279 classes and events across Chicago
Classes, Free Culture & Things to Do in Chicago
Pottery wheels in Ravenswood and Logan Square, printmaking, glass and textile workshops across the North and West Sides — plus the free museum days, park programs and river cleanups worth knowing about — 279 of them on right now across 46 studios, museums and parks. Every listing read off the venue's own page by a person, with the price as printed. No aggregator sludge, no dead links.
What are you in the mood for?
Up next in Chicago
Every one of these was read off the venue's own page, with the price and the date it actually says. Narrow them below — the numbers are what you will get.
12 picks from 279 across Chicago
$85.00FRIDAYS & SATURDAYS · 6 PMMADE at Night: WheelthrowingMADE Chicago · Northwest Side$85.00Details →Pinot's Palette Logan Square
$45FRI, OCT 23Ghostly GardensPinot's Palette Logan Square · Northwest Side$45Details →Spudnik Press Cooperative
$125.00SUN, OCT 25Letterpress PostersSpudnik Press Cooperative · West Loop & Near West$125.00Details →DuSable Black History Museum and Education Center
$55.20SUN, OCT 25Whisk Broom Weaving with Abeni PiersonDuSable Black History Museum and Education Center · South Side$55.20Details →indigo & violet studio
From $75SUN, OCT 25Marbling on Paper, Silk, or Leather Workshopindigo & violet studio · North SideFrom $75Details →The Chicago Mosaic School
$360TUE, OCT 27Mosaic IThe Chicago Mosaic School · North Side$360Details →Flan's Glass
$695.00WED, OCT 28Skills Stained Glass Class: 3-D Cottage HouseFlan's Glass · Northwest Side$695.00Details →Lillstreet Art Center
FRI, OCT 30Chainmail BraceletsLillstreet Art Center · North Side$130 ($125 members) + $10 materials feeDetails →Lincoln Park Zoo
FreeDAILY · 10 AMFall FestLincoln Park Zoo · North SideFreeDetails →Garfield Park Conservatory
FreeFRIDAYS · 10:00 AMMorning GloriesGarfield Park Conservatory · West Loop & Near WestFreeDetails →Pullman National Historical Park
FreeDAILY · 1:00 PMRanger-Guided TourPullman National Historical Park · South SideFreeDetails →Cantigny Park
FRI, OCT 23Family Night Trick-or-TreatingCantigny Park · Oak Park & West SuburbsSee listingDetails →Pick a craft
Sorted by what you actually make, not lumped into one “workshops” list. Each page carries the studio's own dates and the price as printed.
And the rest of the calendar
Checked by a person
Every listing here was opened, read and typed by a human against the venue's own page. The date is the date they printed; the price is the price they printed. When a venue publishes no price, we say so instead of guessing.
Recurring things stay right
A Tuesday class shows next Tuesday, every week, and it still reads 6:30pm on both sides of the clock change. Most calendars list it once and let it rot.
Venues, not just events
Each studio and shoreline has its own page with what's coming and what already happened — so you can see what a place actually programmes before you book. Browse venues →
Everything on this site
Every page we keep, what is behind it, and how many things are on it right now. The counts come from the same filter the page itself uses, so the number here is the number you land on.
25 places to start
By craft
Three quarters of this calendar is people teaching you to make something. One page per craft.
- Pottery & ceramicsWheel throwing, handbuilding and glazing — one-night taster through to a six-week course with your own shelf.32 classes →
- Mosaic & lampsTile and glass mosaic, Turkish lamps and stepping stones. Mostly single evenings, and you leave with the thing.4 classes →
- Glass & neonGlassblowing, fusing, stained glass and neon bending — the most equipment-heavy thing on the calendar, and priced like it.12 classes →
- PrintmakingScreen printing, letterpress, lino, etching and risograph, at the presses that still keep them running.23 classes →
- Bookbinding & paperJapanese stab binding, coptic stitch, box making, marbling and zines. Quiet, precise, usually under three hours.6 classes →
- Textiles & fibreWeaving, tufting, natural dye, sewing, knitting and visible mending — the biggest craft category here after clay.12 classes →
- Flowers & plantsArranging, wreaths, ikebana, terrariums and pressed flowers. Seasonal, and the good ones sell out.2 classes →
- Painting & drawingLife drawing, watercolour, oil, sumi-e and paint-and-sip, from a two-hour evening to a full atelier term.48 classes →
- Wood & carvingSpoon carving, joinery, furniture and turning — the classes with the longest waiting lists and the best tools.3 classes →
- Candles & scentCandle pouring and perfume blending. The cheapest way into a studio, and the most common first class people book.Open →
- Jewelry & metalSilversmithing, ring making, enamelling and stone setting — you leave wearing it, which is why these book out first.2 classes →
- All classes & workshopsEvery craft above on one page, each with its own count and the studios that teach it.146 classes →
The rest of the calendar
Not everything here is a class. These are the other things we read and check.
- Volunteer & cleanupsHarbour and river shifts, garden and compost days, street-tree care. Free, and the good ones fill a week ahead.7 work days →
- Talks & coursesArtist talks, curator walkthroughs and evening courses. Usually one session, usually cheap or free.28 talks →
- Museums & exhibitionsShows worth the trip, listed by the weeks they are open rather than pinned to one date.12 shows →
- Music & performanceGigs, concerts, classical and opera, dance and theatre, each with a date and a price we could confirm.17 shows →
- FilmOutdoor screenings, repertory nights and festival dates. Not the multiplex listings.9 screenings →
- CommunityStreet fairs, markets, block parties and neighbourhood meetups across Chicago.9 events →
- Cultural festivalsLunar new year, carnival, heritage weekends and the city-wide festival calendar.3 festivals →
By price, place and time
The three questions people actually open the site with.
- Everything freeThe whole free calendar in one list. "Free" is the claim most often wrong elsewhere, so each one is read off the venue’s own page.65 free events →
- Free craft & makingOpen studio sessions, museum craft tables and community craft nights. The smallest free list, honestly so — somebody has to pay for the clay.3 sessions →
- Free volunteer daysStanding weekly shifts rather than one-off dates — the most reliably available thing on this calendar.7 shifts →
- Free culture & outdoorsMuseum free nights, pay-what-you-wish hours, outdoor films and park programmes. Residents-only and free-with-admission are both labelled.55 listings →
- This weekThe next seven days, with recurring things placed on the days they actually happen rather than once.77 on this week →
- Venues by areaEvery studio and space we list, each with its upcoming and past events, address and own website.84 places →