I was born, and grew up, in Chichester, West Sussex. The countryside is stunning and my sister, our parents and I went for many cycle rides and picnics and I developed a deep appreciation and love of nature.

At school I was forever doodling horses and dogs on my study books, however I never took any formal qualifications in Art beyond an 'O' level.

Years later I returned to drawing and painting when I did a portrait of a friends cat for a birthday present. In the following 10 years I accepted commissions and worked my way through different media, from pastels and watercolours to oils and acrylics. Then I saw a picture of a dog in a magazine, where the artist had used coloured pencil and the results were breathtaking. I started using coloured pencil and find that their versatility and controllability are perfect for portraying animals, and the textures that can be achieved are amazing.

I am a member of the United Kingdom Coloured Pencil Society and my work has been chosen for their annual Exhibition.

I now live in Cambridgeshire with my husband, daughter and 2 dogs. Most of the commissions I receive are from customers recommendations and word of mouth. Although I receive commissions from around the world, most of my customers are based in the UK.

I mainly concentrate on drawing animals, however I also accept commissions of people, houses, cars, motorbikes and so forth. I work mainly from good, clear photos, but if the customer is close enough to my home studio I am happy to visit them and take my own photos. This also gives me the chance to meet the customer and their pet, which is always a bonus.

I like to donate a percentage of my commissions to charity and was very excited when Woodgreen Animal Shelters commissioned me to do an Artists impression of their new cat hospital and isolation ward, working from architects plans.

I am also a volunteer at a local dog rescue kennels- Poplar Farm Kennels in Sutton Gault, Nr Ely, Cambridgeshire, UK  and am very happy to be doing portraits of all their sponsor dogs, prints of which go to people sponsoring a particular dog, or anyone else who wishes to purchase one. Greetings cards are also available. Please click on 'Links' to visit their website.

I consider I have achieved what I set out to do when a customer says I have captured the character and spirit of their pet as well as their physical appearance. I get a lot of pleasure from the portraits I do and, as one of my customers said, a portrait of a loved one gives happiness for a lifetime.