A Custom Bird Rug Story
How One Cockatiel Inspired Three Thoughtful Rugs Designed Around Everyday Life at Home
Some custom rug projects begin with a favorite photograph.
This one began with a bird named Kokomo—and eventually became something much more meaningful for Willow.
Our collaboration with their family first started with a custom portrait rug for Kokomo, their unforgettable Blue-and-Gold Macaw.
Kokomo’s rug was bold, expressive, and full of personality. After it arrived, their family shared photos and videos of the finished piece inside their home.
But during our conversations, he introduced us to another member of the family.
Willow.
And Willow inspired us to think differently about what a custom rug could be.
Meeting Willow
Their family shares their home with an extraordinary family of birds.
Their videos do not feel overly staged or produced. They simply show daily life inside a home built around the habits, personalities, and routines of the birds who live there.
Willow is a cockatiel with a condition called splay leg.
Their family explained that the condition developed when Willow was still a baby chick. As a result, standing and landing can look different for Willow than they do for other birds.
Around the house, their family had already been placing towels in some of Willow’s familiar areas to provide softer surfaces.
That detail stayed with us.
Instead of asking:
“How can we turn Willow’s photograph into another decorative rug?”
We began asking:
“Can we design something around the way Willow already lives?”
That question changed the direction of the project.
Designing Around Willow’s Routine
Every pet moves through a home differently.
Some dogs have a favorite place beside the sofa. Some cats return to the same sunny window every afternoon. Birds often develop their own familiar routes between perches, rooms, people, and resting areas.
Willow had familiar places too.
Instead of treating those habits as limitations, we used them as the starting point for the designs.
The goal was not to create a medical product or promise to change Willow’s condition. The goal was much simpler: to create personalized surfaces inspired by the areas Willow already used every day.
The colors needed to feel calm inside the home.
The shapes needed to suit their intended spaces.
Most importantly, each rug needed to have a clear purpose rather than existing only as decoration.
One idea gradually became three.
Willow’s Landing Spot
The first design focused on Willow’s landing area.
We created a gentle portrait composition featuring Willow resting against a soft green background, surrounded by feathers, clouds, and small sky-inspired details.
The words “Willow’s Landing Spot” gave the rug a clear identity without making the design feel clinical.
It was personal.
It was recognizable.
And it reflected the way Kevin and Amber already described the space: a familiar place for Willow to arrive and rest.
The rounded visual elements and muted green, cream, and pale blue palette helped the rug blend naturally into their home.
Rather than creating a generic bird mat, we wanted it to feel unmistakably Willow’s.
Home
The second design focused less on landing and more on belonging.
At the center of the rug is Willow resting inside a nest, surrounded by a circular arrangement of softly illustrated feathers.
Above Willow is one simple word:
Home.
Birds often return to the same familiar places each day—the same perch, the same room, the same shoulder, or the same quiet corner.
This design was inspired by that sense of familiarity.
The feathers around the border create a gentle visual rhythm, while the nest places Willow at the heart of the composition.
It is not simply a portrait of a bird.
It is a portrait of belonging.
Bird Runway
The third design came from watching how the birds moved around Kevin and Amber’s home.
Not every journey involved flying.
Sometimes the birds simply walked across the floor, moved between familiar spaces, or followed everyday routes through the room.
That inspired a long runner rug titled:
Bird Runway — Clear for Landing
The horizontal format made it different from Willow’s two smaller rugs.
Large floral arrangements frame both sides, while Willow appears near the center above the title. The warm cream background, muted blue flowers, golden accents, and leafy greens were chosen to coordinate with the other Willow designs.
Together, the three rugs share a consistent visual language while serving different areas of the home.
One marks a landing place.
One represents home.
And one celebrates movement.
Choosing Design Details Based on Real Use
Creating the artwork was only one part of the project.
Because Willow would spend time around the rugs, we also discussed how the pieces would actually be used inside the home.
For some of the smaller designs, we reconsidered the surface and material rather than automatically using the same construction for every rug.
That decision was not made because one material looked better in photographs.
It was made because the designs had different purposes.
A large decorative portrait rug and a smaller surface used in Willow’s routine did not necessarily need to be approached in exactly the same way.
This project reminded us that customization should go beyond changing a photograph or adding a name.
True customization also means listening to how the finished piece will fit into everyday life.
From Digital Designs to a Real Home
The most meaningful moment came after the rugs arrived.
Kevin and Amber placed the Willow pieces in their home, alongside the towels and familiar areas that had already been part of Willow’s routine.
The finished rugs did not look like isolated promotional products.
They looked like they belonged there.
They appeared beside furniture, near the birds’ living spaces, and along the routes the family used every day.
That was exactly what we had hoped for.
The project had started with a custom rug for Kokomo, but Willow’s designs expanded the collaboration in an entirely new direction.
Kokomo’s rug celebrated personality.
Willow’s rugs were designed around routine, familiarity, and place.
Together, the four pieces tell the story of one remarkable bird-loving family.
More Than a Finished Product
Throughout the project, Kevin continued sharing feedback, photographs, and videos with us.
After receiving the rugs, he described them as:
“Absolutely perfect.”
He also sent a message that meant a great deal to our design team:
“Give your graphic artist a hug.”
But one comment stayed with us more than any other.
“Your rugs really are heirlooms.”
That word captured what made this collaboration so special.
An heirloom does not need to be formal or hidden away for safekeeping.
Sometimes it is something that becomes part of ordinary life.
Something that appears in family photographs.
Something associated with a favorite pet, a familiar room, or a daily routine.
Something that carries a story long after the design process is finished.
Willow’s rugs were created for the home Willow already knew—not for an imaginary showroom or a perfectly styled photograph.
And that is what made them personal.
Every Pet Uses a Home Differently
Willow’s story reminded us that a custom pet rug does not always have to begin with a standard portrait layout.
It can begin with a favorite resting place.
A path through the living room.
A familiar landing area.
A daily habit that may seem small to everyone else but means everything to the people who understand that pet best.
That is why every A Print Nest project begins with photographs and a conversation.
We want to know what your pet looks like.
But we also want to know:
Where do they spend their time?
What makes them recognizable?
Which routines define life with them?
And what kind of piece would feel as though it had always belonged in your home?
Because the most meaningful custom designs do more than show what a pet looks like.
They show how that pet is loved.
Create a Rug Inspired by Your Pet’s Story
Every companion has favorite places, familiar routines, and small habits worth remembering.
Whether you share your home with a dog, cat, rabbit, bird, guinea pig, or another much-loved companion, we can help turn your photographs and ideas into a design created specifically for your story.
FAQ
Can you create custom rugs for birds?
Yes. Our custom designs are not limited to dogs and cats. We can create personalized rugs featuring cockatiels, macaws, parrots, budgies, cockatoos, and other companion birds.
Each project begins with photographs and information provided by the bird’s family.
Can you design a rug around my bird’s favorite area?
Yes. In addition to portrait rugs, we can explore designs inspired by a favorite resting area, bird room, familiar route, or another meaningful part of your bird’s everyday routine.
The finished design and dimensions will depend on your photographs, intended placement, and requested use.
