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 fairy houses, Glenda shows how repurposed materials can carry stories as well as beauty.
We dive into the birth‑month birds concept and how each piece weaves together a bird, the month’s flower, and gemstone color for an instantly personal connection. Along the way, Glenda talks about winning 13 ribbons at the Canfield Fair, why local shows can outperform algorithms, and how a simple craft directory became a roadmap for opportunities across Ohio and beyond. She shares the reality of balancing full‑time work with weekend photography gigs, a growing line of pet portrait commissions, and the practical routines that keep her studio momentum alive.
Glenda opens up about stepping back from photography to recover creative energy, then booking out once fall arrived. We explore the thrill of learning new skills like felting and pottery, the pros and cons of not selling on major platforms after an unexpected Etsy ban, and the serendipity of a radio interview that connected her to our gallery. If you’re an artist, maker, or art lover, you’ll leave with ideas for sourcing materials sustainably, structuring series with built‑in meaning, and building visibility through fairs, galleries, and word of mouth.
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Glenda Hake Photography and Design
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LinkedIn: Tracy Dawn Brewer
Episode Transcript
Hello everyone.
Welcome back to a new episode ofBruttifully Made.
I'm so excited to bring to youour exhibiting artist for the
month of October.
So today with me, I have thewonderful Glenda Haig.
Glenda, thank you so much forbeing with me today.
Thank you for having me.
Oh, you are so welcome.
(00:26):
Glenda's work is on our wall andshelves in our gallery, and
everyone that stops in, they'rejust blown away by the diversity
of your styles and everythingthat you have displaying.
And I'm like, that's not eveneverything.
She's a photographer.
I'm like, you guys have to likecheck her out, look her up.
So please introduce yourself andtalk about all of the variety of
(00:49):
methods that you create.
SPEAKER_00 (00:51):
Okay.
So my as Tracy said, my name isGlenda Hake.
Um, I'm a transient down here inSalem, Ohio.
I was born and raised in Cognac,Ohio.
And that is actually where myart started was when I was about
five years old.
I entered my first art show atthe Artist Guild in Canyot and
won first place.
(01:12):
And it just sort ofspringboarded from there.
Um, I've always been involved inarts and crafts and that sort of
a thing.
And I step away from it once ina while, but within the last
couple of years, I've picked upmy art therapy ways again and
got back into a bunch ofdifferent mediums and and that
sort of a thing.
SPEAKER_02 (01:33):
Yeah.
And I love that on the wall wehave paintings, we have collage,
um, you have um floral designs,you have these beautiful masks
that you've decorated.
There's quite a bit, and thenyou are you're also a
photographer, a professionalphotographer.
Correct.
I'm doing a wedding uh nextSaturday, actually.
Oh my gosh.
So you're taking on some bigchallenges.
(01:56):
Wow, that is amazing.
And so, like you said, you're inSalem, Ohio.
So you're almost what 45 minutesfrom our gallery, right?
Correct.
Yes, it's a little about 42 tobe exact.
So okay, yeah.
So it's not like she's rightdown the street.
I mean, she reached out todisplay, and I just loved that
the word is getting out andsharing her work here.
(02:18):
No one has had anything like itin the shop, and so everyone is
just blown away.
I I love some of the series thatyou have on display, especially
when you brought up the birds.
So can you talk about the birds?
SPEAKER_00 (02:31):
Yes.
So um I started displayinglocally here at a at a shop
about a year ago, and I have awall, and so I wanted to come up
with some sort of a series, andI was racking my brain, and I
had some suggestions for uh thebirth flowers and the
birthstones, which I I loved.
But at the same time, I had justgotten a new bird feeder that
(02:53):
had a camera on it.
So I was inspired by the birds,and I'm like, I really want to
incorporate that.
So I discovered that there isactually a bird for every birth
month.
So I incorporated the twoflowers, the bird and the
birthstone collar for each eachmonth of the year.
And it it was one of my favoriteseries I've done.
SPEAKER_02 (03:12):
I love how that developed.
Yeah, everyone is they're blownaway by that.
And I, when you were putting theseries up, I was like, I don't,
I didn't even know there werebirds for birthday months, and
it's just been really wellreceived.
