When I'm looking for a workshop website, it's usually because I'm eager to expand my skillset with something new and intriguing. Features like quick registration, clear workshop outlines, and detailed instructor bios are crucial, as they save me time and help me feel confident in what I'm signing up for.
A good workshop website, whether it promotes online or in-person classes, makes all the difference in ensuring a smooth, enjoyable learning experience. That's why we recommend Zarla's workshop AI website builder — it's designed to create the kind of user-friendly site that makes finding and enjoying educational workshops a breeze.
Zarla checks that sites meet basic web standards for mobile and desktop. We also use Google's PageSpeed Insights, and WAVE, a service that evaluates accessibility for individuals with disabilities. PageSpeed scores and accessibility are important factors for search engine rankings. PageSpeed scores may not match user experience and can vary substantially.
https://www.brooklyncraftcompany.com/
Brooklyn, New York, U.S.
Brooklyn Craft Company is a creative space and online store offering a variety of workshops and craft supplies. I thought the website did a great job of showcasing the company's diverse workshops. Its ample use of content blocks brought order to a vibrant layout, which I found balanced color and minimalism effortlessly.
Navigating the "Workshop" page, in my opinion, was seamless, with the option to view by calendar or see all workshops at once simplifying my experience. The clear pricing and thorough workshop descriptions were also a welcome bonus. The online store is equally well-organized, and I enjoyed browsing through the blog, which included "how-to" guides and "Teacher Spotlight" posts.
The workshops are easy to find, both on the home page and in the primary menu. They're also conveniently priced, which made planning my budget simple. I also appreciated the well-organized online store and the visible payment options in the footer. Additionally, I liked having the shop's operating hours displayed at the top of the hero image.
The icons in the top corner offer quick access to my account login, cart, and a search bar. However, the icons are small and easy to miss, with low contrast further diminishing visibility. The back-to-top button, while useful, suffers from the same low contrast issue. WAVE also flagged linked images missing alternative text and several empty links across multiple pages.
The desktop website initially caught my eye with its airy aesthetic, achieved through a balanced use of white space and a lively color palette. This minimalist approach made the site feel clean and inviting, while the top menu's drop-down options, clearly indicated by arrows, made navigation effortless.
However, the workshop images, in particular, didn't quite capture my attention as much as I'd hoped. I found myself wishing for hover-activated descriptions for each image, especially given the wide range of workshops available — this would've made it easier to explore my options without needing to click through the individual pages.
On the mobile site, I appreciated how the top-right icons stood out more prominently, making it easier to keep track of my cart and access the search function. The floating hamburger menu was a nice touch, but I found the menu presentation lacking — it didn't fill the screen as I expected, leaving me with a cropped, somewhat clunky experience that wasn't as user-friendly as I'd hoped.
One positive element was the CTA to follow the Brooklyn Craft Company on Instagram, which I felt appeared more noticeable on mobile, drawing my attention right away. That said, despite my overall positive experience, I was surprised by the home page's poor performance on Google's PageSpeed Insights, which scored a low 19/100.
https://blackhorseworkshop.co.uk/
Walthamstow, London, U.K.
Blackhorse Workshop is a creative space that not only offers a variety of courses but also serves as a hub for makers and artists. The website brings the workshop's online space to life with its airy layout and well-sectioned content blocks, which provided me with all the essential details I needed before purchasing a workshop, including times, dates, prices, and course overviews.
I especially liked how the site highlighted all aspects of the business, including its café and makers showcase, which were thoughtfully described towards the bottom of the home page. The floating menu design was also intriguing; I enjoyed how clicking on options with plus symbols would make my selection the only visible menu.
The floating menu was convenient for accessing the search bar and my shopping basket, which helped make my online shopping experience smoother. I loved that the first option in the main menu was "ACCESSIBILITY," as this option allowed me to set my browsing preferences before diving into Blackhorse Workshop's other offerings.
The layout on the home page didn't quite sit right with me. I thought the individual web pages did a better job of integrating text and images without adding excessive content blocks. Moreover, the floating menu's solid background often obscured my view, detracting from the browsing journey. WAVE also flagged several empty links and missing alternative text on multiple pages.
