When she returned to New Zealand, her interest grew, but with two young children, she was not able to attend a formal multi-year course in glass art at a university.
[5] In 2014 and 2012, she was selected as a finalist in the Australian Ranamok Glass Prize[6][7] She has also contributed to the Project Twin Streams project in Waitakere by producing a major artwork near the pathway at Millbrook Esplanade.
[8] Her glass sculpture 'Te Aho Maumahara – Sacred Strand of Memories' hangs in the community area of the Devonport Library.
[9] In 2014, her work was exhibited in the group show Te Hau A Uru: A Message from the West at Te Uru Waitakere Contemporary Gallery alongside artists Rebecca Baumann, Philip Dadson, Brett Graham, Lisa Reihana and Tanya Ruka.
[10] Between June 2015 and February 2016, Kirkwood's Ka Awatea series, previously displayed at Pataka Art + Museum in 2012, was exhibited at the De Young Fine Arts Museum in San Francisco.