Yaymaker

I belong to a nonprofit organization, we had a fundraiser on March 1st with Yaymaker. As of today, May 8th we have not received our fundraising check. This company requires all payments upfront and absolutely no refunds are granted. They state on their website you will get the check within 3 weeks of the party. It's been over 9 weeks. As a non profit organization we rely on all of our fundraising profits, we had obligations to pay for that event as well that the proceeds of this event with Yaymaker would have covered.I find it strange that you cannot locate a phone number to reach out to this company which is a red flag. We have sent countless emails to this company and now none of them are being answered, which is another red flag. Yaymaker has stated their offices are not open due to the COVID-19 pandemic. But yet I see they are advertising porch drop offs and virtual parties which needs to be paid for in advance. Just like when we had our party. How are they accepting money from new clients and able to pay their consultants if they are not able to pay the clients that had their fundraising event over 9 weeks ago? Did they use the money from our party to fund (pay) the person that had their party 3 weeks prior (pyramid scheme)? It's leading me to the conclusion this is the case which is another red flag. Our foundation has been in contact with the person that hosted our party but we are simply told that is 'corporate' and not in the realm of their responsibility. This company does not provide their consultants access or the authority to resolve a client complaint at the local level which is another red flag. Instead, they leave their local consultants to clean up their disastrous, poor policy, corporate messes without any resources. This company seems to be just fine with the fact that they are ruining their local consultants reputation, because we will never use or recommend this company, let alone anybody in the Pittsburgh area related to this company again. We were told by our local consultant that a party she hosted the week prior to ours did not receive their money either. BUT she stated she got paid as a consultant for both of these parties. That did not make us feel any better but it does point out the fact that apparently this company was having financial issues way before the COVID-19. To add, this company is very outdated with their concept and their product. There are so many awesome places with the same concept that puts this company to shame that would love to get the chance to cater to their clients. Finally, because we have not received our fundraising money and our emails are not being answered, we have filed a complaint with the Better Business Bureau. I encourage you to do the same if you've experience problems with his company.

Went to Local Bar and Kitchen, South Side, Pittsburgh. I don't think someone could have a bad time at Paint Nite - Apparently, this is new to Pittsburgh which is surprising because everything went really smoothly. Not a single complaint. Instead of boasting about how much fun it was, I'm just going to answer a few questions that I had going into it/some insight. -BYOB / SNACKS are by venue only. I went to Local which is a bar/restaurant and so we paid ourselves. -Side Note, Local's food is really good, a lot of beer variety, and it was Wednesday Wine Night (buy a bottle, get a bottle)--There is not a lot of room to eat because the easels are set up close to each other so I would recommend eating before/after-We got drinks before we started and they had a server going around during so that you didn't have to make people move for you (we also took a break during to get more drinks/walk around to see others work and meet new people) -GROUPON had an amazing deals. It was basically half off. -Just bring yourself (paint/brushes/water/paper towel/smock/easel are set up before you arrive)-I recommend getting there 10 min. early to get settled. There was no designated seats for this one and due to the Polar Vortex, no one obviously wanted to sit away from the heater or near the windows. (especially if you're in a bigger group)-You are painting without an outline - completely free hand. The instructor is there to give inspiration/answer questions/paint with you/have fun.-You can paint whatever you want - the "theme" is just kind of a guide/something to make it more of an event. -Went from 7-9. There was no rush to leave. We left our paintings and had a drink after at the bar to let our paint dry.-It's just fun. No pressure/judgment.-Some people were solo/some in groups/some just pairs. All accepted. We went on 1/29 at Local. S/O the "That Paint Lady" ... she was great. Super funny, encouraged drinking and really owned the room.

I've been hearing about Paint Nite for about a year now, so I was excited to finally attend. This is a fun activity to do with friends and family. Here's what I liked:1. Everything was well organized, down to the apron, the paints, and all is setup for you in advance.2. The host has a PA system, so everyone can hear well.3. The host was very positive, encouraging everyone to be creative and have fun.4. The painting was broken down into methodical steps so everyone succeeded.5. It's a great way to meet new people and to socialize with your friends.6. It's FUN!There are different instructors and venues. I went to Getaway Cafe and the staff there was very welcoming and the food was good. Our instructor had a degree in Art, and she took the time to explain how to complete the painting in easy steps.Nobody at Paint Nite paid full price, they all got their tickets through Groupon. Not sure how long Groupon will sell the half price tickets, but if you use the code PITTSBURGH you can bypass the Groupon website.