So I love that.
I love how we find inspirationwith the simplest things.
I love the the bird feeders withthe cameras too.
They're kind of like, you know,they get you sucked in to
(03:33):
learning more about all of that.
SPEAKER_00 (03:35):
Absolutely.
SPEAKER_02 (03:36):
Oh gosh.
So some of the pieces that youhave on the wall, they're like
nature inspired too.
Do you get your inspiration fromyour surroundings?
Like, how do you find theinspiration to keep going in
these different directions?
SPEAKER_00 (03:49):
I do very much so, especially with, and I didn't
bring any of my fairy houses umto your display this time, but
um, I do I love to repurpose andreuse stuff I find in nature.
We'll go on hikes and walks, andI'll just forage and take a take
bags with me.
And you know, my um my boss willcollect moss off the trees off
(04:09):
his property for me.
And my mom uh she harvests uh umgrape vine from the tops of her
trees and gives it to me.
And I just love using stuff fromnature to to make my designs.
SPEAKER_02 (04:23):
Yeah, yeah.
And you're even repurposingthings that people don't need
anymore.
And during her reception, acouple came in and they she was
talking about these bottles thatshe lights up and makes into
these beautiful, like fairyhouses.
And they went home and got heran entire case of wine bottles.
And I was like, here you go.
Yes, absolutely.
And I love that.
I love repurposing things thatyou know we necessarily don't
(04:46):
know how to reuse.
And you've come up with somebeautiful ways to do that.
And I know a lot of people havesaid that walking in and seeing
some of your more sculpturalpieces.
I never thought about using thatfor this.
And oh my gosh, I I did I didn'tknow this would, you know, turn
into the base for this.
And that's just the feedbackthat we're getting.
And it's just that's great.
Yeah, they really love it andhanding out your cards and you
(05:09):
know, everyone discovering thatyou're not even from this area
in this area, meaning like rightdown the street.
We have a lot of people thatcome through the plaza and
they're just like, What do youmean?
She traveled all the way fromSalem.
I'm like, Yeah, yeah, yeah, shesure did.
And it's it's you know, such asmall world too, because we
found out we like knew peoplethat um, you know, between us,
and it's yes, you know, I lovehow art connects people that
(05:32):
way.
You know, you're doing onetangent and then you find out,
oh, there's another connectionthere.
So that that's awesome.
So, what other kind of art doyou do?
I know you also uh work what waslike branding and logos.
SPEAKER_00 (05:45):
Yes, yes, I do.
Um, I do graphic design, I dologos, I do the brochures, the
business cards, you know, thetypical day-to-day stuff.
Um, I've designed quite a fewtattoos for people for clients.
I haven't personally done thetattoos, but I'm not a tattoo
artist, but um, but I havedesigned quite a few, which is
always fun.
unknown (06:05):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_00 (06:05):
Um, right now I have a big commission line of pet
portraits.
So I've been working on gettingthose done by the end of the
month for a client of mine.
So yeah, yeah, it's that seemsvery popular right now for me.
So it's my little rabbit holeright now.
SPEAKER_02 (06:23):
Yeah.
Is there anything that you'vetried in the past that you're
kind of like burnt out and youneed to like step away from for
a little while?
Um, actually, I did that withphotography.
SPEAKER_00 (06:32):
Um, I did I stepped back from it for most of this
year, and now that fall is here,I'm booked like every weekend
through the end of the year.
So my gosh, that's hard.
SPEAKER_02 (06:42):
That's hard to create anything else because
it's gonna take you time to takethose pictures and I'm probably
editing and getting them back toeveryone.
Oh my gosh.
SPEAKER_00 (06:50):
Yes, yes, absolutely, absolutely.
So, and I'm hoping too thiswinter I'll get back down in my
studio, which is just my in mybasement.
It's nothing elaborate, but um,that's my comfy space.
That's where you know I'msurrounded by all my materials,
and I just put my Bluetoothspeaker on and just go to town.
Yeah, just getting great.
SPEAKER_02 (07:10):
And and you also work full time, so you're doing
this in your spare time.
Yes, yes, I do.
