Spotted Mermaid

I’ve been drawn to pottery for as long as I can remember. Long before I ever touched a potter’s wheel, I collected handmade ceramics and loved the idea that something so beautiful—and so useful—could begin as a simple lump of clay. Anyone who has ever been to my house can attest to just how deep that love runs! My own pottery journey began about ten years ago in a somewhat unlikely place. My husband and I were living full-time aboard our sailboat, cruising the East Coast between Maine and the Bahamas. One winter, we tied up in Charleston, South Carolina for several months, and I decided to take a pottery class. The first time I sat down at the wheel, I was hooked. Of course, life aboard a sailboat isn’t exactly compatible with having a pottery studio! So as we traveled from port to port, I took classes whenever I had the opportunity. In between, I found another creative outlet that was boat-friendly: making hand-wrapped serving utensils using colorful beads and sea glass. Those small pieces of functional art allowed me to keep creating wherever we happened to drop anchor. When we eventually traded life afloat for a home in Boothbay Harbor, I was finally able to return to pottery in earnest. In 2025, my husband and I built a pottery studio at our home, and today it’s where you’ll find me most days, happily covered in clay. My work combines wheel throwing and slab building, and I’m endlessly inspired by the natural beauty of Maine—the ocean, gardens, birds, wildflowers and woodlands that surround us. I love earthy, organic forms, but I also have a hard time resisting a little whimsy. That combination finds its way into everything from functional pottery to playful birdhouses, ceramic flowers and woodland-inspired pieces for the home and garden. I still create my wire-wrapped serving utensils, often pairing them with my pottery and incorporating colorful beads and sea glass—a little connection back to those years spent creating aboard our sailboat. For me, handmade pieces should do more than simply serve a purpose. They should bring a little personality into a home, make someone pause, and perhaps even make them smile. That’s what I hope you find in my work: something useful, something beautiful, and something with just a little bit of joy tucked into it.