After 35 years as a retired teacher and administrator I am enjoying retirement in the Niagara region. With family and a busy working life there has never time to pursue creative avenues. As a newcomer to the area, I found there were several opportunities to "be creative." I became a member of the Canadian Figurative Artists and enjoyed working with fabric, paper figures and shapes. Then along came the challenge to study Floral Design with the Garden Clubs of Ontario and after three years of study I became a floral design judge. Now I am learning to apply the same principles and elements of design as I venture into the mediums of watercolours and acrylics. I suppose I would describe my background as eclectic, basically self-taught, with aspirations of creating some work that is appealing both to myself and to others.