Who are you? (What do you love in life, and what makes you happy!?)
I am an artist. I love the freedom of being a creative thinker, designer, and manipulator of colours, clays,
and forms. I love to teach and talk about both creative modes or methods of work, with both young and
experienced peers.
I am a grammy. I love each of my six grandchildren with vigor and enthusiasm and spending time with
them is the highlight of my day. I adore it when they tell me their passions and show me their creations
with seriousness and love. It shows me who they are and who they want to become.
How did you begin your journey as an entrepreneur in your field?
My journey began with Soap making about 15 years ago. Not as an artistic outlet but as a way to
healthier skin. I quickly turned into a passion for the artistic side though and bloomed from there. I still
get excited when I’m creating a new batch of soap!
My journey for pottery and ceramics started only five years ago with a desire to expand my creativity by
using another medium. It seemed a logical choice from playing with soap and creating hand formed soap
flowers and soap cakes, to creating hand formed artistic pottery and functional ware from clay.
When you aren’t feeling creative, what do you do to try and help yourself get back into the groove?
I look for creative inspiration by looking at nature and searching out other creatives and developing
ways I can manipulate and improve upon my own designs and forms. Nature is important in this process.
Animals, trees, flowers, botanicals, insects, gastropods, and other small creatures can lead me into a
flurry of imaginative ideas and storytelling.
What is your advice for young aspiring entrepreneurs in your field?
Build on what makes your heart sing. Start as a hobby and improve every day. Your passion will show in
your work making it amazing and unique to you.
Tell me about 3 other creative persons whom inspire you daily:
My brother Randy is an amazing carpenter, leather worker, and nature buff. He inspires me everyday
with his strength and tenacity to not only create but overcome many hard challenges that most of us
will never know.
All four of my children inspire me differently. Each has strength and abilities that show their
personalities and passions with positivity and creativity. It makes me happy to see they have all followed
their own desires, making each passion unique to them.
I have many creative friends and peers that I aspire to. Each shine in their ability to make their small
businesses grow and become exactly what their imaginations and personalities believed it to be. All of
them have taught me to never give up, to keep creating, and believe in my dreams.
