My goal is to continually challenge my design, technical and artistic ability by stretching the boundaries of my medium and thereby simply to bring beauty into your life, so that you can live with it and so enhance your life!

Chris has been a professional stained glass artist for the past 36+ years and a jewelry designer for the past 12 years, as THE GLASSHOPPER STUDIO. She specializes in commissions, custom work and restorations. Quite often her glasswork skills overlap into her jewelry making.

In her fully equipped glass studio, she does copper foiling (Tiffany style), lead work, kiln work, sand-etching and mosaics. Her frequent decision to incorporate "found objects" and whimsical accents continues to make her work exciting, fresh and interpretive of classical design.

Numerous original custom designed examples of Chris" work may be found in many private homes, businesses, corporations and institutions in the greater Metropolitan Toronto area and other communities throughout Southern Ontario and across Canada.

Commission pieces may also be found in private and corporate collections in the following countries: Australia, West Indies, USA, England, Ireland and other European Union countries, Japan, Hong Kong and now mainland China.

For the past 12 years, Chris has designed and created one of a kind pieces of jewelry. She works mainly in silver and gold. She often starts with sterling silver or gold wire and forms her own rings and other findings. She incorporates beads, pearls, gems, felt and various found objects which she has collected and still collects on her world travels. This includes silver from the northern hill tribe villages in Thailand, black pearls from Tahiti, ethnic beads and shells from Australia, hand-made wooden beads from Tasmania, porcelain beads from India and glass beads from Europe.

Over the years, she has taken numerous courses/ workshops both abroad and at The Haliburton School of the Arts. She has studied silver techniques, lost wax casting, intricate beading, wire wrapping, chain mail, felting and flame worked beads. Last summer she studied "textiles relating to jewelry" and is now including handmade fabric beads/components into some of her new designs. She makes many of her own pendants and beads.

Incorporating these pieces along with various collected objects, Chris creates jewelry to delight the eye thus enhancing the spirit of beauty!

Chris is co-owner of the gallery, Lord Russborough's Annex in Port Hope, Ontario, Canada.

She is a member of "Spirit of the Hills", The Northumberland Arts Council, The Art Gallery of Northumberland, The Ontario Crafts Council and Rails End Gallery & Arts Centre - Haliburton. She has participated in the Northumberland Studio Tour since its inception.

PAST SHOWS/EXHIBITIONS:

Over the past years, Chris has participated in numerous shows and exhibitions with both her glass and jewelry.

The Whitby Station Gallery, Whitby, Ontario
Edward's Gardens, Toronto, Ontario
The Haliburton Summer Show, Haliburton, Ontario
The Rail's End Gallery, Haliburton, Ontario
The McLaughlin Gallery, Oshawa, Ontario
The Signatures Show, Ottawa, Ontario
The Astrolabe Gallery, Ottawa, Ontario
The Art Gallery of Northumberland, Cobourg, Ontario
The Art Gallery of Northumberland -Upstairs Gallery, Port Hope, Ontario (still ongoing 2011)
"Pearl Jewelry Show", The Capitol Theatre, Port Hope, Ontario
"Estival 2009", Port Hope, Ontario
The Jazz Festival 2009-2010, Port Hope, Ontario
The Cobourg Waterfront Festival, Cobourg, Ontario (still ongoing 2011)
The One-of-a-Kind Show, Toronto, Ontario (both Spring and Christmas shows - still ongoing 2011)
Lord Russborough's Annex, Spring and Winter Shows, Port Hope, Ontario (both still ongoing 2011)
"The Art Show &Sale 2010", Kingsway-Lambton United Church, Toronto, Ontario
The Maple Syrup Festival 2010, Juried show, Warkworth, Ontario
Haliburton Art and Craft Featival 2010 & 2011, Haliburton, Ontario
Warkworth Art in the Park 2011, Warkworth, Ontario
Jewelry presently showing in Los Angeles, California