Where it all began…

I grew up sailing every weekend with my parents, instead of playing with the neighborhood kids. I met new people every weekend and we explored every corner of the Chesapeake Bay. At the time I felt like I was missing out on something, but instead, I was being exposed to gorgeous landscapes, architecture, and even fashion.

We belonged to a sailing club called the Bristol Club because that was the type of sailboat that we had at the time. We would attend raft-ups every weekend with this welcoming group of people and some would even open up their waterfront homes for cookouts and parties. It was a very eclectic crowd, but mostly very stylish and colorful people. From Gingham tops to pearls, to Hawaiian shirts, I was always surrounded by confident, classic and colorful patterns!

I used to want to be an artist, a fashion designer, and a photographer. (And briefly a nurse so I could take care of my grandmother, until I realized that I did not have a strong stomach) I was always painting, drawing and even adding make up (via sharpie markers) to my Barbies. I would often color in the black and white pattern packages that my mother had laying around from her latest sewing project as well.

When I got older, I used to make my own surfing bumper stickers and would cover my wall with my own wall paper, consisting of my favorite colors and patterns from surfing, travel, and fashion magazines. I guess you could say it was like one giant Mood Board.

I always new that I wanted to be an artist because my father was a talented artist and my mother was always so crafty as well. I mostly worked with Oil Paints early on, but loved the fluidity of watercolor. I primarily sketched and created landscapes from any material that I could find. (Including Sharpie outlines and brushing in color with watercolor and a damp paper towel. But it always felt like it was missing something…

So I began adding borders to my art and handwritten expressions. Always adding layers on top of layers.

Fast forward through many start-up companies that I never pursued, a couple of inventions, a few children's books, product lines, and miscellaneous ideas in between –– I always came back to Advertising and Marketing, Drawing and Painting. Watercolor came to be my favorite medium, especially for painting/doodling on the go. Now I get to enjoy all aspects of my professional and personal life + fortunately, they go well together effortlessly.