Art comes not from my brain, but from my heart.

And much of my heart and soul is filled with color, texture, style and beauty.

Creating jewelry allows me to play and experiment. It makes me happy. I use the style and fashion sense that I developed over the many years spent as a costume designer and stylist. There is a wonderful combination of design and process.

With each new piece I begin with metal and gemstones. As I work, I contrast the textures of the metals and stones, and interweave the materials so that what is ultimately created is wearable beauty. The colors and energy of the gemstones are what capture me initially. They can be intense or soft; they are made by nature, but like flowers, many of their colors seem not to be from the earth at all. I confess, what really inspires me is their sparkle. It is the sparkle that brings out the girly-girl inside me. When I was in graduate school we had a saying — “in the heart of every (costume) designer, there is a sequin.” I don’t use sequins very much any more but I think that statement still is true and is what keeps me enthralled with my chosen materials.