My Story

I grew up in NYC in a very creative family. My mom was a textile/fashion designer. My sister was an accessories designer. My dad cut and polished diamonds. So naturally I was making things (or taking them apart) since I was a little kid. In 1990, I visited a classmate and friend who had transferred to Northern Arizona University and we travelled all around the Four Corners area of Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado and Utah in a convertible. It was such a magical trip and I became completely obsessed with going back. The art, the history, the landscape, the Native American people and folklore all hold a special place in my heart and being able to experience it in person was life changing. So in 1993, I decided to attend NAU myself and study art.  I moved into the dorms and went to register for classes only to find out that my major had been eliminated.  They gave me 5 minutes to choose a new one! After panicking a little - Jewelry and Metalsmithing it was. While I was only able to attend NAU for a year- I was completely immersed in art and it sparked a lifelong love of working with metal and fire. I moved to Phoenix after the school year, always hoping to be able to go back to Flagstaff and finish the Jewelry program. Instead, I ended up back to NYC and had to put metalsmithing on the back burner for a while. Thanks to a co-worker and fellow jeweler I was able to find a shared studio space in DUMBO, Brooklyn that allowed me to use a torch. I have been making jewelry ever since. In 2013, I moved to central North Carolina where I am super lucky to have a home studio. I have branched out into glass and lapidary and continue to take classes to learn new techniques. There is always more to learn!!!  My work is still hugely influenced by the Southwest as well as by the Middle Ages and by Art Nouveau- but that's a story for another day!!