Meet Our Designers

Barb Michaud, AKBD, Caribou Design Center

Associate Kitchen & Bath Designer
 
Barb has been with the S.W. Collins Co since 1993 as part of the sales team and preparing estimates for customer projects. She moved to the kitchen and bath in 1994 and has watched it grow and thrive into a multi-store department. Barb gained much of her experience in the construction field working with her husband doing general construction for 7 years. The knowledge gained from actual hand-on building is invaluable in the kitchen & bath design process. Barb’s continues to strengthen her design skills and knowledge base; she earned her Associate Kitchen & Bath Designer (AKBD) certification from the NKBA in 2009. In 2012 Barb won 2^nd place in the new construction bath category of the NKBA Maine design competition, featuring Starmark cabinetry and a beautiful curved walk-in shower. Barb has accumulated extensive design experience and is proficient in Schluter Systems tile showers, flooring, as well as all things kitchen & bath. She specializes in the small details that bring a project to completion. In her free time, Barb enjoys time with family and outside activities such as gardening, riding the ATV trails and fishing.

Gaye Richards, AKBD, Presque Isle Design Center

Associate Kitchen & Bath Designer/ Draftsman 

Gaye has been with S.W. Collins Company as a Kitchen & Bath Designer for 8 years. She is a graduate of Northern Maine Community College and University of Southern Maine having degrees in Drafting Design and Vocational Education. She has worked for CIANBRO Corporation, a local Land Surveyor and taught Drafting and related classes at Northern Maine Community College. Gaye has experience with a variety of remodeling jobs. With 30 years of construction, design and teaching experience she is known in the industry for having extensive building knowledge, is detail oriented and is a pleasure to work with.

Tracy MacDonald, Houlton Design Center

Kitchen & Bath Designer 

Tracy has an Associate degree in Interior Design from the University of New Haven, CT.  Tracy has worked in the kitchen and bath field for 18 years in Connecticut before moving to Maine.  She is experienced working with custom and semi-custom cabinetry. Tracy enjoys designing kitchens, baths and other areas of the home. Outside of work Tracy also likes drawing, music, gardening, decorating and baking.

Lisa Plourde, CKBD, Caribou Design Center

Certified Kitchen & Bath Designer 

S.W. Collins is pleased to announce that Lisa Plourde, CKBD has rejoined our team of designers at the Kitchen & Bath Design Center in Caribou.  Lisa’s 20 years of experience includes working as a drafter for a civil engineering firm and log home company prior to coming to work at S.W. Collins in 2004.  After five years with SWC, she pursued an opportunity to manage a design center where she worked for ten years before bringing her skills and experience back to S.W. Collins in late 2019. Lisa earned her drafting degree from Northern Maine Community College and her Certified Kitchen & Bath Designer certification from the National Kitchen and Bath Association.  She has expertise in product selection, space planning, materials, and finishing. Outside of work, Lisa enjoys spending time with her family at camp and raising her two beautiful children.

Kelly Burtt, Presque Isle Design Center

Kitchen & Bath Designer 

Kelly has been with S.W. Collins since 2008 and has established a tremendous portfolio of beautiful kitchen and bath designs.  Her keen sense of color matching and extensive training on the newest trends in design establishes her as a key designer for our team. Kelly comes from a family of cabinet makers and builders and loves designing. She also owned her own furniture and textiles business for several years. Before that, she was a manager of Linens 'n Things which is a retailer of home textiles, housewares and decorative home accessories. Kelly attended Northern Maine Community College with a degree in Business Administration and Management. She has four children and ten beautiful grandchildren who she loves to spoil and spend time with. She also enjoys spending time with her faith family at the Presque Isle Wesleyan Church. Her favorite place to be is at the ocean.

Jessica Robbins, Caribou Design Center

Kitchen & Bath Designer 

Jessica had five years of professional paint experience before joining the S.W. Collins team in 2012 as the paint specialist at the Caribou location. She became known as the “paint girl” and due to her enthusiasm and great customer service, she earned the SWC Customer Appreciation award in 2016.  She started with a passion for color which quickly snowballed into a passion for all things design. She moved to the Design Center in 2016 and quickly embraced learning cabinetry and the technical aspects of kitchen and bath design. Her skill as a color expert is a crucial element of great design having the ability to select flooring, cabinetry, tile and more.  Not only is color the main attention grabber, it’s also proven to have a psychological effect which creates the atmosphere and “vibe” of a room.  Jessica was born in Caribou, raised in San Diego and came back home to the County after high school.  She is a devout animal lover and enjoys spending time with friends and family. 

Janelle Levesque, Houlton Design Center

Kitchen & Bath Designer 

Janelle joined S.W. Collins in the summer of 2019. She was born and raised in Houlton, and decided to move back home after she graduated from college. She graduated from Endicott College in Beverly, MA with a Bachelor's Degree in Interior Design. She studied abroad in Florence, Italy, for Environmental Architecture and Sustainability at Florence University of the Arts. She completed three Internships; one at a Log Home Company, one at an Architect firm in Massachusetts, and one here at S.W. Collins. Janelle is experienced with drafting and design skills from previously working as a drafter in northern Maine and as a designer in Massachusetts. Outside of work, Janelle also enjoys outdoor activities, traveling, and baking.