Yeah, no, I get it, definitely.
Is there a medium that youhaven't tried that you want to
explore?
SPEAKER_00 (07:22):
I want to try felting or like yeah, and I saw
you you had a class with lastnight.
SPEAKER_02 (07:28):
We had a oh my gosh, this has been like the time of
year for felting with felt, yes.
Yeah, so we had the uh wetfelting scarves last night, yes,
and then today we did littleminiature felted necklaces with
the homeschool, and then onHalloween we have a painted
felting class, and then startingtomorrow for three days, we have
(07:50):
wet felting on a ball.
So felting has taken off.
SPEAKER_00 (07:53):
Yes, and that's that's something I've always you
know admired and haveconsidered.
And then I've all I've neverthrown a pot either.
Oh, so hello, yeah.
That's something I would like totry.
SPEAKER_02 (08:05):
Yeah, I have a wheel just looking at me at home, and
my daughter, I've I told her, Isaid, You need to come home from
Seattle and teach me how to dothis.
I got kilns now.
I need to learn.
I've got a wheel.
She just laughs at me.
She's like, Oh mom, that's justa tiny one.
That's not even a professionalone.
Like, I gotta start somewhere.
Right, exactly.
Yeah, I'm right there with you,Glenda.
I wish there was a closer likestudio we could meet and learn
(08:25):
together because I have miniwheels.
We have little tiny ones thatyou could like fire with a like
a lighter when they're done.
They're like tiny pots, butyeah, nothing like a large
wheel.
I just I wish I don't have aspace for that because it's
gonna make a mess.
So yeah, at home I'm gonna haveto do it in the garage.
I love that.
So there's a lot more to learn.
There's a lot more to explore.
SPEAKER_00 (08:46):
Always.
And I'm always looking onlineand getting ideas or you know,
on social media, and it's like,oh, but I can use that, but I
can do my spin on it.
At work, they call itglendified.
SPEAKER_01 (08:57):
That's awesome.
Yep.
I love that you're an adjective.
SPEAKER_02 (09:01):
Yes, yes.
Oh, that's awesome.
Oh, so if anyone wants to lookat your work, do you have it for
sale on any platforms um online?
I don't actually.
Oh my gosh.
SPEAKER_00 (09:14):
Yeah, yeah.
Um, I was banned from Etsy, so Ican no longer get on there.
Really?
SPEAKER_02 (09:19):
I don't even know if I I mean, is that a story you
want to share?
I mean, that's crazy.
I know a lot of people thoughthat have been.
SPEAKER_00 (09:25):
I and I really don't know why I was banned.
They told me I violatedsomething, and it's like, but I
had it up for the longest timeand I was doing sales and
everything was fine.
Then all of a sudden I gotbanned and with no explanation.
SPEAKER_02 (09:38):
Yeah, that's exactly what's happened.
Some of my friends, and I'm justlike, this is making us and
there's been today, for somereason, so many people posting
on social media how they'releaving that platform and
starting their websites to toreach out to their consumers
now.
I'm yes, yes, so there's been ashift.
SPEAKER_00 (09:57):
Oh, yeah, definitely.
No, and I the farthest I go isjust posting stuff on my own
personal Facebook page, and youknow, I've I've generated sales
that way, and then like I said,I'm I'm in the shop uptown here
in Salem at Reach for the Stars.
Okay.
But other than that, I reallydon't advertise a lot, you know,
it's just a lot of word ofmouth, and then also entering in
(10:20):
the fair.
I was just gonna startmentioning that.
SPEAKER_02 (10:22):
So you have ventured your work in the Canfield Fair.
And if anyone is not from Ohio,Canfield Fair is the largest
county fair in the state.
SPEAKER_00 (10:30):
Yes, yes, and I have competed about the last five
years.
I generally enter between 12 to14 pieces.
Uh, this year, out of the 14pieces, I earned 13 ribbons.
SPEAKER_02 (10:41):
That's tremendous.
SPEAKER_00 (10:42):
Um, I have been discovered by different people
that have wanted me to do workfor them because of the fair.
Um, they haven't necessarilypurchased my products, but it
was a springboard for me to doother work for them.