At first glance, I was let down by the lack of visual interest. While this meant my browsing journey was straightforward and focused on providing information, I could already tell that it would not be an engaging one. Even the welcoming flyer in the hero image slot, despite its vibrant colors, failed to grab my attention.
Instead, I quickly navigated to the courses and noticeboard sections, as well as the footer menu, which housed all of Blackhorse Workshop's essential contact details. This proved that efficiency was a key part of the website's narrative. Additionally, though the site offered highlighted, hover-activated selections, I felt like more image hover effects would improve engagement on desktop.
I found the mobile site of Blackhorse Workshop to be more user-friendly than the desktop site. Upon arrival, I was instantly impressed by the minimalist floating menu, which I found refreshingly clean without a logo, making it less visually intrusive. The mobile site also featured a compact layout that felt more organized and complete, with fewer empty spaces consuming unnecessary room.
I also liked how the main menu kept its functionality and took up just the right amount of screen space, allowing me to focus on my options with ease. Although the site didn't load on PageSpeed Insights, accessScan showed it was semi-compliant with assistive technologies, though it did flag some empty buttons.
Randburg, Johannesburg, South Africa
Dubbed as one of South Africa's "largest workshop and maker spaces," Made in Workshop is a creative haven for manufacturers, hobbyists, and makers alike. The workshop space's website reflects this with its spacious, almost barren aesthetic, which helped me focus on specific features and offerings without distraction.
Important pages like pricing, news, and FAQs were prominently displayed in the top menu, while the footer menu effectively highlighted essential contact details. The "Book a Tour" feature offered streamlined convenience, allowing me to select a timeslot that fit my schedule perfectly. The "Upcoming Classes" section enhanced this experience by providing a clear and organized view of all available classes.
I loved how the bouncing arrow in the hero slot acted as an anchor link, taking me straight to the "Upcoming Classes" schedule, which conveniently covered the next three months. Being able to browse through the machinery available was also a nice touch. While WAVE flagged a couple of empty links and missing form labels, the site performed well overall, with very few errors.
When I first visited the site, I was surprised by the minimal visuals. While I came to appreciate the site's focus on minimalism and powerful messaging, I would have loved a video tour of the workspace to enhance the "Machines" page and provide a better view of the workspace. Additionally, more information about the instructors would have been appreciated.
The website's minimalist layout, limited color palette, and empty spaces were more pronounced on desktop. However, I didn't feel like the website lacked anything because of these elements. Instead, they helped streamline my desktop journey. Within a few clicks or scrolls, I could book tours, explore machinery, read through Made In Workshop's offerings, or view the upcoming classes schedule.
However, the lack of hover-activated features on images and selections, coupled with very few impactful visuals, made my desktop browsing experience less engaging than expected. On a more positive note, several of the site's pages performed impressively on PageSpeed Insights, with performance ratings ranging between 90/100 and 100/100 on some pages.
While the more compact design of the mobile site helped limit the number of empty spaces, I felt like the space between the "Why choose our Makerspace?" section was unnecessary. I was also disappointed that the linked arrow in the hero slot was no longer available, as this did a great job of streamlining navigation on desktop.
In addition, the few images that were available seemed less impactful on mobile. That said, I really liked that the main menu was neatly tucked behind a hamburger icon, which descended from the top to create a nice drop-down effect. The mobile site's performance score on PageSpeed Insights was quite mixed, with some pages scoring 56/100, while others earned more than 80/100.
Australia
ClassBento is an online platform that aims to connect people with a wide range of workshops in Australia, New Zealand, the U.K., and the U.S. Upon arrival, I was instantly struck by the interesting hero video of customers enjoying diverse workshops, as this did well to complement the inviting message, "Make a beautiful memory."
This heartfelt welcome drew me in and encouraged me to explore the variety of classes. The website's narrative felt thoughtfully crafted, with classes neatly organized in a convenient drop-down menu, as well as on the home page, where I could easily filter them according to my preferred location. Moreover, reviews and a blog were available for deeper insight into ClassBento's offerings.
