Originally from Mumbai, India, Manisha S. Joshi (Manisha Vakil) was born into a family of five, including her older sisters, Heena and Smita. When she was six months old, her family relocated to the U.S. Over the years, living in Connecticut, New York and Southern California and traveling with her family to Europe, East Asia, Canada and Mexico expanded the depth of her creative skills. Sewing, making cards and writing poetry were hobbies she loved as a child.

"Creating art with my hands is a joy so different than that created with a machine. I always watched with excitement as my Mom made and tailored beautiful dresses for my sisters and home accessories and linens. My father bought clothes and jewelry from his business trips to all corners of the world so I had wonderful exposure to international styles and trends. I kept a scrapbook of things I had hoped to create or design one day. As college, career and travel came into play; I put my creative thoughts into hibernation and was sure that one day I would reawaken them."

At 15, she moved with her family back to Mumbai to further enrich their Indian culture. Manisha began writing poems that enveloped real-life themes. After graduating with a B.A. in Economics from Mithibai College of Arts, her family moved back to Southern California in 1992.

She surprised her parents on Mother's Day in 1993 with her first book, Poetic Thoughts. The book was a collection of her writings in Mumbai and soon her poems were featured in local newspapers and literary magazines. She graduated with a B.A. in Environmental Analysis and Design from the University of California, Irvine in 1996, while developing a career in marketing and public relations. And in 1998, she published her second book, if yesterday was, tomorrow would be, a more introspective look into life.

In the autumn of 2000, she met and got engaged to her love at first sight, Sunil. In May 2001, Manisha and Sunil were married and resided in Jacksonville, FL for a year. It was later that year that a conversation with her supervisors at the PGA TOUR rekindled her childhood passion for sewing and crafting. "Although I enjoyed my career in marketing and communications for 11 years, I knew I wanted to work with my hands and heart again. The concept started from a conversation I had with my supervisors, Stacy Cote and Michele Bryan. They were describing a wine bag they had purchased from a local store and how easy it would be for me to make one on my own. That very weekend, I bought fabrics, ribbons and the like and started my adventure. With my husband's wonderful support and with a lot of research and determination, my hands were in a flurry of creative joy all over again. I sold wine bags, gift bags and CD wraps to friends and hosted a exhibition at home as a start."

In 2002, they moved to Rochester, NY, where Sunil pursued a two-year fellowship in Allergy & Immunology. During this time, she was able to research design, marketing and turning her dream into a business. "I explored fashion, architecture, interior design, nature, etc., so I could really soak in the creative juices. Nothing is duplicated…oh so couture." Manisha also wrote her first children's poetry book, happiness is the scent of an orange. "Being surrounded by snowy winters made for wonderful writing time and exploring children's thoughts and dreams was an avenue I never tapped into before."

In July 2004, Manisha and Sunil moved back to Jacksonville and they now reside minutes away from Atlantic Beach. While developing her web site, Sunil joined Family Allergy Asthma Consultants (www.jaxallergists.com) as an Allergist & Immunologist.  

Adding to this exciting new venture was the birth of their baby girl, Saloni, born on September 30th, 2005. "Her birth is the most wonderful joy in our lives and we've already been calling her 'our future designer'!" And more recently, they welcomed the birth of their son, Sohan, on May 13th, 2008. 

Manisha has pursued her love of writing by serving in 2007 as a motivational columnist for Desh Videsh magazine and as the newsletter editor of The Professional Women's Council of the Jacksonville Regional Chamber of Commerce.

She is currently serving on the Board as the Newsletter Chair for for The Duval County Medical Society Alliance (www.dcmsonline.org) and is a member of The Professional Women's Council. Manisha also enjoys writing on her personal blog, www.themash101.blogspot.com.