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Tracey Mackenzie

Nature Inspired Products & Decor

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ABOUT

Photo by Brooke Cagle

Hi!

My name is Tracey MacKenzie and this is the space where I share the products I make (Ave38designs) and the articles I write, as well as content that I create on Beauty, Food, Lifestyle and Wellness. I hope that you will enjoy your time here.

Life path: 

I have somehow been intertwined in the world of art and design since my first trip to Hawaii when I was nine. It was love at first sight and I have never forgotten the raw beauty of the landscape and the people I met there. They were wild like the ocean, poetic and kind. This natural kind of flow and respect for nature has affected my life and my interior designs for as long as I can remember. So much so that I am now in the process of getting ready to launch my own line of handmade products inspired by nature. And I look forward to sharing them with you.

Career: 

I am an interior designer, artist, writer and more recently ceramist, whose work has been shown regularly on TV and in magazines.  I have also worked on and off as the Editorial manager and regular contributor to the magazine conglomerate called Movato Home (now called At Home in Canada), which comprised the magazines Montreal Home, Maison Montreal, Toronto Home and Vancouver Home, for the last 10 years. See my most recent blog posts and articles here.

I have also been a Feng Shui practitioner and designer for 20 years and have regularly given lectures on how to make your home your sanctuary in Canada and in Bermuda. I have also studied the work of John Zeisel concerning the effects of Neuroscience & design on Alzheimers and Dementia and have helped advise various care-giving organisations in Montreal. I also became the first interior designer in Canada to apply many of the principles to my regular design projects as of 2010.

My Feng Shui and interior design work has been portrayed in the following publications: The Montreal Gazette, The National Post, The Suburban, Wall to Wall Magazine, At Home in Canada Magazine, Le Soleil, The Globe and Mail and the “Royal Gazette” in Bermuda. I also write a Feng Shui Column for At Home in Canada Magazine. See my recent article on Feng Shui here.

I have appeared on the television shows; Citymag, Take One, Salut Beauté, C’est simple comme bonjour and the HGTV show called Buy Me.

I was also a regular contributor to the TV show called Feng Shui Life and shot an episode in Bermuda at the Fairmont Southampton Resort as well as at the Chateau Mont-Sainte-Anne in Quebec.

From 2016 – 2018 I created a magazine for the breast cancer charity called Pink in the city which was distributed at their annual ball . Pink in the City raised over $300,000 for the breast cancer center at the MUHC during those three years. You may view the magazines here.

In 2021 – After studying woodworking, felting, textiles and now ceramics, I feel ready to launch a line of handmade, eco-conscious products for the home called Avenue 38 Designs.  This line will be launched in 2021 along with my own Neuro Design magazine, which I cannot wait to share with you. Hopefully we will be able to push the reset button for 2021 and find some normalcy again!

“I believe in surrounding yourself with the things you love. That way no matter where you are in your home you will find happiness.”

 xo Tracey

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Hello!
Welcome to my online home! I look forward to sharing some of my work and some of my favorite things with you!
xo Tracey

