McDonald Creative Ventures

Engineering Warmth into Wood & Ink.

A family-run studio blending coffee-inspired art with handcrafted stringed instruments — built with precision, chemistry, and heart.
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Visit the String Workshop
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The Science of Warmth

Inspired by the chemistry of coffee and the joy of drawing with my daughter, BrewÂē blends warmth, humor, and design into everyday art.

Shop Prints and Apparel
Commission Custom Art

Precision in Wood

Built and restored using traditional methods informed by engineering principles — from ground coats to final varnish.

Shop Instruments
Instrument Maintenance
Instrument Repair
Custom Builds

What People Are Saying

  • "This drawing is amazing! Exactly what I wanted"

    Rita Viola (Commissioned)

  • Repair

    I had a great experience. The owner was extremely knowledgeable and clearly passionate about his craft. What impressed me most is that he actually builds his own guitars and violins, which really shows in the quality of his work and the depth of his understanding. Communication was prompt and professional throughout the entire process, and he took the time to explain what needed to be done. The repair was handled with great care. I would highly recommend this shop to anyone needing instrument repairs or maintenance. It’s clear you’re dealing with someone who truly understands and respects the instruments he works on.

  • Navy blue hoodie with a white, illustration of a squid in a coffee mug.

    "Got my hoodie yesterday. I just love it. It's comforable, warm - just awesome! Strongly recommend it.

    Ravi Iyer

  • hedgehog drinking coffee, coffee mug

    “Love my new mug! The hedgehog print is so cute I don't want to use any other mug now!”

    Julie Sell

  • A cartoon mouse dressed as a witch, wearing a green hat, stirring a hot chocolate in a mug with a Halloween pumpkin on it.

    “Excellent! I love the colors on this pillow, they make everything pop”

    Davin Kim

  • commissioned spider canvas

    “I received my awesome spider picture today, I LOVE IT"”

    Linda Zvolensky

  • A black and white drawing of a hedgehog holding a steaming cup of coffee, sitting among autumn leaves, with a pumpkin decoration on the cup.

    “Those who have seen this print think it's adorable”

    Debra Huber

  • Coffee being brewed into an orange and white mug with a hedgehog illustration, placed on a DeLonghi coffee machine.

    "First day of use! When opening this package, the mug gave me a feeling of Christmas"

    Davin Kim

Two T-shirts, one black with a white outline illustration of an owl on a tree stump and a cup, the other green with a similar but less detailed owl illustration, both placed on a wooden surface.
Drawing of a hedgehog holding a steaming mug with a pumpkin illustration on it, sitting among fall leaves.
Two white ceramic mugs with black handles and black interior, each featuring a different black and white raven illustration, placed on a wooden surface outdoors with a blurred green background.

