I have always loved being creative. It brings much joy and balance to my life. At home when I’m not running around after our nearly 9 year old daughter and rascally dog Max, or tending to our garden, you'll find me in my studio engrossed in mosaicing, painting plant pots and gourds and occasionally carving. I am quite obsessed with mosaicing. It has always intrigued me. As a child I remember being in awe over a simple wooden coffee table in a relatives lounge room. It had a mosaiced top consisting of decorative tiles from the 1970's -full of texture and very brown. It became the inspiration for my first ever mosaic 30 years ago. This piece was a very rustic version of the admired coffee table, only mine was decorated in a simple pattern made up of bright colourful ceramic tiles. A few years later I saw my first ever fully mosaiced birdbath in an exhibition at a local winery. I have no recollection of its design or who the artist was, but I remember feeling totally mesmerized. I wanted to mosaic a birdbath too, it would be the perfect complement to our garden. Fifteen years ago I finally fulfilled that dream. I still have that birdbath. It is in view from my studio window and I can sit at my work bench and admire the frolicking birds. Nature would have to be my greatest inspiration. I constantly find myself drawn to its patterns and colours. Being able to combine two of my favourite things, art and gardening, to create functional and decorate art for the garden is immensely satisfying. I primarily use glass tesserae in my mosaics. Glass has great appeal to me because of its reflective nature, and the way the reflectivity changes depending on the lighting or angle of viewing. Different glass has different reflective qualities and the challenge is to find the most effective combinations. I also like to include ceramic tiles, beads, millefiori, pebbles etc. -to add texture and to contrast the twinkling glass. In the last few years I have started dabbling in ceramics, making my own tiles to add extra texture and a touch of uniqueness to my works. It has been really addictive, so I am excited to see where this is going to take me. Mosaic art is meditative. It forces me to be focused as I can't multitask like I usually do or worry about anything else. I am there in the moment. It takes time and slows me down, which is such a refreshing contrast to the busy lives we live in a rushed world. It is an art form I will never tire from!