I liked that the home page included reviews to help build trust in ClassBento, and the "Some happy clients" section with logos of reputable companies added an extra layer of credibility. I also found the footer menu helpful, as it was packed with useful links, including "POPULAR EXPERIENCES" and "CITIES" sections. This made it easier to tailor my browsing experience.
Due to the home page's content-rich layout, I was a little surprised to see it lacked a floating menu and a back-to-top button. Additionally, while there was plenty of content to enjoy, I found the lack of hover-activated features very noticeable. WAVE also flagged empty links, missing alternative text, and a lot of contrast errors on multiple pages.
The desktop website opened with a hero video showing friends and family enjoying workshops together. This visual was particularly captivating on desktop, despite the "Make a beautiful memory" wording interrupting my view. I also really liked that the "Classes" drop-down option included categories and a "Featured class" section, as this helped me visualize the experience better.
However, these were the only truly engaging elements on the home page, which lacked hover-activated images and highlighted selections. Moreover, while I found the unpolished images more personal, I felt they could have been of quality. On PageSpeed Insights, the home page scored an impressive 88/100 in the performance category.
In contrast to the desktop version, the mobile site did not open with an interactive video, which was a bit of a letdown, in my opinion. I found the mobile site's focus on efficiency admirable, especially as mobile users are likely to be on the move, but this meant sacrificing visual entertainment.
While I did not miss a back-to-top button on the desktop version, it was definitely needed on the mobile site. As a result, I found the mobile site more tedious to scroll through, especially with the absence of multimedia content. Despite our solid real-world tests, the home page scored a modest 57/100 for performance, as well as 71/100 for accessibility.
London, England, U.K.
Obby is a learning-focused platform that offers in-person, online, and at-home workshops covering various topics, including jewelry-making, knitting, and much more. The website's narrative first caught my eye, as I found it incredibly intuitive and smooth. The main menu, in particular, appeared well-thought-out, as it conveniently offered me access to categorized workshops and a nifty search bar.
Since the home page served as my introduction to the business, I appreciated that it promoted Obby's top picks, customer reviews, and logos of companies that have trusted its offerings; these helped establish trust. I also liked having access to an informative blog, which offered insightful articles for both students and teachers.
I enjoyed the interactive nature of the reviews section, as it allowed me to control how many I wanted to read through. I also loved how each workshop advertised on both the home page and the individual pages included a star rating, reinforcing the business's commitment to transparency. Moreover, the website offered a convenient floating menu, which included account access.
I would have preferred swifter access to the "About us" page. While placing it in the footer menu wasn't an issue, as a newcomer, I would have loved to learn about the company sooner. There was no real "Contact" page with direct information. Additionally, WAVE flagged multiple issues across various pages, including contrast errors, empty links, and missing alternative text.
Obby's desktop version felt surprisingly spacious, even with plenty of content designed to engage and entertain. While I initially felt like the home page's images and graphics didn't have a strong impact on desktop, I found that the images on the individual workshop pages appeared more pristine and polished, ultimately adding to their appeal.
The floating menu, which included streamlined access to a search bar and personal account, was a nice touch. However, I was pleasantly surprised to see its options expanded on the individual workshop pages, offering helpful insight into each workshop. Despite our solid real-world tests, the home page scored 55/100 in the performance category.
At first glance, I was disappointed by the absence of a hero image, but I did like that a cleaner welcome page helped place more emphasis on the search tool. This subtle change, coupled with a more compact floating hamburger menu, made it clear that efficiency and accessibility were important.
Moreover, I also liked that when I clicked on the main menu, it expanded to fill the entire screen, allowing me to fully concentrate on the available options. Overall, the mobile site performed well, with the images and graphics translating nicely. On PageSpeed Insights, however, the home page scored a low 36/100 for performance.
Workshop websites cater to different learners and their creative interests by offering a variety of class formats, learning styles, content, interactive elements, and support systems. We've curated a list of workshop website examples that demonstrate excellent usability. Among them, the Obby website stands out for its in-person, online, and at-home learning options, as well as its diverse range of workshop niches.
