I remember my first box of 64 crayons - perhaps you remember your first box as well. I stayed up half the night memorizing each name, carefully studying the color with a flashlight under my covers. I was in heaven!

My early love for color has only grown. Today I surround myself with it. It's on my walls, floors and doors. Even more, it's in my work. I remain that young girl, marveling over all of my pots of color and skeins of richly dyed yarn.

My choice of design is just as fundamental, for it begins and ends with the color. Bold color always invites my designs to unfold into joyfully graphic patterns and whimsical designs. Each piece is carefully hand-painted with multiple layers of underglaze, every color often receiving between 3 and 4 coats to achieve the vibrancy I desire. Pieces are fired multiple times using glazes and often gold and opalescent overglazes, resulting in a wonderful depth and richness. No two pieces are ever exactly the same, although, pieces within a design series are all created to mix and match designs and colors, allowing you to put together a unique set of your own. Pieces are dinnerware and dishwasher safe for your enjoyment. Due to the firing process there may sometimes be a slight variation in color.

I invite you to explore my gallery of evolving work. If you are in Boulder and would like schedule a personal studio visit, please call me to arrange a time! If you don’t live in Boulder, you can always visit my Etsy gallery to be linked soon.

To learn more about Shelley, she is featured in the May 2011 issue of "Where Women Create" Magazine.