Things to Do in Horn Lake

A piggy bank covered in polka dots, a platter celebrating Mother’s Day complete with each of her children’s handprints, a ceramic replica of Sesame Street’s Ernie—these are just a few of the projects that have emerged from Seize the Clay, a hands-on art studio specializing in pottery painting. In addition to embellishing various bisque pieces with unique designs, visitors can create glass-fused pendants, multihued mosaics, and silver-clay jewelry personalized with the initials of their beloved mail carrier. They can also try their hands at the potter’s wheel, hold birthday parties, or attend an interactive summer camp.

Although painting is a solitary experience for many artists, it becomes a color-strewn party at ArtJamN. Enthusiastic staff members encourage participants to interact, inspire each other, and even collaborate on the same canvas. Painters are outfitted with a bevy of paints and textures that add dimension to magnum opuses and make it easier to crawl into someone else's painting and take a nap. Both regular painting sessions and private parties introduce burgeoning artists to a cornucopia of artistic styles as they intermingle and sip from their own stash of adult beverages.

Bead Towne's classes range in price from $10 to $30 and possibly more, depending on supplies; a variety of options are offered for fledgling-finding fumblers and bead-wielding artisans alike. Classes are often created with customer suggestions in mind; request a specific type of class, and Bead Towne will do its best to accommodate you. Past offerings have included earring workshops ($15), pearl rope bracelets ($38), and making swirl beads with polymer clay ($20). Learn the basic skills of jewelry construction from seasoned instructors. Then you can go to town customizing bracelets and rings into towering, hubris-laden stacks of glittering crystals that threaten to buckle the knees of their wearers. The store stocks everything from Czech glass and fire-polished crystals to semi-precious gems and Swarovski crystals, as well as the tools needed to construct accessories for your bridesmaids or your bejeweled boatswain. Classes usually take place on Thursday and Saturday, but if you have a group of three or more who want to take a class together, you can arrange a girl's night out for a Friday night.

The staffers at Yarniverse understand that it often takes more than yarn and needles to see a knitting project through to the end. With this in mind, they man a round table inside the two-story shop where they help clients master tricky patterns, inspire them to try new techniques, and fuel knitting sprees with friendly conversation until each wooly endeavor is complete. Before starting new projects, clients stock up on yarns and knitting tools or refresh their skills in a class that covers how to make socks, dog sweaters, or vintage scarves.

Successful carriage maker Amos Woodruff began construction on his Memphis home in 1870, designing the property in French Victorian style with a mansard roof and cypress woodwork and flooring. A year later, the mansion hosted the wedding of Amos's daughter, Mollie, marking the first public event and first of countless weddings to be held on the property. Cotton factor Noland Fontaine owned the dwelling after Amos; following the death of Noland and his wife, the home became an art school and then a vacant building until the Association for the Preservation of Tennessee Antiquities acquired the space in 1961.

Nestled among magnolia trees, the restored mansion still shelters handwritten autographs and memories of the craftsmen who helped erect the building. Just as it did for Mollie Woodruff, the property also continues to host weddings and special events with a front lawn that accommodates up to 250 visitors. A collection of more than 1,000 pieces of Victorian-era fashion, such as wedding gowns, undergarments, overgarments, and stiletto horseshoes, can be found in the home. The clothing display changes several times throughout the year along with the museum's rotating exhibitions.