Can You Try Art Lessons Before You Commit? Here's How...
Time first. Committing to a weekly live session on a fixed evening isn't realistic for everyone's life, and I know that. That's exactly why every single live session inside Create has a replay. Some members carve out a regular slot, Wednesday evenings seem to be popular, and stick to it as best they can. Others watch replays through the week and only join live for the quarterly Sunday morning session. Both are completely valid ways to use it. Fully committing to something you haven't tried is a bit like buying shoes you've never put on. It might turn out beautifully. It might also sit in a box at the back of a cupboard for a year.
So no, I would never ask you to commit to art lessons blind, and if anyone else does, that's worth being a little wary of.
Why I'd Never Ask You to Commit Blind
With my in-person groups, I always encourage people to come along and see what we actually do before they join properly. Sit in, watch, feel the room out. Art needs to fit you, and the only honest way to know if it does is to be in it for a bit first.
Create works the same way. My online membership runs on a seven-day free trial, full access, no half version. Seven days is enough time to properly explore. You can join a live session, take a tour around, and dip into the video library to see what's actually inside before a penny changes hands. I built it that way deliberately. I wouldn't want to hold anyone to ransom over something that might simply not fit them, and I'd rather you found that out for free than after paying.
How to Try Art Lessons Before Committing to Create
If you want the honest, practical answer to trying art lessons before committing, here it is. Start with the trial. Join a live session while you're in it, even if you're nervous, because that's exactly what the trial is for. Have a proper look through the replays and the video library. Then decide, with actual information rather than a guess.
Every current member of Create went through that same free trial before staying. Nobody was asked to take my word for it.
The Free First Step Nobody Talks About: KickstART
There's also a step before the step, which people forget exists. KickstART, my free five-day course, sits at the very start of the whole path, and it's free to access all year round, trial or no trial.
Paul came to Create exactly that way. He did KickstART first, felt ready for more, and joined during the last cohort because he wanted proper opportunities to build his skills further, particularly through the shorter modules further along the path. He never needed convincing. He just needed the next visible step to be an easy one to take.
What People Are Actually Afraid Of (It's Rarely Just the Art)
When someone hesitates over trying art lessons before committing, I don't think it's really about the art at all. It's usually time and money, in roughly that order.
Money is the other one, and I'd rather be upfront about it than dance around it. Create costs £35 a month. Broken down, that works out at just over £10 a week for more than forty live sessions a year, plus every replay, the full video library, and community access whenever you need it. For comparison, my in-person art groups charge £10 for a single weekly session with none of the extras. However you land on it, it's worth doing the actual sums rather than reacting to the headline number.
Today, when doors open, there's also a quick-response discount for the first 48 hours, bigger the sooner you decide. I mention it not to rush you, only so you know it exists if timing works out that way for you.
The Downside of Trying Too Cautiously
I want to be honest about a downside too, because trying before committing isn't automatically the safe choice it sounds like.
If you use your exploring week to cram, watching several videos a day and trying to catch every replay and every live session at once, you can end up completely overwhelmed by the end of it, convinced Create isn't for you when really it's just too much, too fast. This is meant to be a slow build. You grow in confidence week by week, not all at once in a single trial period.
I had a member, a while back, who did exactly that. She threw herself at everything in the first few weeks, understandably excited, and ended up leaving through overwhelm before I could catch her and slow things down together. I still think about that. We're still in touch, happily, and she knows the door's open whenever she's ready to try again, more gently this time. If you take one thing from this section, let it be this: if you want a fast-track community, Create genuinely isn't it. If you want to be held and nurtured while you build something properly, it is exactly that 🤍
There's research behind this too, the idea that small, manageable steps taken consistently do more for easing anxiety than one big, all-at-once leap. It's the same principle, whether you're starting to draw or starting anything new that makes you nervous.
Try Art Lessons Before Committing, Starting Today
I think I've said most of what matters already, so I'll leave you with this:
Don't take the leap. Take a step. Come and look around, meet us, see whether this feels like your tribe. If it is, I would love to have you here.
Doors are open today, Friday 23 October, until Friday 30 October, for new members only. If you're curious, I'll see you in there, ready to guide and cheer you on!
However you decide, in your own time and at your own pace is exactly the right pace.
Debbie x
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