10/16/2026
Catherine and Alan spent decades in corporate America. Retirement, it turns out, was never going to mean rocking chairs on a front porch.
Catherine opened an Etsy shop back in February 2013, long before Alley Cat Design Studio ever had a booth at a market. What started there has grown into something much bigger: handmade, one-of-a-kind artwork and home and garden pieces built entirely from reclaimed wood — salvaged barns, sheds, houses, doors, windows, flooring, even lumber other people were ready to throw in a dumpster or burn.
Alan brings more than fifty years of construction experience to the operation, along with what Catherine calls "really, really bad jokes." Married since 1977, the two of them tear down materials that storms and time have already destroyed, and turn them into heirloom-quality pieces instead of letting them become landfill waste. Catherine grows flowers and creates art in her studio; Alan grows vegetables and blueberries in his raised beds. Both of them clearly love what they're doing, and it shows in their work.
This is Alley Cat Design Studio's first year at C-Street City Market, and they've already fallen for it. Catherine says they love the people, the kids and dogs, the food, and the creative energy of the whole market — plus C-Street's laid-back, historic atmosphere and live music.
Come meet Catherine and Alan and see what a piece of Missouri history looks like when it gets a second life.
📍 C-Street City Market — 321 E Commercial St, Springfield, MO
🕘 Saturdays, 9 AM – 2 PM
