This small business exceeded all expectations...

I look back over the past seven years with humility and, quite frankly, pride. Paul and I are a testament to the fact that hard work, perseverance, determination, and just plain stubbornness do have their rewards. Maybe throw some luck in there for good measure. From a two person business, we have grown substantially to meet demand, quality expectations, and customer satisfaction.

It started out rather innocuously. After spending hours sifting through magazines looking for inspiration for furnishing our own home, I became fascinated with bright, boldly patterned furniture. Wanting to be in a position of selecting my own fabric, I decided to learn how to upholster. I found a discarded chair on the side of the road, loaded it into the car, tore it apart and figured out how to re-finish, re-upholster and re-assemble it. I LOVED the process and began revamping our own furniture.

Soon afterwards, our son started kindergarten. I decided to try to sell some of the pieces I had completed in hopes of creating a small business that would enable me to be home with our son when he was not attending school. This small business exceeded all expectations!

The timing was fortuitous because Paul was ready for a career change. This type of work suited him and his abilities and it was a perfect fit for my creative energies and organizational skills. After careful consideration and a great deal of deliberation, we made the decision to put our time and efforts into a family business.

Paul's expertise and excellence in woodworking are the culmination of tutelage, time and a finely honed talent. Starting as a toddler by the side of his Grandfather, a college Professor with a passion for woodworking, Paul was gradually introduced to the various tools in his Grampie's expansive workshop. At first together, and then alone, Paul crafted simple and then more intricate pieces, some of which were custom designed. Additionally, as a working member of a family owned business, Ainsworth Cottages on Cape Cod, Paul was responsible for accomplishing his share of the maintenance and repairs. From repairing boardwalks, to building kitchen cabinets, to shingling roofs, Paul has always been involved in wood. Paul's skills as a craftsman and his drive for perfection are now showcased in LivenUP; but to him it is another venue to pay tribute to the man who was his mentor, the man he proudly calls, “Grampie.”

In the early years of LivenUP, I completed all of the upholstery work. However, as our business has grown, so has the time I spend working with our customers to assist with creative design. I help with customization with respect to size, shape and style requirements, fabric choices and budget parameters. I am the project manager and supervise time-lines and realization of customer expectations. I manage the customer service and communication aspects of our business and, in order to deliver a high quality item with exacting specifications, communication is a key factor to our success. I also curate the shop and conduct all of the research and development as well as the sales and marketing.

We have worked with some of the BEST designers in the trade and are very proud of our client list! You can see a few examples of the amazing projects in which we have participated in the photos in our shop listings.

Our products have graced the pages of Domino Magazine, Coastal Living Magazine, House Beautiful, HGTV magazine and Luxe Magazine. In addition, LivenUP's products have also been featured in various online magazines and blogs- domino.com, elledecor.com, elementsofstyleblog.com, christinedovey.com, thezhush.blogspot.com, chroniclesoffrivolity.com, thesweetestthingblog.com, and the list continues. If you are interested, please take a moment to read more about us ~ the more knowledge you have about us, the more trust you will have in our ability to manufacture and deliver a unique, quality product.

Regardless of budget constraints or style choices, we treat each project with exacting attention to detail, and customer satisfaction is our ultimate goal. Our completed products include fabrics and grasscloth ranging in price from $6.95 to $300 per yard. No client project is too small; no client question is too insignificant.

We love what we do and the end results provide proof of that!