My Story
It turns out that you can teach an old dog new tricks!
After 30 years in the corporate world, I took the plunge & turned my creative passion into a full-time career.
I had been creating frames for friends and family as a hobby for many years and whilst I was always encouraged to go into business, I honestly don’t think I would have been brave enough to do so until back surgery and a loooong recovery forced me to rethink my working life. The pandemic hit a few months later and it was during this that I decided to take the leap of faith and give up my well paid, pensionable job! Turns out to have been one of the best decisions I have ever made! I have always loved and been inspired by the beauty of the sea, and spent most of my childhood family holidays along Ireland’s stunning shores. Now I am an avid (all weather) happy camper and we take our tent as close to the water as possible for weeks at a time every summer. For the last few years I have taken my studio with me and have worked, literally, right on the Wild Atlantic Way. Here I get to create many of your pieces surrounded by the most stunning views.
I personally gather my treasures from the drifts of the Wild Atlantic Way and beyond. It can actually be very time consuming as I’m very fussy. Not just any pebble will do! The size, shape, texture and colour are all carefully considered. If I’m very lucky I rope my husband and/or daughter in to help. They are used to my lingo now at this stage and know what I mean if I say we are looking for “heads” or “handbags” or “bodies”!! I then transform these natural gifts into unique, sustainable, framed pieces that celebrate life’s stories and special moments, infused with humour and emotion, making gifting easy for you.
My ethos really is about using what we already have around us which is why I use all natural and repurposed materials “Keeping Nature in the Frame”. As well as the natural materials, I have in the past used copper wire, leather, ribbon, fabric and even safety pins and guitar strings.
I love nothing more than a good upcycling project and love finding ways to repurpose items at home giving them a new lease of life. During the pandemic, and just after my beloved Mom passed away, we tried to keep busy by taking on, not 1 but 2, local allotments where we now grow our own food. We erected the polycarbonate tunnel, all the fencing and raised beds ourselves using a lot of reclaimed wood and pallets. It’s a huge amount of work, not always successful but it’s so worth it and very satisfying. We are there since it started and there is a wonderful, growing, community there.
I try to be as sustainable as possible in life generally and in the business. Whilst always consciously selecting and collecting the natural materials, my packaging and wrapping is eco-friendly. My gift and postal boxes are sourced from a local family business in Cork, and are reusable, recyclable and degradable The paper ribbon I use is 100% natural and biodegradable. My frames are solid wood with glass and made in Cork. Did you know that most wrapping paper is only fit for the bin? The wrapping paper I use is eco-friendly, also from a local Cork company, and is made from brown ribbed kraft paper and water based inks. Where I use bubble wrap when posting, it is as new, but on at least it’s 2nd life, keeping it from landfill for as long as possible. I also use an alternative to bubble wrap, an environmentally friendly paper from “a sustainable forest source, it is reusable, recyclable and compostable”. Yes, it all costs a little more, but is totally worth it.