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Photo by Steve Johnson Medford's Ilene Danelson, left, meets friends Gayla Burke of Medford, center, and Debi Casale of Central Point once or twice a week to paint pottery at Hot Pots. Downtown Medford businesses that offer hands-on instruction have become social hubs for crafters. Crafts stores practice hands-on Classes bring people downtown By DAVID PRESZLER Debi Casale has already hit most of the hot spots in downtown Medford's crafty corridor. She's taken classes on beadwork at Dancing Beads, rubber stamping at Stampstruck and making scrapbooks at Scrapbook King N' More, and she meets friends each week to paint pottery at Hot Pots. "I want to take quilt classes, too," the Central Point woman says, referring to classes offered by Rosebud Quilts and Cotton. "There's so much going on downtown." Hands-on instruction is the norm at craft-oriented businesses, where owners find teaching and selling go hand-and-hand. "We knew that it was going to be an important part of our business," says Rosebud owner Beth Allison, whose store has featured classes since it opened five and a half years ago. "You need to teach people how to use the products that we sell." "It's a big part of building our customer base," says Andrew Tillinghast, owner of Neoglassic Studio, which teaches stained-glass arts. Most of the crafty stores offer classes on evenings, weekends and weekdays. That can make for long days for small-business owners who double as instructors. But they say they can't help but pass on what they've learned. "It's kind of hard to not teach people to use the things I sell," says Carol Garfield, owner of Dancing Beads. "I've got a store full of wonderful stuff, but if they don't know how to use it, all they want to is look." "It took me so long to learn the art of rubber stamps," says Stampstruck owner Laveda Mattson. "I do it as a service to my customers. "If they know to do it and they like it, they are going to buy." Mattson's plan has worked for Gwynn Sullivan. The retired Medford woman raves about the card stamping classes she's taken. "There are lots of techniques," Sullivan says. "It's a wonderful learning experience and you get to know people that are sharing the creative experience with you. It's more than a store. It's a place to shop with your friends." Business owners say the classes can also help people overcome apprehensions about crafting. "This is really kind of an overwhelming business to walk into," says Scrapbook King N' More manager Stacey Coffman. "We do classes to help them get over the jitters of cutting their first picture." While many crafty stores incorporate hands-on instruction into the business, it's the central tenet at Hot Pots, which sells plain, unglazed pottery for customers to paint in the store and supplies the paint and stencils for them to do it. The staff glazes and fires the pots. "Everybody that comes in just loves it," says Hot Pots owner Ann Duncan. "They have so much fun and become repeat customers." Classes in downtown Medford Here's a look at craft businesses in downtown Medford that offer classes. Call stores for specific class schedules and information: The Bead Studio , 25 N. Ivy St. -- beading classes on Tuesday and Thursday evenings for $10. 770-9195. Dancing Bead , 406 E. Main St. -- beading classes on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday evenings for $15-$25, most materials included. 734-7784. Hot Pots , 217 E. Main St. -- Walk-in help with paint-your-own-pottery projects as well as classes. Pottery ranges from $4 for coasters and such to $50 for larger pieces; classes are $5-$8 plus cost of pottery. 779-3443. Neoglassic Studio , 106 S. Grape St. -- stained glass classes and workshops on evenings and weekends range from $40-$200. 772-3732. Rogue Gallery , 40 S. Bartlett St. -- art classes, including drawing and wood carving, range from $7-$250 depending on subject matter and instruction. 772-8118. Rosebud Quilts and Cottons , 35 S. Bartlett St. -- classes on quilting techniques weekdays, weekends and evenings for $10-$45. 779-2410. Scrapbook King N' More , 41 N. Ivy St. -- scrapbook classes on weekdays and evenings for $5-$15. 857-4998. Stampstruck , 37 N. Ivy St. -- classes on stamping, calligraphy and book arts on weekdays, weekends and evenings for $4-$48. 772-5729. Today's Business Index Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 1999, Medford, Oregon USA