As you all already know, I am highly obsessed with my dogs. I mean, I changed my whole career to be able to spend more time with them and with other dogs. Who leaves a corporate fashion job in New York City for the dog industry, a crazy dog lady, that’s who. So, when it comes to having anything that will remind me of them forever and ever, I am the first on board to get one, well three of them and share it with the world! Anywhoo, one night I was in one of my dark holes on Instagram when I ran across Flutterbye! I was automatically in love with everything I was seeing, and then I saw the pet prints….and my heart skipped a beat. Look how beautiful these prints are of Pharrell, Rosie, and Rumbas paws! We got the chance to ask this amazing badass dog mom who started this company a few questions! Take a look at her answers below.

How did you get started?

I started Flutterbye Prints in 2009 as a stationery business and later began creating personalized artwork using fingerprints.  I love creating really unique and personal products and wanted to find a way to work with pet owners. I know people like to express their own style and personalize their homes because the things we surround ourselves with reflect who we are and say something special about us, and hanging a pet’s paw print does just that!

Tell us about your pups!

We have two cute pups named Coby and Penny.  We’ve had Coby for two years and a few months ago decided he would love to have a friend so we rescued Penny.  It turns out, they were both at the same rescue center for a brief time before we adopted Coby, but she had been brought back recently.  The two dogs have been friends from day one and love to play together. Coby is sometimes timid, but very friendly and playful. Penny is all dog, sometimes she’s a handful but she is sweet and energetic. A fun story about Coby, when he was at the rescue center there was a stray who was too afraid to come up to the humans that kept hanging around and eating the food left for him.  They let Coby run out to him on a few occasions and he befriended the stray and got him to trust the humans and the dog later found a home.

What and who influence your work?

I love bright colors and simple designs.  Clean lines and minimalism are the foundation of my ideas and I pull inspiration from Mid Century Modern designs and bold uses of color.

What is another dog brand you love and why?

I have to recommend Cycle Dog!  It was started in Portland by a friend of mine after she became an avid cycler and realized that there was no way to recycle the bicycle inner tube. She started making leashes and dog collars using durable fabric and the repurposed inner tube.  Penny is wearing a cute Cycle Dog collar right now! Lanette and her husband, Paul, have since expanded worldwide and had a great line of dog toys as well, all with a focus on environmentally friendly materials. You can buy online at www.cycledog.com.

What keeps you inspired?

I’m always thinking about what I could create that would be meaningful to other people. My ideas always seem to return to personalized designs that are more than only a product to purchase.  It may be surprising, but it did not even occur to me when I started the pet paw artwork that people would be coming to me looking for a way to memorialize the pet they’d recently lost. I had first envisioned huge paw prints hanging on the wall in a very artsy and modern display of affection for the pets of the household.  It turned out that I found myself in the same situation just a few months ago when our cat of 16 years passed unexpectedly. I was very thankful that I had taken a picture of her paw to use as one of my sample pieces and now have that tender reminder of Fionna. I hope to keep finding inspiration in the places of our lives that truly mean something to us and find a way to bring that into the home in a unique and colorful way!
 

What is new for your company?

I’m currently working on how I can add a pet nose print as an option.  Our pets nuzzle us with their noses when they want to be loved and they’re pretty darn cute also. As soon as I get the process worked out, I’ll be releasing that to all my lovely customers.  I hope to also add a way to incorporate the pet paw prints with my wedding fingerprint artwork. I’ve had a few special requests to add a paw, and I’d love to do more!

I am so in love with these prints that she did of fur-babies, and I can’t wait to get some done for all my loved ones who love their pups as much as I do! If you are looking for the PAWfect gift for someone, or if you are just wanting to gift yourself, then Flutterbye is your gift! (they also do human prints too, but we all know paws are better!)

Follow @flutterbyeprints on social to keep up with new products!

Megan Rose

Megan is the Co-Founder of Gal's Best Friend and the East Coast Editor. She lives in New York City with her 3 dogs. Megan works in the pet industry on the marketing side, Megan is also the Pet Contributing Editor at Bestprodcuts.com is an author of Rescuing Rumba (coming Fall 2021), and a border member of Global Strays.