Painted Turtle finds new shell, reopens after downtown fire
Owner of The Painted Turtle Isabelle Steffke stands outside the studios new location off of North Mission Street on Friday, Aug. 28, 2026. Steffke hosted a small reopening for family and friends on Monday, Aug. 24, 2026 with the official opening happening on Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2026. (CM-Life | Jasmine Brookins)
Nearly a year after a devastating fire forced small business owner Isabelle Steffke to close her doors, Painted Turtle is back in Mount Pleasant, with a soft grand opening with only close friends and family on Tuesday, Aug. 25 at 1231 N. Mission St.
"It was really difficult to accept that I might have to move out of Mount Pleasant," Steffke said. "I cried about it so many times."
The fire struck in the heart of downtown Mount Pleasant on Sept. 15, 2025. It broke out inside Stitches Oddities, another small business, four days out from its grand opening. The cause of a fire was from a lithium battery, according to the Stitches Oddities website
Flames spread to Pleasant City Coffee Company and Painted Turtle Pottery Studio. In a previous interview with Central Michigan Life, Steffke said that the studio only had water and smoke damage that needed renovations.
Pottery pieces sit on racks at the Painted Turtle in Mount Pleasant on Friday, Aug. 28, 2026. Some of the pieces are poured by Owner Isabelle Steffke. (CM-Life | Jasmine Brookins)
Having to start from scratch, her search for a new location took her beyond Mount Pleasant. She said she considered relocating to Freeland, Saginaw, Midland and other communities throughout the Saginaw Bay Region.
Once Steffke secured the space on the north end of town, she got to work and made a new home for her small business. She said that a lot of the process couldn't have been done without her family.
“We took down wallpaper, we took out some flooring and then we worked on painting,” Steffke said. “My dad did so much of it. I'm very thankful for that because I don't have any of those skills.”
For Steffke, Painted Turtle had become more than a pottery business.
“You do have that community built, and so many people rely on your business as a place to hang out or a place to just relax or just be comfortable,” she said.
Those memories also resonated with Art Reach Executive Director Amy Powell, who said the organization has appreciated its relationship with the Painted Turtle.
“At Art Reach, we value them dearly,” Powell said. “We actually served as a pickup location for their finished work for months after the fire.”
Alma College women's lacrosse head coach Addie Pastor and assistant coach Sam Peterson sketch out their designs at the Painted Turtle on Tuesday, Sep. 1, 2026. The lacrosse team hosted an event for team bonding at the pottery studio. (CM-Life | Jasmine Brookins)
Powell not only helped the business, but would bring her kids to Painted Turtle to have family bonding time.
“My favorite part is the memories I’ve made painting with my kiddos,” she said. “We cannot wait to paint again.”
Another customer, Nikomi Lewis, said Painted Turtle gives people an opportunity to express themselves creatively while supporting a local business.
“What I love most about Painted Turtle is being able to be creative and create my own variations of household items rather than just buying them from a big corporation,” Lewis said.
The impact of customers coming back after a year of being closed made Steffke realize how much customers mean to small businesses like hers.
“But to have people come back, that really meant everything," she said. “It just makes you kind of tear up a little bit, it's nice that people care.”