I love love Paint Nite! It's just something different and it's fun too! When you first arrive you checkin, find an available seat, get your apron on, then get your drink and paint on! They provide the paint, easel, canvas, apron, and brushes! Pretty dope since you only pay 25 bucks. Well that is if you use groupon or some other coupon code. The paint instructor, Connie, was awesome. Very entertaining to say the least. I've been to two of her events thus far highly recommend. Also, she mentioned at the beginning of the year the coupon code will be Pittsburgh and that gets you $20 off of $45.

Had a bunch of fun here. I had no idea what this event was, but I purchased a Gropuon to do this at a bar right down the street from my house (Del's Bar in Bloomfield). I went in and had a good time. I'm not sure whether our event was BYOB, but everyone who wanted food or an adult beverage just ordered or went to the bar. My one complaint would be that the event seemed to be a bit disorganized, but I think I went to one of the first events so maybe that was the reason. The people doing set up didn't seem to know what they were doing. However, the artist was very knowledgeable and was very helpful through the entire event. We had maybe 15 or so people, and she made sure to spend time with everyone during every step of the process. Not being talented to the art area at all, this was very helpful and enabled me to really enjoy the experience. I was quite surprised at how good my piece turned out. I'd definitely recommend going to one of these events.

I've done several Paint Nites in Pittsburgh, at Local and Steel Cactus. It's really fun, a genius idea! Very entertaining to see your friends' artistic skills, and look at other people's painting too. Very unique for a date night or a girls' night out, and you can make new friends there too. There are some frustrations, such as the temperature when it's winter -- the events are typically held in the upstairs deck areas of the bar/restaurant, which are covered in the winter but not heated!! They bring portable heaters but it was still unbearably cold 2 of the times I went. It can also be hard to get a "good" seat, a lot of people end up unable to see the model painting. And it can be hard to hear her explaining too, my friends and I are always going "what? what?" but then we just do whatever we feel like so it works out. And at the end we're alwyays sitting around for 30 min trying to get our painting to dry before we put it in our vehicles. Not that the Paint Nite people could invent rapid-drying paint, just sayin' that that's something to think about -- I usually take away part of a cheap plastic tablecloth they put out, and lay my painting on top of that in my trunk. It's really a great time, and you come away with a painting you could hang in your house! My first painting was terrible actually, but you get the hang of it eventually, so I have 3 good ones out of 4 events :)

This place is the most expensive painting party in the city of Pittsburgh. $945 is too much to book a party. Painting with a twist is cheaper by half and so is party Pittsburgh and Paint Monkey. Go there instead.

Went to the Steel Cactus event. Had such a blast! My friends and I will definitely be doing this again. The instructor was great and entertaining. Recommend this to all!

My husband and I went to Local for this Paint Nite event and we had a great time. We went early and had dinner. I highly recommend trying the food here. It was delicious! The class was a very relaxed atmosphere. You are encouraged to drink and be as creative as you want. Our instructor Connie was awesome. We will definitely go back.

Friends and I attended the Paint Nite event in Shady Side at Steel Cactus. It was a lot of fun. They supplied the apron, easel, canvas, paintbrushes and the paint. The instructor was extremely outgoing and upbeat, she played lively music while providing explanations, tips and next steps. Everyone worked at their own pace and although the original pairing served as a guide, at the end of the night no two paintings were the same. I mean this is a great way because each individual was able to express themselves and had different twists on the basis of the painting. It was a fun activity to do with friends. My only complaint would be space--we got there 30 minutes early so it wasn't due to arrival time, but the way they set up the tables didn't offer much room on the table itself making it awkward to grab paint brushes and the palate. Also we were standing right up against a wall. Outside of that it was an awesome night! Would absolutely recommend! :)