Our Story
My Mom, Candace, and I have an appreciation for arts and crafting. We’re able to bring our creativity into all aspects of a home (check it out here, Our Virginia Project) as well as for our clients. At Two Poppies Design, Mom and I strive to bring fresh looks to found items and make them special for your homes.
Much of the design experience that comes to Two Poppies Design is from personal experimentation and a need for things that couldn’t readily be found in the marketplace or a desire for something with one-of-a-kind appeal. When you choose to purchase from Two Poppies Design, know that Mom and I have brought our imaginations and evolved design visions into your home.
With the help and support from our family, Mom and I are excited to share the Two Poppies Design vision and creativity with you, bringing beautiful and functional design to your homes too!
Thanks for letting our vision become part of your homes. -Shannon
I was raised by two very creative and skilled people. My mother is full of craft-savvy ideas and my father is quite skilled in carpentry and woodworking. Together they raised me to my full potential as a designer. When I was young, I loved drawing colorful houses. Throughout school, I enrolled in art, photography and technical drawing classes. I received my Bachelor of Architecture degree from Virginia Tech, after spending years learning about proportions, scale, architectural styles and art history.
During college and my first years after graduation, I worked with architecture and engineering firms to develop skills for designing both residential and commercial projects. After starting my family, I used my honed design skills to incorporate custom touches in my own home and for friends and family. I reworked standard builder-grade elements into one-of-a-kind designs. I have worked with several clients to bring unique design touches to their homes – redesigning kitchen cabinetry, building entertainment spaces, reupholstering furniture, and reimagining “found furniture.” I have many artistic hobby interests. I dabble in acrylic painting, loom weaving and scrapbooking. I’m an advocate for bringing color and texture into my projects both big and small.
When my parents were young, they always looked for ways to incorporate inexpensive designs and improvements to their homes. They combined their passions and skills for crafting and carpentry to bring color and creativity into their indoor and outdoor spaces. My mom enjoys many types of crafting – sewing, basket weaving, tole painting, needlework, and upholstering. If there was a will to have a specific and unique piece of décor, she would find a way to make it happen using her own two hands and as little investment as possible. She quickly found that old furniture could be given new life with a little bit of persistence and a tenacity to learn to use all kinds of tools (boy does she love her pneumatic stapler!). She knew that finding a fresh fabric or accent could rejuvenate old pieces and enhance their original design. She has been known to pull over roadside to recover a previously loved piece of furniture and find a way to give it new life. She surprises people with her use of unique and unexpected items like old tools, or remnants of previous pieces, and brings style elements into current day designs. Creativity runs in her blood, and she’s happy to have passed on her ability to see potential in the unexpected to her family.
My Dad, David, our carpenter and woodworker extraordinaire, ensures our pieces are sturdy and ready to be well-(re)loved. He stabilizes our found pieces, custom-builds furniture (check out the products available in our online shop, or several pieces in our Inspiration - Projects) and adds custom features to found pieces (check out our Inspiration - Our Furniture).
A quick nod to my husband – who sets up the retrieval of found pieces and delivery of purchases to our customers’ homes – he’s helped in behind-the-scenes ways to kickstart our design group. My children have brought their own skills to the team also as technology manager and graphic designer.
