I was born and brought up in London, and was always interested in all things artistic – drawing and painting for my own pleasure at every opportunity. It was not until I married and moved to Surrey that I began to develop these talents though. I secured a place on a foundation course at Art School, but found that it could not really cater for my diverse needs. So there was only one solution – to establish my own studio, pottery and workshop. I then started designing and producing silver jewellery, and hand-thrown and sculptured ceramics, in addition to my paintings. My love of the English countryside has always influenced my paintings, and many of my other items of craft work reflect the natural colours and textures that I see around me. I taught art at an Occupational Therapy Unit for the severely physically handicapped in Surrey for a number of years, during which time I also developed my own skills as a water colour painter. About this time, I fell in love with the Lake District, and spent a lot of time there, walking, sketching and painting. Many of my paintings were exhibited in some of the galleries there, and others in the U.S.A. The range of my work then extended to include miniature oil paintings of landscapes and flowers on ivorine or vellum.

I also went on to teach “Painting on China”.

My love affair with glass started when I visited glass factories in the West Country and in Cumbria. Then I got a copy of an American magazine called Bead and Button, and in it was a picture of an amazing bead, which was made of Polymer clay. I decided to try, and had a modicum of success. The next copy of the magazine had a chapter about an American glass bead maker, and hey presto…I was hooked. I was taught by a fabulous teacher, Diana East (do check out her website) and also joined the GBUK (Glass Bead Makers of the United Kingdom), and the ISGB (International Society of Glass Bead makers), and started on the most exciting journey into the glorious world of lampwork glass bead making. I normally use very high quality Italian Effetre glass, but am now moving up to Borosilicate glass, as i can create such gorgeous colours with it.

As a painter & potter, I love the colours of nature, my beads often reflect the colours I see around me.