Petroglyph Ceramic Lounge in San Jose, California

Located in the chic main strip of San Jose's Willow Glen area, Petroglyph is a ceramics shop where parents and their children can paint pre-made white bisque pottery. I had never heard of Petroglyph Ceramic Lounge until my co-leader for my son's Cub Scout den booked us a reservation.

We walked into the shop and had the boys pick out their seats at low worktables. Our host then explained to us what the process would be. We were to go to the shelves that lined the wall and pick out a ceramic object that we would like to paint.

My youngest picked out a ceramic tile and a ceramic train piggy bank. My oldest picked out an airplane piggy bank. I chose a plain tile and a square tray.

We told the staff what colors we wanted, and then we set to work painting our ceramic pieces. I watched my youngest paint the tile that you see in the image square, amazed at the speed that he worked to create what looks like a fish swimming in a kelp aquarium. My oldest and I were more conservative with our ceramic pieces. He painted his airplane with a blue watercolor look.

I have always enjoyed Southwest artwork. For my tray, I decided to go with muted purple and tan. I still have it sitting on my coffee table, ten years after I brought it home. For the tile, painted a wide cream stripe down the middle, flanked it with reddish brown and drew a snake with black paint. I liked the tray much better.

The staff cleaned everything after we left, which was a nice treat for us mothers. They called us a day or so later to tell us that our ceramic pieces were finished.

Petroglyph Ceramic Lounge has locations in Willow Glen, Los Gatos, Santa Cruz and Roseville. It is a great place to have a family outing or a girl's night out. The Willow Glen shop is within walking of the nearby restaurants. Adults may bring food into the shop with them for their children or for themselves. Pricing is $9.95 for adults and $7.00 for children 11 years old and younger.

For more information about Petroglyph Ceramic Lounge, please visit their website at www.petroglyph.com. Be sure to check out their blog as well!

Willow Glen Address:

1140 Lincoln Avenue
San Jose, CA
(408) 971-4ART (-4278)