Born and raised in Minnesota, Nighswonger had originally planned to go to North Dakota State University for design, but after a summer working on a dude ranch in Wyoming, she decided she couldn’t go anywhere else. Thus, she switched to vet tech and packed her bags for Eastern Wyoming College in Torrington.

Still, she had that creative side in her, and it showed. While attending EWC, she traveled around singing with the choir, having obtained a scholarship to do so. Upon graduation in 1984, she worked at a flower shop, before starting her own embroidery business.

She embroidered out of her home for several years before opening a storefront in downtown Torrington. She did this all while raising a family, something she hadn’t expected for her life either.

Then, while her kids were in high school, she decided to take another class at EWC, this time a little more up her alley.

“A friend of mine asked me to go to a Community Ed class up at the college [EWC],” she said. “…There was a new teacher in town that was an artist, and she was doing this watercolor class—a little six week watercolor class.

“That’s kind of when I got hooked.”