Heather Schoonover

Heather grew up in Massachusetts and has been passionate about art for as long as she can remember. With a BFA in Painting, she began her career teaching Visual Arts before moving into Graphic Design and college-level teaching in North Idaho. Eventually, she discovered the paint and sip world and found her true calling: helping people unlock their creativity in a fun, relaxed environment. She especially loves helping first-time painters discover that, yes, they really can paint! After moving to Boise, Heather fell in love with the city’s creative and adventurous spirit. You may recognize her from community organizations like the Boise Full Moon Bike Ride or SkiCulture.org, where she combines her love of art, the outdoors, and community. Together with her husband, Levi, Heather is excited to bring Painting with a Twist to Boise. When she’s not creating or building community, she’s embracing her newest adventure: being a new mom!

Artist Website

Ashley Staker

Ashley acquired her Bachelor in Fine Arts from Boise State University in 2024. She has a deep love for drawing and painting, having a passion for them since almost elementary school. The art studio environment is one of the best places to be, and talking through various art processes with different people is one of the most fun parts of taking art classes.

Clara Geise

Clara Geise is a multidisciplinary artist based in Boise with a background in Studio Arts and Graphic Design. Their work spans painting, illustration, sculpture, and metalwork, often using unexpected materials. Clara has experience teaching art in a variety of settings and loves helping people tap into their creativity. They're excited to bring their playful, hands-on approach to Painting with a Twist!

Faith Deaton

Meet Faith! At 23 years old, her love for painting began all the way back in Sunday School finger painting classes. She especially enjoys painting sunsets and gravitates toward bright, bold, and popping colors. Faith embraces a true Bob Ross attitude when it comes to art — believing there are no mistakes, only happy accidents. Her philosophy is simple: art is what you make it, so let’s make it fun!

Artist Website

Gabrielle Walter

Gabrielle Walter is a visual artist making work about the relationship between nature, womanhood, and the body. She often begins by creating drawings, cyanotypes, and writings about her own experiences in nature before collaging these materials into illustration series, artist books, and paintings. She earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Visual Studies in 2020 from Texas Tech University and her Masters of Fine Arts in Illustration and Design in 2023 from the University of Arizona. From 2023-2026, she was an elementary school art teacher in Nebraska, sharing her love for art with the younger generation. She is very excited to now be working at Painting With a Twist in Boise, teaching everyone that they can and should paint.

Artist Website

Jared Scharfetter

With a background in film and television, Jared has had a deep love for the visual arts. After graduating from film school in Los Angeles, Jared traveled cross-country exploring art and film scenes around the country. Since landing in Boise in 2013, Jared has been exploring visual art skills outside of filmmaking, from jewelry and pottery to drawing and painting. At Painting with a Twist, Jared creates a fun, relaxing space to create memories and masterpieces.

Jessi Brown

Jessi is a Los Angeles–born multidisciplinary artist, designer, and creative director whose work bridges fine art, wearable sculpture, branding, and visual storytelling. With a Bachelor of Architecture from Syracuse University, she began her creative career in architecture before transitioning to visual arts and jewelry in 2013, bringing an architectural sensitivity to composition, materiality, and form into every discipline she explores.

Artist Website

Kaylee Hersch

Kaylee Hersch is an artist, teacher, mom, and community enthusiast living in Idaho. She has been teaching art for seven years, and when she’s not in the classroom guiding students through creative adventures, she can usually be found experimenting with paint, pencils, clay, or whatever new material sparks her curiosity. She loves blending art history with hands-on making, helping people see how creativity connects us across cultures and time. Her art—and her teaching—are all about exploration: layering colors, trying new techniques, and finding joy in the messy, unexpected parts of the process. Community is at the heart of her work. She has organized showcases, collaborative projects, and mentorship opportunities that give students and neighbors a chance to shine through art. For her, the best part of being an artist is sharing that spark of creativity with others. When she’s not covered in paint, Kaylee is likely chasing after her kids, planning the next community art event, or daydreaming about her next big project.

Levi Schoonover

When not guiding painters through their next pARTy, he’s crafting awards, medals and plaques for the Boise community at Trophy House Pros. An avid mountain biker, volunteer ski patroller, and organizer of the Boise Full Moon Bike Ride, Levi thrives on adventure (both on the trails and in the studio)! Join him for a fun-filled class and let your creativity run wild! ¯\_(?)_/¯

Melissa Maisey

Melissa earned her Bachelor's degree in Illustration from BYU-I in 2026. While primarily an illustrator, she loves to paint whenever she has the chance to, and is a firm believer that everyone is an artist in their own way. Along with art, Melissa loves going on walks, exploring nature, reading and crafting. She is always looking for opportunities to learn and explore.

Artist Website

Sarah Jacobsen

Sarah’s artistic journey began in the hallowed halls of high school art class and continued with the one and only Bob Ross, her unofficial mentor and official happy-tree hero. She’s been painting along with Bob for most of her life (and talking to the TV like he can hear her). While she doesn’t have a fancy art degree, she does have an impressive collection of wine corks and an unmatched enthusiasm for making art fun, approachable, and just the right amount of messy. Sarah believes there’s no such thing as a mistake, just a “happy little accident” and maybe a reason to sip again. When she’s not guiding masterpieces or laughing with guests, she’s probably mixing the perfect paint-to-wine ratio (patent pending). Come ready to have a blast, get creative, and maybe leave with a painting you actually want to hang on your wall.