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About BusyBodies
BusyBodies is a small, privately owned company creating and selling original stick figure designs on quality apparel and gift items via the internet. In collaboration with Cafepress, we do our best to deliver fun, creative products that celebrate people's diverse interests, occupations, sports, and personalities.
The BusyLady behind BusyBodies 
Owner, shopkeeper, artist, product designer...you name it, Heidi's probably behind it. Living in Minnesota with her husband and three daughters, Heidi Panelli is the busy lady behind BusyBodies. In addition to her full time job as "Mommy" She's a business partner with her husband. Together they run Caribe Caribbean Bistro, a restaurant in St. Paul, MN. Heidi also stays busy with freelance graphic design and illustration she does from her home studio.
Heidi began her first job in the summer of 1992, at the age of 16, drawing and airbrushing caricatures for fairgoers at ValleyFair Amusement Park in Minnesota. She learned the skill of caricature from award-winning Mad Magazine artist, Tom Richmond.
Spending seven summers of "making people look funny on paper," as she airbrushed thousands of faces, Heidi learned more than any college class could teach. Not only did she master the airbrush and pencil, but also gained an understanding of the market for humorous illustration and personalized cartoons.
Heidi attended the University of Wisconsin-Stout where she earned a bachelor's degree in Fine Arts with a concentration in Graphic Design. As a college senior, she eventually gave airbrushing T-shirts a try. It was then that BusyBodies was born.
It began with Heidi airbrushing one design at a time. The first design wasn't a stick figure at all, it was a chicken! A design of a chicken, holding a spatula, wearing a chef hat above the phrase "I Cook" graced several aprons custom-painted for a church retreat. The scope and versatility of the "I (verb)" phrase quickly led itself to more ideas and a versatile stick figure that was easy to airbrush. Summer 1999 - The first BusyBodies design was airbrushed. A stick figure holding a fishing pole that read, "I Fish." It was painted for Heidi's dad. August 1999 - Heidi airbrushed T-shirts at a booth she operated with her sister (and lots of help from her family!) at the Dakota County Fair in Farmington, Minnesota. The stick figure designs were the most popular of any design at the booth. Summer 2000 - The company was officially named "BusyBodies" 2000 - Heidi began to recreate the stick figures in the computer.
2000 - BusyBodies bride and groom designs were screen printed and August 27, 2003 - Heidi began preparing the BusyBodies online store through CafePress. October 3, 2003 - First internet purchase was made while the web site was under construction. It was a Wedding Day Bride Jr. Spaghetti Tank. March 2004 - The BusyBodies online store officially opened for business with a small collection of designs and products. Summer 2005 - CafePress began featuring BusyBodies designs in their "wire" section as well as other sections througout the CafePress' marketplace.
December 2006 - BusyBodies launches a new, interactive site design
BusyBodies Today BusyBodies continues to grow in popularity and the design collection is constantly expanding with Heidi's ideas as well as suggestions from web site visitors, friends, & family. BusyBodies Stats 'n' Facts - BusyBodies has sold merchandise to customers in all 50 states through this web site. - Internationally, sales from this web site have brought customers from: Australia, Canada, China, Egypt, France, Great Britain, Hong Kong, Ireland, Japan, Netherlands, Norway, Singapore, Slovenia, Taiwan, Turkey, and the list continues to grow! - An average of 100,000 people (unique visitors) visit this web site annually. With around 20,000 hits per month. The Affiliate Program is here!
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Occupational gifts, Hobby gifts, Sports gifts, Unique Birthday and Christmas gifts for people who are hard to shop for!
Cute, Family Friendly T-shirts, Stickers, Ornaments, Apparel, Tote Bags, Magnets, Mugs and so much more!
All images copyright ©Heidi Panelli. All Rights Reserved.
