Things to Do in Spring

The consortium of professional instructors at Fred Astaire Dance Studios, which was cofounded by the legendary toe tapper himself, shepherds students of all ages and skill levels through lessons that span the style spectrum. Low-pressure private sessions allow enthusiastic teachers to fine-tune individual students' techniques and form, using their expert eyes and mechanical dancing shoes preprogrammed to do the Charleston. Patrons can learn how to cavort through classic waltz and fox-trot romps or swivel through the modern steps of salsa, swing, or samba. For dancers hoping to hoof it up in a social setting, the group practice parties provide a one-night extravaganza of instruction, demonstrations, and amateur firewalking.

Painting with a Twist adultizes the group art class by pairing expert instruction with the option to sip libations and socialize with other classmates. Check the schedule online to view available classes. Each two- or three-hour session will teach you step-by-step how to replicate the featured design (upcoming classes capture everything from flowers to crawfish, cafés, and the rugged masculinity of Burton Gilliam). Canvas, paints, and brushes are all provided, along with a handy stock of wine cups and openers to promote the creative flow. Upon the conclusion of your BYOB painting class, you'll have a 16”x20” painting to hang proudly atop your mantle.

Each Ultra Motors light electric vehicle operates using a European rear-hub-motor design. The bikes come in five models and different colors such as black, silver, and red. While most bikes can maintain up to 20 miles at 20 mph on a single charge, riders with a spent battery are never stranded—they can hug the nearest stranger or pedal to their next destination. Owner Robert Solana also sells these electric vehicles, hoping to promote The Woodlands' designation from The American Federation of Bicyclists as one of only three bicycle-friendly communities in Texas.

Friendly hostesses welcome in parties of little princesses or grown-up empresses for enchanting themed celebrations within Posh Tea Parties' frill-filled pink-and-white tearoom. Parties for young ones begin with girls sifting through the theme-specific outfit finery that turns them into princesses, 19th-century ladies, or world travelers replete with pink passports stamped for every country's tea they taste. Once dressed, girls can practice their manners or check for homework-completing genies while topping off compatriots' cups of tea and snacking on an array of artfully presented sandwiches, cupcakes, and chips.

Parties can be upgraded with a slew of exciting extras, which can augment parties with a dessert-filled snack bar, extra themed activities, and sashes or tiaras that let the birthday girl flaunt her special status without ordering all the kingdom's dragons to light her birthday candles. Meanwhile, adults can put on their own lace-lined shindigs, which eschew the dressing up and playtime activities for each attendee's own fanciful attire and a bevy of more mature amusement.

Light pours in from the large windows at the front of Mosaic Mesa's studio space and spills across sprawling wooden worktables, creating an atmosphere that incubates students’ creativity. Here, artists of all skill levels invent inimitable designs with the help of bits of colored glass and tiles, which they use to create art in the form of a multihued cross or an ornate portrait of a heron perched at the edge of sparkling blue waters, pondering whether it’ll ever get to taste pizza again. A guitar bears the painstaking work of one artist, who blanketed the instrument in a glass pattern of maroon, deep blue, spring green, purple, and white. Both children and adults can benefit from class instruction as teachers lead them through specific designs, and the establishment's open-studio policy allows customers to work on any project outside the structure of the classroom.

Owner Jennifer Lushbaugh harnesses more than 30 years of needlework experience to alter or craft custom garments, blankets, pillows, and other home-decor goods. Designed for toddlers, her popular nap mats feature built-in pillows stuffed with hypoallergenic fiberfill, Velcro-tab closures, and shoulder straps for portability. Channeling her experiences working at a costume shop and designing wardrobes for junior-high theater performances, Jennifer also creates unique outfits from scratch and alters garments to better fit clients’ figures. Customers also stop into Just Sew for personalized six-student classes that cover how to make pillows or replace a zipper.