Marty McLaughlin’s favorite part of his career as an educator was teaching first grade. It’s how he spent the bulk of his time as an elementary school teacher, rounding out a tenure of more than 20 years in the Santa Maria and Orcutt districts.
Having studied art in college, he returned to teach the subject in Orcutt, finding a love for the students.
Dreaming of décor?
Art Related Things is open Tuesday to Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The store is located in Santa Maria’s Mission Creek Plaza at 2880 Santa Maria Way, suite C2. Follow the shop on Instagram @a.r.t.artrelatedthings.
“I grew up here, so it’s very special to me to come back here and do this,” McLaughlin told the Sun.
He also taught second through fourth grades, but leading up to his retirement, McLaughlin was a junior high art instructor. In his words, he started and ended his teaching career in the art department, but the ending was bittersweet.
“I still missed decorating for teachers and doing special events for people and doing tabletop decorations, … that’s kind of how this evolved,” he said one morning while standing in his store.
Art Related Things opened in Santa Maria this past October. When McLaughlin saw the empty storefront, he decided to take a chance.
“I had been envisioning it and thinking about it,” he said. “This was the perfect setting.”
The name, meant to be flexible for the store’s evolution, is an acrostic poem for the word “art.”
“I was like, ‘What words could you use to make up art?’” McLaughlin said. “I want it to be something that can evolve and change.”
In the few months he’s been up and running, the former teacher has been figuring out what he wants the store to represent: a little bit of everything for the home. His goal is to bring an affordable array of items to the Central Coast and listen to what his customers want.
“I think we’re an eclectic mix of the seasonal décor, the gifts, some art, and then plants,” he said. “I feel like that’s a good balance of things that people want.”
An accomplished artist, the owner displays his own paintings on the wall, too. Though his training was mostly in drawing and painting, McLaughlin said he finds it fascinating to make things in three-dimensional space.
That’s where his passion for design comes into play. He arranges everything in the store, from table displays to seasonal decorations on “Christmas” trees, but they aren’t specific to the winter holiday. He changes the themes of the trees and the store to fit the seasons. Next on the calendar is Valentine’s Day and St. Patrick’s Day.
As the only employee, McLaughlin sources goods from resellers like Facebook Marketplace and vintage stores. His plants, which typically fly off the shelves, come from a vendor at the farmers market.
“I want it affordable to the point that anybody can walk in and purchase something or think about ideas for their home and their décor,” McLaughlin said.
A highlight at Art Related Things is gift baskets, just like the ones McLaughlin used to make to reward his middle schoolers for most improved artwork or best behavior. Each gift basket begins with the base, then he assembles the merchandise and wraps it up in cellophane as tall as it’ll stand.
“And then a lot of ribbon,” he said. “I’m working on my bow-making skills. I’m watching lots of YouTube tutorials.”
In the future he wants to offer his own classes. When the store opened, McLaughlin heard visitors asking him to teach crafting lessons, a job that suits him well after decades in the classroom. He’ll teach anything that people want to learn, but so far, his ideas are to teach floral design, wreath making, and gift basket making.
“I’ve also been told a lot of times, ‘Everything you do is art,’” McLaughlin said. “I think [Art Related Things] is a blend of all those kinds of ideas.”
Reach Staff Writer Madison White at mwhite@santamariasun.com.
This article appears in January 8 – January 15, 2026.
Sounds like a great shop and very interesting. Would love to be able to visit.