Until this summer, Bay Harbor Islands' only business strip was missing what every small town should seemingly have: an artsy spot where creative folks can get their hands covered in paint.

The town finally got it in May with the arrival of Splatter!, a tiny, open-air arts-and-crafts shop run by Melissa Manas who grew up on North Bay Island.

The Bal Harbour resident opened the shop after her return to South Florida last year, when she noticed the town lacked a place for children and adults to escape the noise of everyday life.

``I wanted to provide a creative environment for everyone,'' Manas said as she displayed dozens of colorful pieces made in recent months.

To some, the small storefront at 1017 Kane Concourse is an art shop where they can buy Manas' delicate vases and ornaments. But the up-and-coming arts hub also doubles as a creative center where Manas, 41, teaches aspiring artists young and old how to paint and glaze bisque clay pieces made by two artists in California.

A typical visit costs between $10 and $55, and covers the clay pieces -- which customers pick out -- the paint used to decorate them and direction from Manas throughout the process.

Finished pieces are then sent to a kiln and are ready for pickup within a week.

On weekends, the shop fills with kids -- paint brushes in hand -- celebrating birthdays.

During the week, it caters to field trips and curious tourists.

Earlier this week, a dozen seventh-grade girls from Lubavitch Education Center were busy at work inside the studio as Manas advised them one by one.

``She made sure each piece was something done in each student's own way,'' said Luna Abenaim, a chaperone who arranged the field trip.

``We loved it. It's such a welcoming, warm place.''

Jennifer Sazant said she was delighted after her daughter, Sydney, celebrated her ninth birthday in June at the studio, surrounded by a dozen classmates and friends.

Sydney brought home a blue and white striped mug she made for her father. ``Daddy'' is written in black across the side.

What sets Manas apart is ``her attention to detail and attention to the kids,'' Sazant said.

``She has her own little flare . . . and she truly enjoys it.''

Newcomers find that the shop's blank, chalky-white walls echo the untouched clay pieces that line several turquoise-colored shelves.

The simplistic design of her studio is the antithesis to the busy, everyday world she wants customers to escape: one marked by beeping cellphones, handheld video games and portable televisions.

It's one she left not long ago.

A former attorney in Los Angeles, Manas moved to Bal Harbour in 2008 with her two sons.

Upon arriving, she decided to follow childhood passions crafted in a home where artistic spirits ran high: Her grandmother sewed couture dresses, and her mother started the once-popular Twenty-three Collection belts series.

``I guess it's in the blood,'' Manas said.

``Watching my mom run that operation was very much a part of what spurred me on to start an artistic career.''

Opening the shop, Manas said, enabled her to do two things: grow her artistic career and become part of a small-town community that is still growing. Although a newcomer to the Bay Harbor Islands business community, Manas already has taken part in several fundraisers and holiday events, opening up her shop for people and animals.

One of the recent fundraisers at the shop benefited the Humane Society of Greater Miami.

Sitting on an orange foldout chair inside her studio, Manas pointed to her open back door and smiled.

``This is the kind of community where residences are a stone's throw away,'' she said. ``It's got that kind of old-school feeling.''

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