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This is the story of my journey…
Thanks to Leverage Your Art, I’ve licensed my art with dozens of big-name brands and boutiques (all without an agent), I’ve become a SkillShare Top Teacher and an Etsy Star Seller. I’ve even built a community called Graphics Gang, and I started a podcast called Two Cranky Creatives!
This is my story. Yours will look different, but I hope my story inspires and motivates you to…
A glimpse of my art journey…
Watch my chat with Stacie. She spills the beans about everything in the new Leverage Your Art course!
I joined Stacie Bloomfield on the Art + Audience podcast! We dive deep into the realities of self-doubt, the power of creative bravery, and the freedom that comes with not needing external validation. I share about my transformative journey from the high-pressure world of film graphics to finding my artistic voice.
My Childhood
I grew up in Saudi Arabia, where American pop culture was basically non-existent. When I moved to the U.S. in 1985, it was like stepping into Technicolor for the first time (kinda like that scene in The Wizard of Oz.) The first time I saw an American cereal box—those colors, the illustrations, the playful typography—I was hooked. I didn’t know exactly what it was called yet, but at 11, I knew I wanted to make that.
My “Adult”hood
I kind of stumbled into a web design job during the dawn of the internet, in 1998, because computers always came naturally to me. But corporate life? Not my thing. After six years, I quit and went back to school for a second Bachelor’s—this time in graphic design. I figured real design work would be more fun than web design and coding.
One of the first pieces I made—a Get Out the Vote poster for AIGA—blew up. All Things Considered called me in 2004 and interviewed me on air about it. Then a college textbook publisher asked to feature it in their Art Student Field Guide book. It was a huge confidence boost, so I kept making art.
But here’s the thing: neither gig paid me a dime. Once my fifteen minutes were up, I was right back where I started—no art job, no paycheck, just a lot of unpaid “exposure.”
The Moment
I’ve been a movie buff for as long as I can remember. So, armed with my shiny new graphic design BFA, I became a film industry graphic designer. I made it all: fake company logos, billboards, police cars, cereal boxes—basically anything you see on screen that makes a world feel real. For a while, it was my dream job.
But film and TV work is stressful and chaotic. Twelve-hour days, six-day weeks, all to bring someone else’s vision to life. After sixteen years of that grind, I was fried. By 2020, I knew I needed a change—and I wanted to make the kind of art I wanted to see in the world.
The Exploration
I still remember when it hit me: someone actually designs the patterns on our clothes. Obvious, but it blew my mind. Suddenly, I knew—I wanted my art out in the real world, on real products. It felt like the dream job I’d been searching for. The thought of people wearing or using something I made lit a fire in me. From that moment on, I couldn’t shake the idea—I had to figure out how to make it happen.
But starting out? Total chaos. I had no clue where to begin. I binged classes, telling myself one more would unlock the secret plan. Spoiler: it didn’t. I collected random nuggets of info but couldn’t stitch them into an actual business. I was stuck, overwhelmed, and second-guessing everything. I needed a holistic plan, not a cobbled-together series of conflicting pieces of advice full of goals that seemed unattainable.
Meanwhile, I was making art. I threw a few designs on print-on-demand sites and wondered why nobody was buying. I started doubting myself, worrying if quitting my job was a huge mistake. The whole industry felt impossible to break into—pitching, licensing, marketing? Zero clue.
Every time I scrolled Instagram, I saw other designers landing dream deals and beautiful products, while I felt invisible and old. It crushed me. I even had to take a mental health break from social media. I truly believed I’d missed the boat—and that maybe there wasn’t room for me at all.
That pretty much summed up my cycle: taking random classes, trying to piece it all together alone, never stepping back to see the big picture—of the industry or my own goals.
So I decided to invest in myself and take Leverage Your Art. There was just something about Stacie—goofy, sincere, not overly polished, but so real. She’d been exactly where I was, and she got it. I dove in, and Leverage Your Art flipped everything for me—my process, my plan, my mindset. It’s packed with real, actionable info about every part of surface design, and it helped me finally see the whole picture.
The Discovery
I first found Stacie Bloomfield on Skillshare, then signed up for her newsletter—and that’s how I discovered Leverage Your Art.
Before that, I barely believed I could call myself an illustrator or surface designer. I was stuck in my sketchbook, jumping between styles, and losing hours down Skillshare, Instagram and Pinterest rabbit holes. I had art on print-on-demand sites, but the money was meager and inconsistent. Honestly, I was starting to wonder if I’d ever make a real living from my art.
Remember Ferris Bueller’s Day Off? (Yep, I’m dating myself!) But there’s a line that stuck with me: “Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.”
I owe that first licensing deal—and so much more—to Stacie and Leverage Your Art. Today, I’m an award-winning licensed artist, an Etsy Star Seller, and a Skillshare Top Teacher helping other artists turn their art into income. And I love every minute of it.
Taking Leverage Your Art was the best investment I ever made in my art career. It changed my life, and I know it can change yours too. If you want to make a real living from your art, don’t think twice—take this course!
The First “Yes!”
Right after Leverage Your Art, I hit the ground running—pulled my portfolio together and started pitching like crazy using what I’d learned. When I got my first yes from a kids’ clothing company, I was so excited I nearly fell down the stairs telling my boyfriend!
That pitch? Straight from a Leverage Your Arttemplate. The follow-up? Also from the course. How to find the right art director, tailor my portfolio, and—most importantly—have the guts to hit send? All thanks to Leverage Your Art.
My success story in Stacie’s email newsletter
I can say without a doubt that I wouldn’t be where I am today without Leverage Your Art!
I'm a grateful affiliate of Leverage Your Art, so I will earn a bonus if you sign up through me, but I only help promote teachers and courses I wholeheartedly stand behind, and courses I’ve taken myself.