Art and creativity has always been a big part of my life. As a child, I drew on every piece of paper I could find and my Dad kept them all. I struggled in every subject in school, unless it involved being visually/physically creative. In 2008, I began creating unique jewelry designs, which grew into a full time online business by 2012. The marketing and networking of that business required me to become a self taught graphic designer and photographer. Those skills were then brought to Ridgewalker Brewing when they opened in 2016 and I sill provide those services today! Designing graphics for a variety of events, advertisements and more.

However, I didn’t begin painting until 2022. Just like all of us, my life changed when COVID hit. After being laid off, and not sure when I’d be returning to work, the last thing I wanted to do was sulk and feel sorry for myself. Art has always been my escape, but I wanted to try something new. I found some paint and brushes I had stored away and began to experiment. I started painting funny phrases on old wood, making them into signs, and painting flowers on large animal skulls I had laying around the yard. Then one day, I looked in my glass recycling bin and though, “I wonder if I can paint on a bottle?” That’s where it truly began!

I love animals, so I thought I’d try painting a different animal on every bottle. I painted bottle after bottle until I ran out! I would post my creations on Facebook, and that’s when local friends and family began to donate their own bottles, and some even requested custom orders! I developed my own style and became more confident as time went on. Eventually I mostly pain on canvas now, but on occasion, I’ll paint on bottles and a variety of other things. (You should see the toilet!) All in all, if the pandemic never happened, neither would my paintings. This thought often reminds me of my favorite quote: “When you look for the bad in mankind, expecting to find it, you surely will.”  – Abraham Lincoln