From little on, I’ve had a creative spirit.

Some of my earliest memories of art come from a trip to the Appalachian Mountains, where a little old couple lived at the end of the gravel road near my family’s cabin. They taught me to draw with charcoal from the fire, carve snake canes from saplings twisted with grapevine, and make dolls out of paper bags.

They sparked something in me — a curiosity and freedom to create with whatever was at hand. From there, my adventures began with everything nature and art could offer.

After thirty years in the Midwest exploring, teaching, photographing, and raising our children, my husband Mark and I returned to the mountains — back to the place where it all started.

Now, that same spirit guides my work at the bench. Organic Life Jewelry grew from those early lessons — to see beauty in what’s simple, to make with what’s around you, and to let each piece tell its own story. Every design is a reflection of that early freedom to create — rooted in nature, shaped by hand, and made to be worn with soul.