Here in Pennsylvania, Memorial Day Weekend was filled with gloomy, rainy days — so we didn’t get to have BBQs, swim in the pool or spend time outside. Even though we were bummed, my friends and I still wanted to make the most out of the weekend with indoor activities.

We eventually decided to do an at-home Painting with a Twist that we put our own twist on. We didn’t have an instructor or a step-by-step tutorial, so, instead, we did a free-for-all and let everyone sketch and paint from their own interpretations.

To set up our inspiration, we took random things from around the house and put them together to see what looked best. We ended up with a plant, wine bottle, wine glass and a disposable camera set up on a table.

We all got our canvases, pencils, paints and took our spots on the couch to get to work. While we were sketching, it was quiet as we all focused on getting it to our liking. Once we got to the painting, we started to talk more and compare our sketches.

After we were finished, we put them on display to see which ones we liked best. We had one friend who didn’t paint act as judge and then some of us posted them on our social media to have friends vote.

Overall, the paintings turned out much better than we thought they would, and we had so much fun. We can’t wait to do it again!

— Mary Melnick, social media and editorial coordinator