There is something special about finding an artist that truly lives through their work and Sandra, owner and creative power behind WhiteOwlDesigns is one such lady.  She has been painting since the age of 14, original art on canvas, board and now beads!  She studied fine art from the age of 15 and has not stopped learning and growing.

Sandra tells of camping with her father and brother and planning her next life move…she new she wanted to start her own business which combined her absolute passion of painting and her love of beads and jewelry, the answer paint on the jewelry!  Now a name, well, she tells of a white owl flying low over the campsite which caught her eye.  This special moment in time led to the name White Owl Design.  Sandra went home and painted over 1000 beads and quit her day job…leap of faith or confidence in her own ability and talent or both?  Not that it matters because for Sandra, the decision was the right one.

It is one thing to paint on a flat canvas, but the talent that really had me stopped in my tracks was her amazing artwork on something as tiny as beads!  She uses porcupine quill as a tool and creates miniature artwork on wooden beads before dipping them in a protective coating which gives them a wet and shiny look.  Each bead is absolutely unique, which is one of the things that is so special about handmade artwork, impeccably done.

15 years later, Sandra’s passion has not faultered.  Instead, she works out of herSanta Cruz,Californiastudio putting her view of the world around her onto canvas and beads.  She says that she is continually learning and growing and that art causes her to really reach inside herself and always improve.

Are you ready to see what can be done when you combine a love of paint, jewelry, faith in oneself, and the guts to put it all together?  Well, Sandra is easy to find on ArtFire as well as on HandmadeArtists and you can follow her work on Facebook and on her Blog…don’t say I didn’t warn you though when you spend countless hours staring at her intricate work wanting each and every piece for yourself.