Catherine was born and raised in Toronto, Canada. From an early age, she was always interested in the arts. She graduated from an art high school in Toronto in 1965 and has worked in the graphic and fine arts fields ever since.

She has worked closely with her husband, Harri, as a senior designer at Creative Edge Master Shop, since its inception in 1988. During this time, she designed for the hard surfaces and resilient flooring industry—helping to fulfill customer's design expectations. She has also worked extensively as a graphic designer and illustrator, creating many of the graphic images for Creative Edge Master Shop and the numerous natural stone, locally-themed murals for manufacture at CEMS.