Well, hello there!

I’m Michelle – Artist, designer, photographer, maker of the things, and someone who grew up thinking everybody else had a zillion ideas bouncing around inside their brains like I did too. It wasn’t until much later I found out most people don’t think about 500 things all at once. There are no Technicolor rave parties in most people’s heads. (Also, there are drugs to help that.)

I’ve spent more than 25 years working in design, illustration, photography, and marketing. But my love affair with cheerful color, art and making things started way before I ever had a job title to go with it.

Give me the rhyming worlds of Dr. Seuss, the joyful movement of Keith Haring, the vivid colors and energy of Matisse, or the nutty universe of Salvador Dalí, and I’m in heaven. I like art that makes you look twice, think differently, or smile for no particular reason.

Cat Hotel

Growing up, no matter where we were living in the world at the time, every summer brought us back to our roots in St. Louis. I always loved staying at my great-aunt and uncle’s farm. My German great-grandmother lived down a narrow gravel road, away from them, in her own old farmhouse. It felt like a time capsule and was filled with doilies, Depression-era green iced-tea glasses, and metal bowls covered in bright yellow flowers. She also had a complete set of anodized aluminum cups in every color of a rainbow. (That I’m proud to say I later inherited.)

Out in her front yard was a teepee-shaped woodpile, and there was always a new litter of kittens waiting for me inside. I was never disappointed, no matter what season it was.

To me, that woodpile was a cat hotel. I’d imagine where the mama cats came from, who the other cats were, and what went on in their secret little cat world when nobody was watching. I’d make up stories about all of them, but the kittens were always my favorites.

Looking back, I think that woodpile might be where my imagination really caught fire.

Then there was Peetie, the baby duck my cousin and I rescued from a fisherman’s hook in the pond behind my Aunt Cookie’s house. It followed us home, so naturally I named her, hid her in a bathtub full of water and proceeded to beg my parents to let me take her back with us—all the way back to North Carolina. I’m sure I had many compelling reasons why, because I’m a good debater. The answer was, “NOPE” every six million times I asked.

By middle school, I was volunteering every weekend at the SPCA in Fayetteville, North Carolina, once again begging my parents to help me save every animal there. (They actually let me, once or twice.)

Along Came Livy

And then there’s Olivia—my Livy. A tiny, 5 lb, 4 oz Chihuahua mix who was rescued from a ditch in St. Petersburg, FL, where some small-minded person dumped her. She came into my life during a time of turmoil and lots of big changes.

She was frightened and unsure of everything when she arrived. My sister Natalie gave her a little red flower for her collar, and something wonderful happened. People who might otherwise have overlooked this scared, tiny dog began smiling at her, talking sweetly to her, and making a fuss over her. Little by little, Livy blossomed.

That little flower eventually inspired me to start making collar flowers of my own, and Livy & Company grew from there. But Livy is so much more than the inspiration for my business. She’s my muse, my confidant, and a reminder of just how much love and possibility can come wrapped up in a teeny tiny package.

So let’s talk about those ears for a second. Livy has gargantuan ears. Juxtaposed with her tiny, skinny, runty stature, her ears could have their own zip code. Most of the time I call her my “Elf Dog”, except for during October when she becomes “Bat Dog.” They are paper thin so you can see the sunshine through them too. Naturally she, and my love of Renaissance Fairs, fueled my imagination and nurtured Whiskers Thicket into being. She inspired one of my very first fur fairy drawings.

And Livy isn’t the only four-legged personality around here. There’s the weenies, Emmett and Ida, too. You’ll spot all three of them in the banner at the top of this page, and each has a fairy of their very own that lives in Whiskers Thicket. They are my three amigos. My three children. My three therapists.

A Dab of This and a Dash of That

I’ve always had a special place in my heart for animals, especially dogs. That love extends to the natural world, too. Gardening, flowers, trees, and all the little creatures that come along with them. (Except snakes. I just can’t seem to warm up to snakes.) I can spend hours getting my hands dirty, watching things grow, or marveling at the colors, patterns, and perfect designs nature invents.

I draw. I dye fabric. I make pottery. I photograph things. I design things for pets and the people who adore them. Sometimes an idea requires a paintbrush. Sometimes a sewing machine. Sometimes a little clay. Just depends on the day.

Here you’ll find colorful handmade accessories, original illustrations, whimsical fairies, little angels, and all sorts of things that began as an idea and eventually left my brain to join the world.

Welcome to Livy & Company!

Have a look around. You never know what’s up or what’s down.