Originally from Brisbane Australia, I don't really know how I've been so lucky to find my way to this part of the world and get the chance to weave baskets on a regular basis for Naturally Useful. Growing up I had the general identity of 'crafty child' but was never super focused about the way I expressed that. I slowly began to love sewing as a teenager and found drawn to mending and re-purposing old clothes. I also had a tendency to try to make practical things out of what most people saw as 'rubbish'.

When I was at university I studied a theatre degree, and my tendency to make practical things out of 'rubbish' became a valuable skill, where I used it in props making, costuming and stage management roles. My theatre career was mainly spent in the wardrobe department as a dresser, again learning new techniques and strengthening my skills particularly in hand sewing and mending.

As a 'city kid', I had dreamed of self-sufficiency and living off-grid to escape the mires of the economic system. Coming to Scotland and ending up at Naturally Useful in the Moray countryside, I feel blessed to have got this close to an environment where the ideals of the people I am surrounded by every day nourish me and encourage my journey. Falling into working with willow has satisfied my desires to work with my hands in a strong sensitive way. Being in the polebarn with the other makers inspires me creatively, spiritually and emotionally. It is a joy to feel wholesome and productive, inspiring self-determination and a deeper connection to the earth.