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Home Office - After

Tropical Therapy in my Home Office

Yummy Gluten & Dairy Free Chocolate Cookies

10 Must-Have Items for this Fall

Things that are unique often find their way into m Things that are unique often find their way into my heart and sometimes my home. They are often things that you wouldn't normally put together but when you do, somehow their differences don't stand out but instead enhance each other. 
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I've found this to be true with people too. Sometimes you meet someone so opposite to you that you think it will never work. But then, upon further consideration, you realize that they complement you in ways you'd never have thought of. And they end up becoming your best friend or mate.
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Glazing black clay is a bit like that for me. Scary at first, as I'm never sure how its going to turn out. But somehow I always end up loving the result.
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The granular white glaze came out a speckled cream color on two pieces. The blue plate was coated in black terrasigilata prior to adding the granular white glaze and the finish turned out blue! So unusual but so cool! 
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I love experimenting with glazes, I love the uncertainty of it all. How about you? Do you enjoy the surprise or do you prefer the tried and true?
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#blackclay #handmadeplates #handbuildingceramics #handbuiltpottery #handbuildingwithclay #blackclaypottery #blackclaymakers #handbuiltplates #glazing #glazingpottery #creativeceramics #creativepottery #oneofakind #chefstable #chefstyle, #bluepottery #speckledpottery #experimentation #clayexpression #makersofinstagram #ceramicsofinstagram
These are some hand-built plates I made out of bla These are some hand-built plates I made out of black clay and then glazed in blue and white with an overlap (first two from top). The last plate/small bowl is glazed only in white with a portion of the black clay left unglazed. 
I find it interesting that the black clay is so black when raw but so brown once fired. Its like it turns into my favorite dark chocolate. Or maybe I'm subliminally sending the message that I want chocolate and my clay is responding? 😂 
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#blackclay #pottery #brown #chocolate #clayplates #handmadeplates #handmadewithlove #claycreations #handbuiltpottery #handbuiltceramics #modernceramics #potterylove #glazes #glazing #blueandwhite #bluesapphire #potteryofinstagram #ceramicsofinstagram #homestudio #stayathome #buylocal #claylove #claylife
A hand built bowl I made in black clay and glazed A hand built bowl I made in black clay and glazed in black metallic. I made this with a jagged edge to reflect me - a little rough around the edges 😁
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#handbuilding #handbuildingwithclay #handbuildingceramics #handbuildingpottery #blackclay #blackclaypottery #metallicglaze #roughedges #roughdiamond #handmadepottery #handmadebowl #creativepottery #notperfect #makersofinstagram #metallicblack #chefstyle #cheftable #chefselection
Here are a few more stoneware dishes I made @maiso Here are a few more stoneware dishes I made @maison.stoi. These are glazed in a translucent white. I can't tell you how much I have missed pottery during this pandemic. However, now I have finally found the time to photograph some of the pieces! 😃
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#ceramic #potterylessons #pottery #handmadeplates #handmadedishes #handmadepottery #maison.stoi #making #wheelthrownpottery #wheelthrowing #earthytones #earthy #stoneware #stonewareceramics #clay #imstilllearning #lovelearning #isitabowloraplate #notperfectpottery #sushidishes #sushitime
Black lives matter #blackouttuesday Black lives matter  #blackouttuesday
There have been many changes in my life over the l There have been many changes in my life over the last 6 months. It was like I was living in the upside down for a while. 
Now I'm in the process of putting my life back together and so I decided to redo my office. Nothing like a fresh start!
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I love the tropics. There is nothing that makes me feel better than a day at the beach. Or listening to the sound of palm leaves swaying in the wind. .
I also do a specialized type of interior design called Neuro Design, which focuses on bringing nature inside. So when @photowall_sweden contacted me, I jumped at the chance to use their beautiful wallpaper and this is the result!
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A reading area (shown) and an office area were created (shown on blog). For the complete before and after of my office and to snag a 25% discount on any of their products, please go to the link in my bio! And don't forget to let me know what you think 😘
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#nature #interiors #interior #neuro design #neurodesign #interiordesign #interior design #ikea #palms #tropical #tropics #redo #redecorate #beforeandafter #before and after #wallpaper #wallpapering #photowall #photowalluk #office #workspace #stayathome
I know I still haven't posted my bowl yet. I can't I know I still haven't posted my bowl yet. I can't seem to find the right plant to put in it (I am using it as a small hanging planter) so I decided to post this plate I made during one of my first few lessons. I went to the market today and saw some beautiful strawberries and thought they'd be perfect to show the plate off.
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In reality this is a plate with a high side. Its 1.5 inches high so I guess it's actually a really low bowl? 🤔
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Either way it's perfect for serving small fruit like strawberries, blueberries and raspberries and that makes me happy! 😃
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Happy Sunday!!
The bowls have finally arrived from the UK!! And I The bowls have finally arrived from the UK!! And I am so excited to show you what I made during my lesson with @karaleighceramics starting with this little guy. A ridged tasting bowl glazed in the deepest blue 😍 (is that blue not the deepest blue you’ve ever seen?? Thank you Kara for using your beautiful glaze for this 😘😘). I absolutely love the little ridges I was able to create on the inside (see second photo). Stay tuned for the crown jewel tomorrow 😁
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#blueaesthetic #blue #deepblue #handmade #makersmovement #makersofinstagram #ceramics #potterylife #throwingclay #potterywheelthrowing #potterywheel #wheelthrownpottery #tastingbowl #bowls #handmadebowls #madeintheuk #ceramiclife
I made a spoon rest a few weeks before I went to t I made a spoon rest a few weeks before I went to the UK and I must say that it has proven to be quite handy 😀 .
Truth be told, it started out as a small bowl attempt which flopped but then morphed into this spoon rest which I thought might be practical. Turns out that I love it and use it a lot! .
Isn't it funny how sometimes a mistake can turn into something you ❤
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#spoonrest #spoonrests #pottery #claylife #potterylife #potterystudio #potter #homeware #organic #organicform #slowliving #handmadehome #makersmovement  #modernceramics #handthrown #contemporaryrustic #flatlays #mistakes #happywiththeresult #cantwaittomakemore
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