Brewtifully Made

Send us Fan Mail Grief doesn’t politely wait for your schedule to clear, and neither does real life. I’m back after taking a week off to host one of my best friends, exploring Seattle and the surrounding areas while I’m still learning what “home” even means here. That time filled me up, but I’m also honest about what hit hard right after: a heavy EMDR therapy session that took days to shake off, a...

Send us Fan Mail I walk out of a therapy session and into a deceptively beautiful afternoon, then try something that honestly scares me: creating art from anger. Not “channel it into productivity,” not “turn it into positivity” just letting it exist on the canvas and seeing what shows up. If you’ve ever felt numb, cracked open, or like your world lost its grounding, you’ll recognize the tension be...

Send us Fan Mail Creativity doesn’t always come back when life calms down. Sometimes it returns in the middle of the mess, when your good supplies are packed away, your brushes are whatever Instacart can find, and you only have an hour before the day moves on. That’s where I’m starting: outside in the sun, painting a simple still life and letting the process be messy, honest, and real.  I’m also s...

Send us Fan Mail Grief does not just hurt, it rewires your days. I’m juggling the ordinary and the unbearable at the same time: picking up my granddaughters after therapy, planning a whale watching trip that’s equal parts excitement and anxiety, and trying to let it sink in that my daughter is taking me to Hawaii. These “yes” moments feel surreal, but they’re also how I’m building new memories whe...

Send us Fan Mail Grief doesn’t just break your heart, it can scramble your creativity, your motivation, and your sense of who you are. I’m sharing a real-time recap of a week in Seattle where I’m trying to make things again while I’m still deep in trauma and loss. If you’ve ever felt like you can only create when someone gives you a prompt, or like your “voice” went quiet after a hard season, you’...

Send us Fan Mail Watching a home you loved turn into a listing can feel like losing it twice. I’m Tracy, and I’m sharing what it’s like to put my Ohio house on the market while I’m still carrying fresh grief, big feelings, and the weird in-between space of a brand-new life. I talk about the pride and heartbreak of leaving behind years of design choices, routines, and neighbors I truly care about,...

Send us Fan Mail Grief doesn’t just hurt, it reorganizes your whole inner world. I’m Tracy, and I’m talking openly about what happens when trauma and betrayal blow up your sense of safety, your memories, and even your ability to make the kind of art you used to love. I’ve got supplies unpacked and the urge to create, but the quiet can feel brutal, and the blank page can pull up anger, shock, and t...

Send us Fan Mail A normal day at a huge family event can turn into a life-or-death sprint in seconds, and the aftermath doesn’t end when you finally get out of the crowd. We’re sharing a raw, first-person story of being caught near a mass shooting in Seattle with young grandkids, the split-second choices we made to keep them safe, and what it feels like to watch children stay brave while adults tr...

Send us Fan Mail One day you’re making plans, and the next you’re standing in the wreckage of a life you thought was secure. I’m back on Brewtifully Made to tell the truth about what the last two months have been: becoming a widow at 56, closing my art studio, letting go of my home, and moving across the country to start over with two of my daughters and granddaughters nearby. It’s overwhelming, m...

Send us Fan Mail My husband passed away 5/13 unexpectedly. I am pausing my podcast as I have to close my art studio, sell and relocate. Please know I hope to be back soon. If you are a Veteran, PTSD is a silently-lurking ailment and you are not alone, please seek help early and diligently. Support the show Catch the doodles on YouTube My socials: Sign up for my monthly newsletter Portfolio website...

Send us Fan Mail A crowded studio, a “cap it at 40” plan that turns into 50-plus guests, and a spring season that suddenly feels like it’s accelerating. I’m checking in from Brewtifully with a real-time look at what it takes to grow a creative studio around mahjong, art, and community and what happens when you let people in, even when the day doesn’t go exactly as planned. National Mahjong Day bro...

Send us Fan Mail Mahjong started as pure fun for me, and it keeps turning into something bigger: a creative business thread that connects art, friendship, and a surprisingly deep design world. Coming to you from a late Friday afternoon as the shop winds down, fresh off a lively mahjong session and the simple joy of putting a beautiful new set on the table. I talk about trying a new Jonathan Adler...

