Daniel Smith

I love this place and the staff. The price seem decent for a brick and mortar store compared to online and other stores. The staff are very friendly who will do anything to help. Very accessible for me and great workshops.

I feel a little like a hunted animal whenever I walk into this store. I have been several times in the past year, and each time I’m met at the door, asked what I need and followed around. It’s very nice if I’m in the mood for a conversation, but when I’m buying art supplies, I need a little space. I like to look the aisles and see if I’m inspired. Then maybe I’ll get something more than I’d intended. But when they are taking me directly to the paint color I’m looking for, standing there and saying, «What else do you need?», it’s very uncomfortable. I have told the people I’d just like a minute to look around. If I ask someone else a question, the original person (Hoverer A) will come running back over and the second person will say, «I’m sorry — Hoverer A was helping you.» I have asked if they get commission and is that why you have to only asked the person who spoke to you first. They said no, they just have to dot their I’s and cross their T’s. I’m not certain what that means, but after three tries, I’m going to get my supplies from Dick Blick online from now on.
I can totally understand if they are having shop lifting problems, but if that’s the case, perhaps you could watch me from 6 feet away instead of standing next to me, talking the whole time.
I also bought a plastic paint carrier box, and after 60 days it developed a crack. The staff was not authorized to take the return. They said I could call the owner and make a plea myself. I figure if they’re too scared to call the owner right there, that tells me something about the answer I’m going to receive.

They charmed me with amazing customer service once. I still go with stars in my eyes kinda XD
They’re often understaffed so go earlier in the day for the best advice/​suggestions.

THEY HAVE TRACING PAPER ROLLS HERE!
Okay, my boss sent me out of a mission to find a roll of tracing paper.
Office Max — Only had tracing paper pads, recommended Michaels.
Michaels — Only had tracing paper pads as well, recommended Staples.
Staples — Called while in the Michaels parking lot so I don’t waste time/​gas driving over there if they don’t even have what I am looking for. Yeah, NO. They too only had the tracing paper pads. They recommended Daniel Smith.
To be honest, I’ve never heard of this place but again, I called & JACKPOT! They not only had tracing paper rolls, they had different sizes to choose from.
When I got there I was pleased to find they had a public restroom for customers. My wild-​goose chase wasn’t too kind on my bladder.
The store is quite small & from the little walking around that I did seemed to specialize in drawings & paintings. They had different sorts & sizes of easels & canvases. A huuuuge variety of tracing paper.
I guess if you are looking to becoming a serious ARTIST, this is the place [=

i feel bad about this place. I called ahead to see if they had two items in stock and when i arrived i couldn’t find them. i finally got someone to help me and not only do i find out that they never had the two items i came for but the person wasn’t even honestly apologetic. i wasted my time here.
poor customer service… even dishonest
bad stocking

The Daniel Smith in Bellevue has horrible customer service. Uneducated slow staff that ask too many personal questions. I’ve tried this place several times and I just can’t do it anyone.

I was so glad to find out there was an art store so close to home! Although I love Artists & Craftsmen, Utrecht, Blick, and the University Bookstore’s art section, they’re all in Seattle! My only option in Bellevue was to go to Michael’s, which is lovely, but does not have the most knowledgable or available staff (Where do they hide?!!). When I was looking up the address on Google, I saw the store front of Qdoba Mexican Grill. But scoot the viewer a little to the left and you’ll see Daniel Smith!
I came here to pick up some armature wire for a sculpture experiment and the sales girl was very kind and tried to help me as much as she could! The only downer to my first visit was that I expected to pay $ 6 for the wire instead of $ 11. When I asked her why it was ringing up at $ 11, she went back to double check, re-​rung the item she retrieved and still came up with $ 11. She then figured that the $ 6 wire was out of stock. I ended up just buying the wire with my student discount, but I would really appreciate it if they updated their signage next time.

they carry the ampersand claybords that I really like, can’t get them at the University District A&C. Their selection of wall-​mounting stuff is pitiful, on two separate occasions items have been out of stock. they never carry the sawtooth hangers I like to use. My real gripe is that whenever I buy something there, the check-​out procedure is ridiculous. They have asked me repeatedly for all kinds of personal info, if i’m on their mailing list, if i want to take classes, if i want to teach classes, etc. it’s crazy. I just want to get my stuff and get out.

I visited this place more while I was in school and in constant need of new art supplies. This is a completely different experience from going to somewhere like Michael’s– the staff actually know about their products, can help you find what you need and make suggestions, and it’s a nice store. It’s pretty expensive though, so (sadly) I ended up at Michael’s anyway for a lot of my supplies. Boo.

The Daniel Smith in Redmond is where I frequent. I am an interior design student that is newer to the Bellevue area (grew up in Puyallup), and the store came highly recommended by a client of mine. I found the low resources of Puy-​Tac frustrating, so when I moved up here and found DS just two miles from my home, I was elated! Thus far, I have enjoyed their selection, staff, prices, hours and, soon I hope, their workshops.