ABOUT ME

I graduated from Glasgow School of Art with a BA Hons in Silversmithing and Jewellery in 1990 and I’ve been working with glass in it’s many different forms since 2007. My silver jewellery was predominantly monochrome but a period of experimentation with glass powders and an ancient enamelling kiln took me on an unexpected colourful journey that I’m still following. My fascination with the beautiful properties of glass persisted and led to a larger kiln acquisition and a range of materials that I’m embarrassed to admit to. I make myself feel slightly better about this by sharing my garden studio and these materials with my glass fusing students.

I love living by the seaside and I draw my inspiration mainly from nature. I am as likely to be found in my garden as my studio where I often use plants as a starting point for my designs. Regular walks by the sea also provide inspiration and never fail to lift my spirits. My work utilises a wide colour palette with the gorgeous addition of dichroic glass for its fantastic reflective properties. It changes constantly as it moves in different lighting conditions and is notoriously difficult to capture in photographs but I keep trying. Kiln fused glass has a beautiful, natural fluid quality and I believe any irregularities and air bubbles add to the charm of the material.

Each design I produce is unique. I can make similar items with different colour schemes but the glass fusing process means every piece is different. I begin by cutting each design by hand and an item will often consist of many layers and firings to achieve sufficient depth of colour and pattern.

Recently I’ve been focusing my attention on flame working where I manipulate glass with my torch. I’m captivated by hollow glass forms and am trying my hardest to master blowing small scale bubbles. At present, I have miniature blown glass baubles for sale but my goal is to create delicate blown glass jewellery.

I am a member of Made in Whitstable, a group of local creatives who exhibit regularly at the Horsebridge Gallery and Harbour Market in Whitstable.

A selection of my work is available to purchase on Folksy.