As a young child, I often found myself in the company of my mother as she embroidered, needlepointed, crocheted, and sewed clothes and household items. Hands and mind were never idle. A lifelong love of color, texture, and the tactile quality of fabric and fibers was only natural. I followed mother's footsteps and embraced hand and machine stitching as a way to create, relax, meditate, and occupy myself after a day of work/school.

After moving to Florida some 18 years ago, I discovered traditional quilting, learning the "correct way" of piecing and appliquéing block after block. Just as my interest was waning (not having the temperament to sew the same block/design numerous times), I was fortunate enough to attend a surface design workshop with Jane Dunnewold of Complex Cloth. My creative artsy self emerged.

Ever since that workshop, I enjoy painting, printing, stamping, foiling, discharging, photo imagery, to enhance cloth. I use this unique cloth as a basis for my art. An idea from a photo, another art work, of Mother Nature herself or just the fabric itself will spark my interest and a new piece begins. I may use the art cloth as a whole or cut up different fabrics to piece, appliqué and/or fuse. Once my "canvas" has been created, I use my home sewing machine to attach this top to a backing. I treat my sewing machine as a drawing tool, enhancing the piece with different threads and various free motion sketching. I often further embellish with hand stitching, beads, buttons, shells, twigs etc. to finish the piece.

Even though I use fabric, fibers and thread as my medium, my art work is not meant for the bed but for the wall like an oil or watercolor painting.

My work can be found at Island Art Association and Trish's Slightly Off Center in Fernandina, besides First Street Gallery in Neptune Beach.  I regularly enter work in the Island Art Association's Nouveau Art and St. Augustine's Art Association and FAN - Fiber Artists Network, Jacksonville and attend various outdoor art festivals.