It was my grandparents who taught me to make things~like the wooden sofa and chair set with cushions custom fit for my Barbie dolls. To dream up an idea and develop it into a finished product with their help was an amazing process which hooked me at an early age. Now as a big kid with my own upholstery workroom I make things for a living.

Onefishpillows started with a lumbar pillow I fashioned after the goldfish cracker. I remember looking down at the cracker in the palm of my hand and imagining it as a pillow. Adding the big button eye brought the pillow to life. Now I explore antique fish books and species charts with wonderful color plates and hand drawings and design shapes based on actual species trying to emulate that hand drawn look.

Many people ask if I make pillows out of scraps from my upholstery work. Usually I search for interesting fabrics especially for fish pillows seeing them as tail, body or nose pieces according to their colors, patterns and textures. During production time my shop is piled and fabric is flying. I design, cut, sew and craft each piece by hand including endless yards of contrasting welt and hundreds of fabric covered button eyes.

The name onefishpillows is inspired by the book One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish by Dr. Suess, which exclaims: "Say! what a lot of fish there are" ...continually reminding me that the design possibilities are endless!

My home workroom in Fountain City in western Wisconsin looks out at the mighty Mississippi River, continually finding inspiration in the surrounding landscape...but fretting over our troubled water and the fish that are too contaminated to eat regularly!                                

 I hope to bring awareness to our challenged fish population~not only commemorate our threatened or endangered species but inspire people to protect our glorious waterways!

Click here for resourses to learn what we can do to help

 "Today is gone. Today was fun.
 Tomorrow is another one.
 Every day, from here to there,
 funny things are everywhere."  -Dr. Suess