restART studio

“For the first time, I actually feel proud of who I am becoming.” 💛

This is why we do this work.

So many young people carry shame, self-doubt, and the belief that they are “too much,” “not enough,” or beyond help. Through creativity, connection, and a safe therapeutic relationship, we get to witness youth begin to see themselves differently.

Not as a problem to fix.
But as a person worthy of care, growth, expression, and pride.

Art therapy is not just about making art. It’s about helping young people reconnect with themselves, recognize their strengths, and imagine new possibilities for who they can become.

We are endlessly grateful to witness that process every day. 🎨

🌿 TODAY at the Longmont Youth Center 🌿

Join restART studio art therapy interns Zoe and Rhonda for a free Eco Art Therapy Group for middle and high school youth today from 3:00–4:00/4:30 PM!

Come spend the afternoon creating with nature, making art, connecting with others, and taking a moment to slow down and breathe. No art experience needed, just curiosity and a willingness to explore. 🍃🎨

This free weekly summer group is a collaboration between restART studio and the Longmont Youth Center, created to offer youth a welcoming space for creativity, connection, and self-expression throughout the summer.

Come try it out!

Healing happens in community. 🌿🎨 Scenes from a recent restART studio team consultation.

Our art therapy team gathered in nature to create, connect, reflect, and support one another in the meaningful work we do alongside youth every day.

As therapists, we know the importance of practicing what we invite our clients to do: slowing down, engaging in creativity, building authentic connections, and making space for reflection. Through art-making and conversation, we explored our work, celebrated successes, navigated challenges, and renewed our commitment to helping young people heal, grow, and express themselves.

Caring for our team helps us show up fully for the youth and young adults we serve. 🌿✨

People sometimes ask why we use art therapy instead of traditional talk therapy.

Yes, there’s a clinical answer. Art accesses parts of the brain where trauma, emotion, and memory are stored in ways words alone often can’t reach.

But there’s another reason that matters just as much:

Art therapy is an equity practice.

Traditional talk therapy often privileges verbal fluency, emotional vocabulary, and comfort with self-disclosure. But many young people — especially those who have been failed by systems, experienced trauma, or learned not to trust adults — do not feel safe sitting across from someone and “talking about their feelings.”

Art therapy changes the entry point.

A drawing can say what words cannot.
A collage can hold complexity without explanation.
A sculpture can express emotion before a young person even has language for it.

Art transcends language barriers. It meets youth at their developmental level. It honors different ways of communicating, processing, and being.

This is why our clinical team is made up entirely of master’s-level trained art therapists. The modality is not separate from the equity work.

It is the equity work. 🎨

A laugh with a friend.
A favorite song on the drive home.
The way the sunlight came through the window. ☀️

Our brains are often wired to hold onto stress and difficult moments. Creating a “Happy Moments Jar” can help us slow down and intentionally notice the small moments of joy, comfort, connection, and peace that happen every day.

Over time, the jar becomes a tangible reminder that even in hard seasons, meaningful moments still exist. 💛

No moment is too small to collect.

Friday night was filled with creativity, connection, and community as this canvas came to life at the Downtown Longmont Summer Concert Series. 🎨

Many hands, ideas, colors, and brushstrokes came together to create something none of us could have made alone. Watching young people, families, and community members contribute their own unique mark was a beautiful reminder of the power of art to bring people together.

Thank you to everyone who stopped by, picked up a brush, and helped create this piece with us!🎨✨

🌿 Eco Art Therapy Group 🌿
Starting May 29 at the Longmont Youth Center!

Join restART studio art therapy interns Zoe and Megan this summer for a free weekly group for middle and high school youth focused on creativity, nature, connection, and self-expression. 🎨🍃

Through nature-based art activities, creative exploration, and community, youth will have space to slow down, connect with themselves and others, and experience the healing power of art and nature together.

🗓 Fridays throughout the summer
⏰ 3:00–4:30 PM
📍 Longmont Youth Center
💚 Free for all middle + high school youth

Come create with us this summer !
No art experience needed, just curiosity and openness to try something new.

Every young person deserves a space where they can be fully themselves.

A place where creativity becomes a language for self-expression. Where challenges are met with compassion. Where strengths are recognized, voices are valued, and healing can begin.

In our newest blog, Executive Director and Co-Founder Amanda Balmores shares the story behind restART studio and the belief that continues to guide our work today: that young people are resilient, capable, and worthy of support.

At restART studio, we use art therapy to help youth explore emotions, build confidence, strengthen coping skills, and reconnect with their authentic selves through creativity.

We believe art is more than something we create. It's a tool for healing, self-expression, and finding one's voice. That belief inspired our founding and continues to shape our work today.

Read the full story and learn why we started restART Studio:
🔗 https://www.restartstudio.org/post/why-we-started-restart-studio

🎨☀️ Join us this Friday, May 29, at the Downtown Longmont Summer Art & Music Series!

📍 Downtown Longmont
⏰ 5:30–9:00 PM

Enjoy an evening filled with:
🎶 Live music
🌮 Local food trucks
🍹 Drinks
👧 Kid-friendly activities
🎨 Local artist vendors

Be sure to stop by the restART studio booth, where we'll be creating a large community mural together! Add your own colors, creativity, and mark to a collaborative piece celebrating community, connection, and self-expression.

Whether you paint one brushstroke or many, we'd love for you to be part of it. See you downtown!

✨ Meet Megan ✨

We’re so excited to welcome Megan to the restART studio team as our newest Art Therapy Intern!

Megan is currently completing her master’s degree in Transpersonal Art Therapy and Clinical Mental Health Counseling at Naropa University. She brings a compassionate, mindfulness-based approach to her work and deeply believes in the power of creativity and self-expression as tools for healing and growth.

Megan has experience supporting adolescents and young adults, including individuals navigating substance use and co-occurring mental health challenges. She has also served as an art mentor with Naropa Community Art Studio’s Senderos program.

Her therapeutic approach integrates mindfulness, somatic awareness, and expressive arts practices to create supportive, nonjudgmental spaces where clients can explore emotions, identity, and life experiences through creativity.

We are so excited for the care, creativity, and authenticity Megan brings to our community. 💛🎨

Welcome, Megan!