After losing her corporate marketing job in 2025, Southern California events producer Lauren Tetef decided to bet on a dream she had long imagined. Over several months, she saved about $24,000 through freelance work and transformed a vacant former Joann fabric store in Torrance, California, into Open House Creative Fest, a two-day event celebrating creativity and community.

"This is my dream come true," says Tetef, a long-time events producer. "I just want to go to a thing where everyone's sitting down making stuff."

After losing her corporate marketing job in 2025, Southern California events producer Lauren Tetef decided to bet on a dream she had long imagined. Over several months, she saved…