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Drawing of a cartoon anglerfish with big black eyes, fins, and a tail, using a coffee as a lure. the fountain pen used to draw the fish is in the picture.
White mug with orange interior and handle, featuring a black and white sketch of a hedgehog holding a mug with a pumpkin illustration, sitting on holly leaves, and drinking a hot beverage with steam rising.
Part 1 Violin for Maintenance tier 2 So this violin came in for a tier 2 maintenance. But once evaluated, the bridge was ill fitting so I ended up having to carve a new bridge, the soundpost was too so I ended up having to carve a new sound post and the tuning pegs were well used so I had to fix them. This video is the first part of the maintenance where I clean and take care of the finish. www.mcdcv.com #ViolinLuthier #violin #polish #restorationprocess #benchwork
Fender Strat today ðŸŽļ So this guitar needs a ton of work: Clean pots, clean all external, stabilize dents and finish, fix tuning machines, remove oxidation from bridge/saddle, clean and position pickups, fill and refill 3 pickup screw holes, drill out one of them (I'm guessing whenever they made this parts-caster they just forgot to drill one?), fill and redrill strap button. https://www.mcdcv.com/ #guitar #LuthierLife #benchwork #restorationprocess #electricguitars
Second step in the build, Two more violins for people 👍 I really only use three types of glue: Tite-Bond original for this glue up and to laminate, super glue for guitar binding, and HHG for EVERYTHING ELSE! https://www.mcdcv.com/ #luthier #violinmaker #practiceviolin #benchwork #woodworking
Is that a saucer on the coffee mug or a fried egg? I dunno either ðŸĪŠ Inktober: covered Single line drawing! White on black @inktober #inkdrawing #coffeetimeart #inktober #inktober52covered #coffeeillustration
Carving a new violin plate holder So, apparently if you order a new violin plate holder that's supposed to be already carved out... You end up carving it out yourself. So much for saving time. #violinmaker #luthier #benchwork #carving
Carving a new violin plate holder So, apparently if you order a new violin plate holder that's supposed to be already carved out... You end up carving it out yourself. So much for saving time. #violinmaker #luthier #benchwork #carving
Window: into the workshop of a Luthier Let me know what you think, trying out drawing with white on black 😎 @inktober #inktober52window #luthier #inkdrawing #animalillustration #inktober
1993 Washburn guitar service and setup This guitar was brought in for a string change and a setup. After giving a cleaning, de-gunking the fretboard and re oiling it, polishing the frets, and cleaning the mechanical tuners, the guitar was re-strung and the action, intonation, and relief was checked. The truss rod had to be adjusted. The guitar is now ready for more song writing! www.mcdcv.com #phillyluthier #philadelphiaguitar #montgomerycountypa #guitarsetup #guitarsofinstagram
1994 Washburn! Let's give it a good spa day! Good wipe, new strings, check the setup, keep it playing awesome 😎 #guitar #guitarsofinstagram #luthier #benchwork #luthierguitars
Shipping some resin mix! This is a traditional spirit varnish recipe, I sell just the spirit varnish and the varnish with protein ground, mineral ground, and seal layer (which is also used for French polish). Just need to add ethanol. https://www.mcdcv.com/strings/store/p/traditionalvarnish https://animalswithcoffee.etsy.com/listing/4450907650 #ViolinMaker #varnish #shipping #processvideo #reelsinstagram
Making more potion mix for customers! https://animalswithcoffee.etsy.com/listing/4450907650 My varnish is based in tradition and efficiency, I don't add anything more than necessary to create a great looking, hard, but flexible layer for a violin family instrument. #violin #benchwork #varnish #processvideo #mentorship
Part 1 Violin for Maintenance tier 2 So this violin came in for a tier 2 maintenance. But once evaluated, the bridge was ill fitting so I ended up having to carve a new bridge, the soundpost was too so I ended up having to carve a new sound post and
Fender Strat today ðŸŽļ So this guitar needs a ton of work: Clean pots, clean all external, stabilize dents and finish, fix tuning machines, remove oxidation from bridge/saddle, clean and position pickups, fill and refill 3 pickup screw holes, drill o
Second step in the build, Two more violins for people 👍 I really only use three types of glue: Tite-Bond original for this glue up and to laminate, super glue for guitar binding, and HHG for EVERYTHING ELSE! https://www.mcdcv.com/ #luthier #violin
Is that a saucer on the coffee mug or a fried egg? I dunno either ðŸĪŠ Inktober: covered Single line drawing! White on black @inktober #inkdrawing #coffeetimeart #inktober #inktober52covered #coffeeillustration
Carving a new violin plate holder So, apparently if you order a new violin plate holder that's supposed to be already carved out... You end up carving it out yourself. So much for saving time. #violinmaker #luthier #benchwork #carving
Window: into the workshop of a Luthier Let me know what you think, trying out drawing with white on black 😎 @inktober #inktober52window #luthier #inkdrawing #animalillustration #inktober
1993 Washburn guitar service and setup This guitar was brought in for a string change and a setup. After giving a cleaning, de-gunking the fretboard and re oiling it, polishing the frets, and cleaning the mechanical tuners, the guitar was re-strung
1994 Washburn! Let's give it a good spa day! Good wipe, new strings, check the setup, keep it playing awesome 😎 #guitar #guitarsofinstagram #luthier #benchwork #luthierguitars
Shipping some resin mix! This is a traditional spirit varnish recipe, I sell just the spirit varnish and the varnish with protein ground, mineral ground, and seal layer (which is also used for French polish). Just need to add ethanol. https://www.m
Making more potion mix for customers! https://animalswithcoffee.etsy.com/listing/4450907650 My varnish is based in tradition and efficiency, I don't add anything more than necessary to create a great looking, hard, but flexible layer for a violin f
Black and white drawing of a pumpkin with a hedgehog sitting on top (by it's stem), and a leaf underneath the pumpkin.
A black and white ink drawing of a deer with large antlers, with a coffee cup hanging from its mouth reading 'Yes Dear', and a pen placed on the paper.
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