From Cape Town to Dorset —
A Life Painted in Colour

My creative journey began under the wide open skies of Cape Town, South Africa — a place of extraordinary colour, light and natural beauty that still runs through every brushstroke I make.

I moved permanently to the UK in 1998, and it’s here that I found a new landscape to fall in love with and, eventually, a new creative life.

My love of making things began even earlier, at my mother’s sewing machine. She taught me to sew from a young age, and that early joy of turning fabric into something beautiful — cushions, garments, home decorations — never left me. It quietly shaped everything that came after.

For years, a passion for art simmered alongside a love of travel, gardening and photography.

Then in 2020, everything changed.

I began studying surface pattern design with the wonderful Rachelle Holowko and discovered that my paintings could become so much more than framed pieces — they could live on fabric, on fashion, on the things people use and treasure every day.

I went on to study with Rachel Taylor at the prestigious Make It In Design programme, and continue to refine my watercolour and floral painting with the talented Natasha Gulliford.

My inspiration comes from the world around me —

Flowers I grow in my own garden, landscapes captured on travels with my husband, and the colours, patterns and people I encounter along the way. I work in watercolour and acrylics, then bring my paintings to life as collections of repeat prints using Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator.

My dream is to see my prints on a fabric line and in fashion.

Until then, you’ll find my designs on a growing collection of homewares and everyday shirts in my Big Sky Surface Designs shop on Contrado — printed and shipped directly to you.

This is only the beginning.

My Design Process

Great surface design begins long before a brush touches paper.

My process starts with gathering inspiration — from nature walks, travel photography, gardens, textiles and digital sources — and building a moodboard that captures the colour palette and mood of a collection.

From there I draw and paint individual elements by hand: botanicals, florals, gestures, forms. I develop these into compositions, always working towards a cohesive collection of 3 to 5 hero prints supported by coordinating blender patterns — the quieter companions that make a full collection work beautifully in production.

Once the core collection is strong, I love to push further, exploring colourways, scale variations and unexpected directions that give clients real creative options to work with.