ABOUT

Playful and Creative

Self Made serves as a guardian and guide for play, fostering autonomy and inclusivity through storytelling, playwork, and community.

Mission:

Vision:

To cultivate a world where play is recognized as both an essential need and a fundamental right, ensuring all individuals have the freedom to explore, create, and grow with autonomy and belonging.

A Small Sample of Our Works

Blending creativity and community through playwork and storytelling experiences.

About Self Made

At Self Made, we connect creativity and community through playwork and storytelling, expanding inclusive play spaces and making play accessible to all. Rooted in the principles of freely chosen, personally directed, and intrinsically motivated play, our work fosters environments where people of all ages can explore, create, and grow.

Through Play Groups, we provide opportunities for child-led, open-ended play that nurtures imagination and independence. Our Creative Clubs offer both children and adults a space for personal development, social connection, and process-based artistic expression. We also design Community Storytelling experiences that spark learning, reflection, and meaningful change.

In partnership with nonprofits, our Research and Development initiatives create storytelling galleries that showcase works born through play, highlighting organizational impact and inspiring greater awareness and support. Additionally, we offer consulting services to help individuals, businesses, and organizations integrate playwork and research into their programs, ensuring thoughtful preparation, implementation, and evaluation.

Meet The Founder, Ray Grace

I’m Ray Grace, a playworker and creativity consultant at the heart of Greater Tampa Bay’s education and nonprofit scene. With over a decade of experience, I blend art, storytelling, and play to craft play-responsive experiences that prioritize autonomy and inclusivity. From leading Play Camps with Rooted in Play to consulting for organizations like Cultured Books Literacy Foundation to support St. Pete Reads! Literacy Festival, I’m devoted to making play and storytelling accessible to all. Let’s connect to bring Self Made to your community!

Past and Present Clients:

• Rooted in Play

• Academy Prep Center of St. Petersburg

• Cultured Books Literacy Foundation

• NOMAD Studio

• Creative Pinellas

• You Good?

• SPACECraft

• Keep St. Pete Lit

• Children's Home Society

• Sarasota Libraries

• Character Crew