SPEAKER_02 (10:56):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_00 (10:57):
So it's it was, it's and it's a great artist
community in the in the CanfieldFair.
The arts and crafts is huge,huge, huge, huge.
And you meet so many, so manyinteresting people.
SPEAKER_02 (11:09):
Wow.
SPEAKER_00 (11:09):
So yeah.
SPEAKER_02 (11:10):
I love that.
Yeah, you were educating me onthat.
I have never been involved inthe county fairs, and so you
were sharing that, and I justthought that was just
fascinating.
And I love that.
SPEAKER_00 (11:19):
And I think it's great too.
You don't have to live inMahoney County.
I mean, I don't.
I live in you know, Colombiana,so they don't, you know, it's
not pigeonholed.
So there's people from all overthat that enter, which is nice.
SPEAKER_02 (11:31):
Yeah.
So how do you discover the showsto enter?
Because you said you enteredyour first show at five years
old, and then you seem to, youknow, find these programs to
share your work.
How are you finding those?
SPEAKER_00 (11:42):
So I actually last year, last year, 20 23 or 24, I
purchased a craft and artdirectory PDF.
I found this girl online and youcould download it for like, I
don't know, it was like$15,$25,something like that.
And it covered the entire stateof Ohio.
And she also does Pennsylvaniaand I think New York.
(12:04):
And um, so I just started withthat list and just started going
through and highlighting, andthen I just started contacting
and emailing and went fromthere.
SPEAKER_02 (12:15):
Wow, that's not how you found me, is it?
No, I actually heard yourinterview on the radio on my way
to work.
SPEAKER_00 (12:22):
No way! Oh my gosh, it's probably with Matt, right?
Yeah, yeah.
And as soon as I got to work, Icame in, I turned on my
computer, and I sent you anemail.
SPEAKER_02 (12:30):
Yeah, that is the best.
I'm gonna have to reach out toPantone and tell him that story.
That is awesome.
Wow, and that's a radio stationhere in Canton and it reaches
everywhere.
SPEAKER_00 (12:41):
Yes, yes, and it just and I I usually listen to
iHeart, and for some reason Ijust had the radio on that day.
And it's like, well, it wasmeant to be.
SPEAKER_02 (12:49):
Those kids gonna totally, totally.
My favorite word is serendipity,it's my favorite movie.
So trust me, I've I I feel thatin to my bones all the time.
So yes, absolutely.
Oh gosh.
So I know you don't really havea place that you sell online,
but how can people find you?
Uh are there any social mediaplatforms, or is it just your
personal that you're on?
Are you sure you're well?
SPEAKER_00 (13:09):
I I have my Glenda Haig photography and design
Facebook so they can contact methrough that, or my personal
Facebook.
I have no problems with that,which is just me, obviously,
Glenda Haig.
But other than that, that'sthat's really all I have as far
as contacts.
So okay.
SPEAKER_02 (13:23):
No, no, I'll make sure that we share links for
those in the show notes sopeople can see that.
And then also I want to sharesome pictures of your show and
some of the things that you'vesent me.
So there'll be a littleslideshow that's going along
with this um for everyone to seeon, especially on the YouTube,
because YouTube is the video,and I want them to see your
beautiful work because it hasbeen such a joy to have it here.
(13:47):
And I tried to get Glenda toteach a class, everyone.
So I'm just letting you know, Idid ask everybody.
I can't get her to do it, butthat's all right.
I wonder if you're gonna be ableto do it.
SPEAKER_00 (13:56):
Maybe maybe maybe in 26, maybe after the first of the
year.
SPEAKER_02 (14:00):
Door is always open.
You know, she can do somecollage pieces or teach us a
bird or something because it'sbeautiful.
So hopefully you watch fun.
Yes, come by by the end of themonth so you can see her work,
definitely, because everyonejust ooze and owes over it when
they walk in.
Great.
Uh well, thank you, Glenda, somuch for sharing all this
insight and sharing your timewith me today.
(14:23):
Well, thank you so much, Tracy.
You're welcome.
Take care.
All right, bye.
SPEAKER_01 (14:27):
Bye.
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