diff --git a/plotstyle.py b/plotstyle.py
index 328565a..06aa015 100644
--- a/plotstyle.py
+++ b/plotstyle.py
@@ -212,7 +212,10 @@ def show_spines(ax, spines='lb'):
     if isinstance(ax, (list, tuple)):
         axs = ax
     else:
-        axs = ax.get_axes()
+        if hasattr(ax, "get_axes"):
+             axs = ax.get_axes()
+        else:
+            axs = [ax]
         if not isinstance(axs, (list, tuple)):
             axs = [axs]
     for ax in axs: