She is co-author with Elizabeth Pleck of Cinderella Dreams: The Allure of the Lavish Wedding, and co-editor with Tina M. Lowrey of Contemporary Consumption Rituals: An Interdisciplinary Anthology. Her primary area of interest is in the study of ritualistic consumption. As such, she has published and presented research on Christmas shopping, gift giving, weddings, Valentine's Day and the transformative power of products. At Illinois, she has taught Consumer Behavior, Promotions Management and Retailing at the undergraduate and MBA levels.