For a lot of us, once we get a degree, we leave the classroom. You might watch your kids learning times tables and cursive and long for the time when you also had the thrill and wonder of learning something new. But learning doesn’t have to be a bygone pleasure. There are plenty of opportunities in Pittsburgh for adults to learn a new hobby or skill. Taking a class is a way to meet new people and find a new passion outside of the day-to-day grind of work or the ups and downs of parenting. Dive into these fall classes at the stellar institutions Pittsburgh has to offer.
Perfect Your Skills at These Fall Classes for Adults in Pittsburgh
Metalsmithing
Sweetwater Center for the Arts, Mondays, September 10 – October 27
Pittsburgh has a rich history of metalworking, and now you can learn how to do it to with Sweetwater Center’s instructor Pat Falbo. In this class, students will complete two projects. First, you’ll learn how to make a simple cuff bracelet. Then, you’ll get an opportunity to design your own more complex bracelet. The main skills you’ll learn in this introductory class are metal forming and stone setting, which are basics that you can take with you to the next level of Sweetwater’s metalsmithing class.
Black & White Photography
Pittsburgh Center for Arts and Media, September 15 – October 27, 2025
While anyone can take pictures on their phone now, we’ve seen a growing interest in “analog” photography techniques. Working with film brings you closer to the tactile experience of taking a photo. However, working in a darkroom requires some training. Pittsburgh Center for Arts and Media can help you learn the technique. This course will focus on 35mm photography: how to load and shoot, how to mix darkroom chemicals, how to unload the film, and then how to process and treat the photos you’ve taken.
Weaving
Contemporary Craft, Tuesdays, September 9-October 14, 2025
Textile arts are one of the oldest crafts in the world, practiced by people in many forms across centuries. At the recently-opened Timmons Studio at Contemporary Craft, instructor Miranda Crotsley will help you get comfortable with using a 4-harness loom to gain a basic knowledge of weaving. Contemporary Craft provides all the materials for you to get comfortable with basic weaving, and by the end of the class you’ll have a base for how to design your own weaving projects in the future.
Telling the Truth: Opinion Writing
Steel Quill Writing Workshop, 4 Sundays beginning September 7, from 5-7
Join award-winning journalist Tony Norman for a month-long workshop series to help you find your voice and speak your truth. When there are so many distortions of truth out there, knowing where you stand is a form of stepping into your power. This workshop takes place at Amazing Books and Records in Squirrel Hill as part of their newly developed Steel Quill Writing Workshop program.
Knight School
Hilt and Helm, Offered bi-monthly, starting again in September
Live out your childhood dream of swashbuckling medieval adventures with the HEMA (Historical European Martial Arts) programs at Hilt and Helm in Squirrel Hill. The teachers at Hilt and Helm offer longsword, smallsword, saber, and broadsword instruction at different times a week. With the Knight School class pass, you get 2 months of unlimited fencing and equipment rentals so you can swordfight to your heart’s delight. It’s a great workout. And, as owner Chris Shelton says: “You can’t think about your personal problems when someone is about to stab you in the face.”
Carnegie Lab
Carnegie Museum of Art, Every Friday 10AM-1PM, September 5 – May 29
For something a little more chill and lower-cost, the Carnegie Museum’s weekly Carnegie Lab is an art class every Friday free with museum admission. The activities take inspiration from the what’s in the galleries at any given time, so they rotate every week. Carnegie Lab is open to all ages, and you’re guaranteed to meet some new friends while drawing, collaging, or sculpting.
Story by Emma Riva
Cover Photo Courtesy of Hilt and Helm
Subscribe to TABLE Magazine‘s print edition.
