Born into a fiber art family that hails from northern rural Montana, I was taught in diverse mediums of fiber arts at an early age. My mother taught me to knit at the age of eight, an activity intended to keep a young child entertained over a long Christmas break. By the age of twenty-four, my husband and I had started a family. Frustrated by not being able to find a unique pattern for a sweater for my son, I designed a one-of-kind Aran design just for him, although at the age of one he was hardly impressed. My love for fiber soon found me spinning and dyeing my own yarn. One day I decided to try dyeing with onion skins, as it was said to give a beautiful gold brown color. So out came the biggest pot I had at the time and many onion skins. Though the color was beautiful, the whole house smelled of onions and wet wool. Not a very pleasant smell. Then, I tried Kool-aid and produced a great color for a sweater for my baby daughter.

At about this time, my husband was diagnosed with cancer. I needed to create a business where I could travel with him to his treatments as well as stay at home to take care of my children. My husband enjoyed fly fishing and was at a local shop and the shop owner asked if he knew anyone who would hand knit cable sweaters and socks for their shop. Of course, he ran out to the car and grabbed me. So, I had my first custom knitting commission. All the patterns were my original designs. I decided to self-publish my sock designs and then I added my sweater designs. So was born “Woolen Collectibles.” After my husband’s death, Woolen Collectibles turned into a yarn store as well as a design business.