The Long Version:

Originally from New Mexico and raised by a family of scientists, I am keen on getting lost in nature, appreciating the tiniest of details, and doing my best to identify ALL the plants. I went to school in New Orleans where I fell in love with a man and a city. (Things worked out - we’re married. Not the city and I… the man.) While in New Orleans, I had the privilege of working at Preservation Jazz Hall and as an event planner for the Contemporary Arts Center; and I got to ride the street car to work every day. I love that city like I would a person, and my chest swells when I even think of those oak tree lined streets and the French Quarter. In my final year in New Orleans, a friend of mine bought me a ‘fonts’ book from the thrift store, and I took off running. Nothing could escape the fate of my pen - binder covers, hand made cards, Halloween pumpkins… I was obsessed. I began combining this new love with the graphic design basics I learned in school, and if you asked any of my friends on a Friday night where I was, it was often ‘she stayed home to craft all night.’

From there, I spent a decade in Austin, Texas, which is where Billie Claire was officially born, and where my obsession with tacos began. We lived right on the greenbelt, and I miss the coyotes and armadillos that used to come up to our apartment so very much. I spent four years as a first grade teacher, and then took the giant leap into entrepreneurship full time in 2016. My days were split between growing Billie Claire at local markets (like the Austin Flea) and doing wedding invitations for friends; and The Hermes Lab - where I taught after school clubs including sewing, crafts and entrepreneurship, flora and fauna science, and world traveler geography.

Seeking new adventures and a different climate, my husband and I packed up and moved to Washington, DC for a year in 2019 as a ‘jumping off point,’ thrilled to be able to take public transportation and be on the eastern corridor train line. I began as a regular vendor at the historic Eastern Market and launched my business into retail stores. In 2020, we made the move to Richmond, Virginia and are proud to say we’ve found our forever home. We love it here more than we could imagine, and spend our days eating cake, taking dips in the James River, and relaxing at Libby Hill Park with our spotty dog, Mootz. My business has grown to be in over 30 retail stores, I still love setting up at local markets and regional festivals, and am proud to have expanded into more custom-based work like window painting, chalkboards, and murals. Come find me in person at a local festival and I will most likely expound on how much I love turkey vultures and spring in Virginia.