I was up-cycling before it was called up-cycling. Taking my cue from the Fuller Brush Man, I filled a small basket with my pincushions and went door-to-door to share my creations with our neighbors. That’s all the encouragement I needed—I’ve been creating ever since. At home I learned traditional fiber arts from my mom—sewing, embroidery, crochet, and knitting. My mom’s favorite response to my ple
as of ,”I want…” was, “Oh, we can make that.” And we did. When I moved from Davenport to Iowa City, the first thing I did was sign up for pottery classes. Later I joined the Craft Guild of Iowa City and learned loom weaving and basket weaving. I have attended workshops in screen-printing, block-printing, felting, fabric dying, and stained glass, as well as jewelry classes in beading and wirework. As the owner of Dental Arts Lab in West Branch, Iowa, I use the lost-wax-casting technique to make dental crowns. With this same technique, I have created custom gold and silver pieces of jewelry. I am especially pleased to have been commissioned by a member of President Hoover’s family to create a gold lapel pin replicating the Hoover Birthplace Cottage. With my current pieces of jewelry, I bring together glass, china, metal, silver solder, and found objects—transforming them into tiny pieces of wearable art. After all these years, I am still eager to share my creations with others.
