Jo Stockdale always wanted to be an artist but never has the confidence to pursue her dream - until now. Women's Editor Christen Pears meets her.

JO Stockdale waves enthusiastically through the kitchen window as she spots me walking up the path and welcomes me into her home, making tea and ushering me into her living room. Her confidence belies the nervousness she's feeling; she's not used to being the centre of attention.

Until three months ago, she worked as housekeeper for horse trainer Mark Johnston but has just launched a career as an artist, specialising in equestrian works.

"I studied A Level art but I just wasn't confident enough to pursue it further," she explains. "Now I've finally made the leap but part of me still can't believe it's happening. It's all gone far better than I'd expected."

Jo's new career combines her two great passions - art and horses. In fact, she worked with horses after leaving school but had to give up when a back injury prevented her from riding. She realised she had to find something else to do but drifted for a while.

The turning point came when she and her husband Sean moved to Middleham in North Yorkshire four years ago with their two children, Ben and Amy. They were immediately caught up in the buzz generated by the racing community.

"Middleham really has got something about it. There are so many different nationalities, lots of different types of people. Everyone is pursuing a dream of some sort and it's infectious. If you're surrounded by positive, upbeat people, then it starts to rub off on you."

The couple found an old house, just off the village's cobbled centre, which they believe is three to four hundred years old, and began to work on it. Virtually a wreck when they moved in, they ripped everything out and started again. It's still not finished - there are several test patches of gold and yellow paint on the living room walls - but it's well on the way.

"It made us realise what we could do. I don't think we knew what we were taking on but when you are backed into a corner, it's amazing what you can achieve. It's done wonders for our self-confidence."

Jo began sketching again when the children were young, using a tin of watercolours she'd been given when she was 12 years old. By the time she moved to Middleham, she was painting regularly, sometimes coming home from the Johnstons' house and working until one o'clock in the morning.

"That was hard and although I loved working for Mark and Deirdre, I knew I couldn't carry on forever and decided to do something about it.

"I've spent a lot of my life waiting for someone to say that I was doing the right thing. I wanted to be a full-time artist but I kept putting it off because I was playing it safe but I spoke to my nan in the summer and told her I would really like to do it. She looked me square in the face and said it was all down to me. 'If you get to 65 and say you regret not doing it, there's no-one to blame but yourself.' She was absolutely right. Now, for the first time, I really feel that I've found my niche."

Sean quit his job in the same week, setting up his own business as a tree surgeon. "He came home and told me and I decided to do the same. It wasn't until a few weeks later that it sank in what we'd done, but fortunately, it's all working out really well."

Jo is currently illustrating a booklet about the village of Thornton Steward and has been approached by a kitchen and bathroom company to paint murals. In January, she's starting a sculpture course but most of her work is equestrian.

Some of her pictures hang on the wall and she has a selection of pictures to show me. They're all remarkably different in style, ranging from a bold painting of a scarlet-coated huntsman to a delicate pastel sketch of a gypsy boy on horseback.

"When I do commissions, it's all quite traditional but all my other work is experimental. I use pastels, oils, I like doing pen and ink drawings. I'm willing to try anything at this stage and by putting different things into shows, I can find out what people want. I'm a little girl in a sweetshop. It's all good fun and I'm trying everything."

She has already had several major commissions and has exhibited in shows across the country. Although she's enjoying her success, she admits she finds it difficult to get used to the attention.

"The person I was would sit in the corner at a party but all of a sudden, I have to sell myself. I have talk to people, explain my paintings, and that's very hard because when I paint I do it because I love the shape or the mood.

"People ask me what I want to do and where I want to go but I don't know. I'm just happy doing something I love and earning some money at the same time."

For more information, visit Jo's website at www.jostockdale.co.uk or e-mail her at jostockdale@hotmail.com.