Send us Fan Mail A busy spring can make a podcast drop a day late, but it also makes for the best kind of behind-the-scenes update. I’m Tracy, and I’m inviting you into my Brewtifully Made studio for a quick, real-time tour of what my creative shop looks and sounds like when it’s in motion from the little background noises outside to the displays I’m building for the weekend. We start with the flo...

Send us Fan Mail I had to hit pause for a minute because my business took a big leap: I launched a wholesale branch on Faire and built out a full wholesale catalog from scratch. That meant moving products over, setting wholesale pricing, and doing the kind of detailed backend work that most people never see. If you’re an artist, maker, or small business owner trying to grow without burning out, yo...

Send us Fan Mail What happens when a busy week of community events, student workshops, and gallery nights collides with an unexpected dream offer? I opened the door to spring with color, coffee, and collaboration—and then share how a national Mahjong company discovered my work and invited me to design beautiful mats that bring pattern, play, and personality to the table. We start with First Friday...

Send us Fan Mail A room full of students, a pile of glitter, and the soft shake of sensory bottles turned an ordinary morning into a small lesson on joy. We walk you through the workshop—choosing colors, tucking tiny treasures into clear bottles, laughing as horses and little people float into view—and show how a low-pressure creative space can calm nerves and spark curiosity. That simple act beco...

Send us Fan Mail A snow forecast, a quiet studio, and a fresh obsession with solo mahjong turned a simple idea into a small movement: make learning easy, beautiful, and shared. We walk you through how a handmade board, a short tutorial, and a few well-chosen tools can transform a nervous “I can’t” into a confident “I’ll try.” Along the way, we spotlight local maker Susie DeHoff’s wooden boards, ta...

Send us Fan Mail A day planned for Galentines fun turned into a real talk about how friendships start, drift, and return—and how creative spaces can make that journey easier. We kick things off with a full schools-out arts day at the studio, a mom-and-daughter sewing lesson, and our Crafty Cinema night at the Canton Palace Theater, complete with dimmed lights, portable crafts, and playful giveaway...

Send us Fan Mail Seventeen brave painters, a snowy morning, and a table full of abstract bunnies sparked a bigger question: what happens to our lives when we try something new? We share the joy and jitters from teaching an over-fifty class, where identical supplies produced wildly different styles and fresh confidence. That energy carries into a new hobby—Mahjong—and the surprising way a beginner’...

Send us Fan Mail A beloved shop is closing after fifteen years, and that news becomes the spark for a candid look at what it truly takes to keep a creative space alive. We talk about the hidden math of brick-and-mortar retail, the emotional toll of slow walk-in traffic, and the small pivots that add up—adjusting hours, focusing on classes and events, and building offerings that bring families into...

Send us Fan Mail New years rarely unfold the way we script them, and that’s the point. I’m kicking off 2026 with a refresh that actually works: fewer public hours, more focused days for art, teaching, and community projects, plus a renewed commitment to play as a creative tool. That simple shift unlocked a cascade of good things—mahhjong nights at the shop, a monthly hidden art helmet you can hunt...

Send us Fan Mail Creativity isn’t a side dish; it’s the main course for building sharper thinking and genuine confidence. We sit down with Madeline, a homeschooled teen who treats art as both a learning engine and a way to find her voice. Together we unpack why open-ended making exercises different mental muscles than subjects with single right answers, and how that challenge translates into auton...

Send us Fan Mail Ever wonder how a single creative pivot can bloom into a multi-venue art business? We sit down with exhibiting artist Rachel Blakney and trace her path from early painting classes to a pandemic-era leap into polymer clay that reshaped her practice and presence in the community. Rachel’s world is rooted in nature—florals, animals, and organic textures—and she brings that love to bo...

Send us Fan Mail Want a clear path from creative spark to shipped product? We’re opening the studio doors and sharing the exact systems that turn sketches into physical goods, classes, and sustainable income. After a burst of community events and a busy month, I’m launching a streamlined Patreon built for artists, dreamers, and entrepreneurs who want practical support without the fluff. We walk th...

Send us Fan Mail A camera on a backyard bird feeder sparked an entire art series—then the community took notice. We sit down with exhibiting artist Glenda Hake to trace the winding path of a maker who blends painting, collage, masks, photography, and graphic design into a practice rooted in nature and fueled by curiosity. From foraging moss and grapevine to transforming empty bottles into lit fair...