Soon after college graduation, Allie started making beaded jewelry to accessorize her own clothing, and was often asked to sell what she was wearing. When Allie moved to Minnesota, she noticed that the most common exclamation about her jewelry creations was "Oh, that's interesting!" so that inspired the name under which she now sells her creations: Oh, That's Interesting! Wearable Art (OTIWA for short).
OTIWA designs have been featured in several galleries, including Edina (MN) Art Center, Textile Center of Minnesota, Xanadu Gallery (AZ), APW Gallery (NY), Art Center of Estes Park (CO), Pump House Regional Arts Center (WI), Artists.de (Germany) and Saatchi Gallery (UK). Her work has also been exhibited at Minneapolis Institute of Art. She's a member of MNArtists.org, and often volunteers to help with their promotional events at the Minnesota State Fair and Walker Art Center. Allie is a long-standing member of the Upper Midwest Bead Society, by which she was invited to present at a monthly meeting on the use of paper for making beads.
As both an artist and Occupational Therapist, Allie has a particular interest in paper-based designs, for functional as well as decorative use. She has taken courses in "Cardboard Carpentry", which uses specialized techniques for producing affordable adaptive furniture and assistive devices for people with disabilities. Allie's plans for her "retirement career" are to incorporate her skills as an artist and Occupational Therapist to help people with disabilities in developing countries participate in and contribute to their communities' development of local arts and crafts businesses.