How it began…

I grew up in a creative household. My mother was always making something. During her years as a Youth Group leader at our church — and later as a Camp Fire Girl leader — our home was filled with projects, experiments, and handmade treasures.

The family portraits we all unwillingly sat through at Olan Mills were displayed in Plaster of Paris frames Mother molded herself and embellished with gold leaf. One year, we folded old Reader’s Digest magazines into Christmas trees: every page creased to the center binding, the covers glued together, the whole thing spray‑painted and glittered until it sparkled. We proudly displayed them around the house. My mother taught me to sew when I was seven. Creativity was woven into the fabric of my life.

Fast forward…

I began painting in the early 2000’s as a way to relieve stress. I had always wanted to paint but never made the time — until one day I simply decided to begin. I bought inexpensive canvases and paints and dove in.

It quickly became a ritual. After long workdays, I would retreat to the spare bedroom and paint — sometimes sitting on the floor if that was the only open space. Painting became my meditation. Today, I’m grateful to have a much larger studio and far more time to devote to that meditative practice.

My very first painting was a floral I named Field of My Dreams. The process and the result were happy accidents. That piece eventually found its way to the home of a dear friend, who — I’m delighted to say — became a Collector and claimed another painting just last year.

Some of my favorite childhood memories are of hiking with friends through fields of wild poppies and lupines in the rolling hills of California’s San Benancio Valley. My floral paintings are rooted in those memories, as well as in the perennial gardens I later nurtured while living in New York State and Tennessee.

About two years ago, I felt called to expand my repertoire and began exploring abstract painting. It turned out to be the perfect way to rewire my mind and welcome new energy.

Today…

Each of my paintings — floral or abstract — is an exploration of color, texture, freedom of form, and sometimes even a bit of whimsy.

I hope my florals bring you joy and my abstracts spark your curiosity. Whatever you experience, I’d love to hear from you!