taking their projects home the same day they painted them.

Umbarger said that she is excited to start offering molding clay to her customers. She said that she eventually wants to add pottery wheels to the studio but the clay itself will come much sooner.

Umbarger said that she doesn’t consider herself a full-fledged artist but she loves to paint and that will always be a hobby she enjoys.

“Now that I get to do it as work, it’s not really work,” Umbarger said.

Umbarger said that her favorite aspect of running a do-it-yourself pottery studio is the children. She said that she loves seeing them get excited about starting a project and she loves seeing their faces light up when they see the finished product.

“It looks completely different when it comes out of the kiln,” Umbarger said.

Umbarger said that she compared notes with other ceramic studios around the state and Just Add Paint faired pretty well comparatively during the massive 7.0 earthquake on Nov. 30, 2018. She said that she only lost about $2,000 worth of products. She said that since she didn’t get to secure her shelves to the wall after the move, the products didn’t shake off the edge as easily.

“It wasn’t that bad,” Umbarger said.

Over the years, Umbarger said that she’s loved helping people create things they didn’t think they were capable of. She said that this is her first time owning a business.

“It was a big step but I’m glad that I was able to do it,” Umbarger said.

Umbarger said that overall, her business has fared fine.

“It pays the bills,” Umbarger said.

She started out by herself. Now, she has three employees working in the studio, which helps her focus on the kilns in the back.

“The backroom is mine. That’s my area,” Umbarger said.

Umbarger said that customer attendance often varies. She said that one day the studio could be filled to the brim with people paining, while other days go by slower with just a few people stopping by. She said that summers are typically much slower since most people are trying to soak up the sun and cram in their Alaskan adventures as much as they can. She said that business picks up during the winter and it’s particularly busy during the holidays.

Looking forward, she aims to bolster her business to the point of total self-sufficiency, with more expansions yet to come. She said that she feels confident about her business going into the future.

“Yes, I’m feeling a lot more secure,” Umbarger said.

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