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Custom blueberry-ginger pie by Lisa Makes Pie (Photo by Justin Chesney)
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Custom strawberry-rhubarb pie by Lisa Makes Pie (Photo by Justin Chesney)
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Meticulously hand-cut lettering on an unbaked pie (Photo courtesy Lisa Makes Pie)
What do pies, postal stamps and the Apollo 11 command module have in common? They’ve all been brilliantly depicted by the deft hand of designer and baker Lisa Catalone Castro, the owner of Lisa Makes Pie. Castro’s two businesses — the 10-year-old pie company and her 30-year-old graphic design firm, Catalone Design Co. — have intertwined over the years, the combination bringing intricate, eye-popping detail to custom pies and a balanced sense of handcraft to her digital creation process.
Lisa Catalone Castro (Photo courtesy Lisa Makes Pie)
Pie and design provide another kind of equilibrium in Lisa’s life, too, each satisfying a different creative urge. “I’m not a patient person,” says Castro, who moved from Maryland to Richmond with her husband in late 2025 looking for a community that would welcome the eventual launch of a brick-and-mortar location for Lisa Makes Pie.
“In design, projects take a long time. Making a pie for someone can take just three hours. It’s instant gratification, and I love that. In my design life, there is meticulous attention to detail, down to the pixel. But with all-butter crust, you can’t be too meticulous. Once it bakes, you get what you get. That relieves stress from the other part of my life.”
Castro’s design company created a LOVE stamp and a series of Supreme Court justice stamps for the U.S. Postal Service. She also branded numerous exhibitions for the Smithsonian, including “Destination Moon,” which took the Apollo 11 command module and other objects to museums across the country.
Throughout, pie was a constant presence. “I grew up around pie, and I’ve always made pie,” she says.
Her grandparents on her dad’s side were farmers, their fields abundant with rhubarb, blackberries, strawberries, and pear and mulberry trees. “I remember my grandmother for her rhubarb pies,” Castro says. “My maternal grandmother made pineapple pies with pineapple from a can and a full Crisco crust, but it was delicious.”
And while those memories are strong, Castro has taken her pie-making in a more modern approach. “My thing is all-butter crust, and keep it cold,” she says. “Keep everything cold the whole time before you bake it!”
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A selection of Castro’s pies, including a sugar-stenciled portrait of Gov. Abigail Spanberger (Photo courtesy Lisa Makes Pie)
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Photo courtesy Lisa Makes Pie
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Photo courtesy Lisa Makes Pie
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Photo courtesy Lisa Makes Pie
Castro’s custom pie requests include book covers for reading clubs, dog portraits for pet owners, woven rainbows for Pride and all manner of lush botanicals carved from dough. She even sugar-stenciled Gov. Abigail Spanberger’s face onto a pie. Castro charges $50 for everyday pies and $90 for custom pies.
As her baking business evolved into a venture of its own, Castro recognized that she didn’t need to promote herself as a recipe developer. Making gorgeous, unique pies from tried-and-true borrowed recipes, and teaching others to do the same, became her focus.
At Pie School, Castro walks individuals and small groups through the steps of designing and baking. “We start by making the dough,” she says of the class, which costs $135 per person. “Since it has to chill, I serve brunch — a salad and a savory galette made from the same dough they just prepared.”
It’s art class meets culinary school in one soul-satisfying afternoon: Students eat, sketch, browse Castro’s design resources and prepare the fillings together, as a group. Not sure which flavor to pick for your creation? Blueberry-ginger comes highly recommended — a little sweet, a little sharp and entirely Castro’s style.
