Growing up on a small farm in rural Nebraska didn’t feel extraordinary at the time, but looking back, it shaped everything about who I am today. My early school years were spent in a one‑room schoolhouse on a dirt road — the kind of place that really did resemble Little House on the Prairie. A wooden sign out front read “District 29,” and inside were rows of mismatched desks, a single hardworking teacher, and just a short walk away, an outhouse that tested everyone’s courage during those brutal Midwestern winters.

Everything changed for me when I turned 9. Our beloved teacher of District 29 passed away, and no one was eager to take on a classroom full of wild country kids ranging from kindergarten to eighth grade. So we were bused seven miles to what we called “Town”—a tiny village of 345 people that, to me, felt enormous. Suddenly I had ten classmates instead of being the only kid in my grade, and most of them were girls. Girls with older sisters, girls idolizing the highschool cheerleaders, girls who were all about clothes, hair, and accessories!

Growing up mostly with brothers, I had been a full‑on tomboy. But that year awakened something new in me. I became fascinated with fashion, color, texture, and mostly things out of my reach.  So I spent hours studying Sears, JCPenney, Montgomery Wards, and especially Spiegel catalogs, dreaming of wearing trendy clothes and bold jewelry. (Yes, that was a very long time ago)! I stitched outfits for my Barbies and imagined myself becoming a designer of beautiful things.

Decades later, not much has changed--- I still love fashion, texture, color and the quiet magic of objects that feel meaningful.   Today I design and handcraft jewelry in my studio here in Maine -- a place where the ocean, forests and shifting seasons continue to spark my imagination.  I create pieces inspired by nature, mythology and the quiet mysteries of the world. Each piece I make carries a little bit of that journey; crafting pieces that blend the curiosity of my childhood with the artistry I've carried all my life, and the joy of making something by hand.  

I hope that you enjoy wearing my jewelry as much as I did making it.