ABOUT THE DESIGNER...

William Thomas Shepherd was born in the small town of Jackson, Michigan on October 23, 1956. He had an interesting childhood, including living both in an old hotel and converted school bus. Through the years, he has worked many jobs across the country but his artistic gift always managed to come to the forefront. He trained under the watchful eye of famed Florida artist A.E. "Beanie" Backus, and has painted murals in local bars as well as designed custom artwork for Coca-Cola. He has been a director of security at a number of dining and drinking establishments and is a sixth-degree black belt and martial arts instructor in the Okinawan philosophy of Isshin Ryu. He never ignored his artistic abilities, however, to create something from nothing and finally sat down and began designing clothing, some of which you will find here on this website.

As to his work ethic, Billy puts it this way:"It is like pushing a car up a hill: Once you reach the top and the car starts to roll down the other side of the hill, it is very hard to stop. I will design one dress and before I am through, a dozen more designs enter my mind, and I will sit there for hours drawing them out." To that end, he is extremely prolific, putting out hundreds of designs in a single weekend.