About Lulu

Hi, I’m Lulu.

I wasn’t supposed to be an artist.

I spent years believing creativity was something you either had or you didn’t. And I definitely didn’t have it. I was a Speech Therapist, a practical person, a mom. Art was for other people.

But in 2004 I left my career to stay home with my kids, and somewhere in the quiet of that season, my soul started asking for more. Not more busyness. More expression. More color. More life.

So I started following my curiosities during nap times. In the margins of motherhood. One small creative experiment at a time.

What started as a whisper became a business. I launched an online creative shop in 2010, showed my work at art fairs around the Twin Cities, and eventually opened a brick and mortar store and art studio. I was building something. But I was also burning out.

In 2019 I stepped away and returned to Speech Therapy after 14 years. Not because I gave up, but because I needed stillness. I needed to let Lulu Bea find her next direction without forcing it.

Clarity came slowly. And then all at once. Portrait drawing changed everything.

There is something that happens when you sit down with a pencil and truly look at a human face. You stop rushing. You stop performing. You start seeing, maybe for the first time, what is actually in front of you. That kind of attention changes you well beyond the page.

I became obsessed. I studied, I practiced, I taught. And I discovered that the same thing that held me back from creativity for decades, the belief that I just wasn’t built for it, was holding my students back too.

So I built a teaching practice around dismantling that belief.

Today I teach portrait drawing in graphite and pastel around the metro area of Minneapolis. I lead intimate destination retreats where artists make art in some of the most beautiful places in the world. I teach salsa, bachata, and Brazilian zouk because I believe that feeling at home in your body and feeling at home at your easel are more connected than most people think. 

I work with total beginners who are convinced they can’t draw and with experienced artists who want to finally get portraits right. What they all have in common is a willingness to slow down, look closely, and make something real.

That’s all it takes. You don’t need talent. You need curiosity and a pencil.

I can’t wait to draw with you.

Other fun tidbits:

  • I’m a mom to 4 young adults & have been happily married for 24 years.
  • I love learning and am always searching out new experiences.
  • I teach Latin Dances (Salsa, Bachata, Brazilian Zouk).
  • I’m on a never-ending spiritual journey to become the best version of myself, to trust in my own abilities & intuition, and to handle anything that comes my way with grace & gratitude.
  • I strive to be fearless in my self-growth. If something scares me, or makes me nervous, I do it!
  • I’m obsessed with the color teal, yet always seems to wear gray.
  • I’ve been given the divine job titles of “Beacon of Sparkling Clarity,” “Creator of the Perfect Ever After,” “Courageous Crafter of Life,” and “Facilitator of Blossoming” by the amazing Jo Anna Rothman.
  • I absolutely love, love, love having gray hair. My hair stylist tried to stop me from growing it out years ago, but now she is a fan. Natural is best baby!
  • I designed a ring and named it Lulu Bea.