Dea's Art Journey - the Appalachian Mountains to Artistic Designer

I can remember a time when life was simpler growing up in the mountains of Georgia.  When my dresses were made of flour sacks purchased at the local grist mill, when sweet blackberries grew in the mountain meadows, and I waited each spring for the purple pansies and yellow roses to bloom in the old tin bathing tubs next to the front porch. Every time you wear my designs, my wish is for you to visit those simpler times, filling your life with color, laughter, and love of family.

I grew up in the Appalachian Mountains of Georgia, raised by a Quaker Grandma and Great-Grandmother who were both master quilt makers and seamstresses. They created fabric art in the most amazing colors and my childhood was surrounded by these strong creative women as I learned that these colorful designs brought great joy to our friends and neighbors. 

Grandma taught me to be fearless in my life and art journey while exploring  color and design. And Great-Grandmother Mattie always said, "A life without color is half a life." 

My mountain magic was the fireflies that sparkled under Great-Grandmother’s large oak tree on warm southern evenings, the whippoorwills singing at the edge of night, and the red clay under my toes on hot summer days down by Rocky Branch Creek. It was the 1960s and magic surrounded me and drove me to create. 

When a teenager, I left my mountain home and moved to Southern California, but my Southern roots held strong to family and traditions of that gentler time and my mountain home. 

I became a master integrative artist and was featured in magazines, blogs, and TV for my art, sculpting, and studio classes. I was designing jewelry for the employees of my local movie studios in the San Fernando Valley and supporting my way through college earning a degree in accounting. I worked in the accounting field for 25 years and explored and taught art in my spare time.

My passion to bring joy to others through colorful, fun, and nostalgic jewelry morphed into a business that I started pursuing in 2002 after my father suddenly passed away. The night before his passing, he told me to leave corporate America and explore my artistic passion. His last words to me on a stormy night in October were, "You are a star and you will shine the brightest." 

To honor my father, I decided that living my passion was the most important thing I could do, and that was to bring joy to others through my art. Never being a trained artist, I was not limited to what I was taught by others, but what I could create from the abundance of my imagination.  

We all have a story to tell and each of our journeys are our own. Let my creations take you back to a nostalgic time when life was gentler, words were kinder, and laughter was easy. Come sit a spell with my Grandmother Mattie on her front porch snapping green beans from the garden while the fireflies dance in the moonlight.  

Today, my artisan jewelry is handcrafted in my California Studio. My collections are sure to bring a smile to your face and laughter in your heart as you are whisked away to a special place. 

After all, "A life without color is half a life."   

Blackberry Designs Jewelry
Masterfully Crafted * Magically Charming®