Personally, at my core, I’m a creative person. Growing up around family hobbies of woodworking, painting, and sewing, I was initially a quilter. Over the past eight years I’ve developed a passion for dyeing fibers, spinning yarn, and weaving. I currently own and operate my own small cottage business Free Range Fiber Studio. The fact that I travel six months of the year makes me the ‘free range’ part, taking my tools, materials and products with me to art shows as well as consigning items at yarn shops from Maine to Texas.
Over the past few years, I’ve take a deep dive into organic vegetable gardening. It is a welcome challenge to decide how to rotate the “crops” of my 500 square foot plot. I also geek out on pulling a gorgeous carrot from the ground and get immense pleasure at sharing my bounty of beets or chard with friends. Choosing and growing plants and flowers that are both beautiful and enhance the beneficial insect communities locally is an added bonus.
I enjoy walking, hiking, biking, and yoga. While I think my husband is a better cook, I still like to experiment with vegan, vegetarian, and ethnic dishes and continue to nurture a self-collected wild yeast for sourdough bread baking every few weeks. I’ve always loved baking, but recent binge-watching of the Great British Baking Show has peaked an interest in Battenbergs, Genoise sponge cakes and what you can do with whipped egg whites. I’m a surprisingly good darts player, a sucker for skee-ball, and love a good board game to satisfy my competitive spirit. While 70’s and 80’s rock is what I grew up on, of late I’m happily enjoying a lot more bluegrass and big band music.
I feel lucky to be able to travel and take my work with me, yet am always surprised at how much this native Texan misses the smell of the sea air. It is a joy to explore new cities for their food, music, and art, and through extended stays truly get an appreciation for the culture of each place.