Name: Maria Bernard
Age: 31
Title: Creative Director and Owner of Deco Ink Designs LLC
Married/Single: Married
Kids: 2
City you live in: Chandler
A typic al day in my life includes…
a mom-preneur life! In more detail, if needed: prayer, affirmations, cooking, making lunches, music, dance moves, calligraphy drafts, emails, cutting orders, prepping for dinner, homework and evening activities for the kids.
I was born…
in beautiful Guadalajara Jalisco, Mexico but raised in sunny Chandler, AZ since I was 2!
My favorite thing about Arizona…
its beautiful landscape and sunny days! I love heart-shaped cacti!
I’m listening to…
Into the Unknown from Frozen 2, my daughter plays it every chance she gets!
My family…
is fun, understanding, supportive, kind, giving, silly, adventurous and built in the faith of God.
If I could have dinner with anyone, it would be…
with Mother Theresa.
One thing I cannot live without…
is God and daily prayer!
When I was younger, I wanted to be…
a veterinarian because I love dogs!
I’m inspired by…
daily scripture, family, marriage, children, and women all around the world living out their passions!!!
The one person who motivates me is…
my mom! She was and continues to be my chef, spiritual guidance, prayer warrior, life saver, and peacemaker. She had seven children that I am so thankful for but wonder every day how she did it all!
If I could change anything in the world, it would be…
disabling phone usage while in a driving car.
The perfect day would be…
hiking outdoors with my family, hand-lettering an inspirational quote or word and eating watermelon with Tajin all day long!
My first job was…
McDonalds.
My favorite escape…
calligraphy!
My life…
is a dance! Always moving to the beat that life is constantly changing.
I’m currently working on…
figuring out how I am going to pull off this quarantine time with my family! Trying to dance to this new beat of life as I become a home school teacher all while my husband and I work from home on one single computer.
Always…
count your blessings!
Never…
say never. Hahaha, I learned the hard way!
Favorite Quote…
“We are born to make manifest the glory of God. As we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.” – Marianne Williamson
Biggest Dream…
to live a humble life, instill faith in my kid’s heart and inspire others to go after their dreams!
My Pet Peeve(s)…
compliment fishing. Seeking people’s approval of oneself is neither appealing nor fulfilling.
More about Maria…
I started calligraphy in 2015, shortly after the welcoming of my second child.
I had graduated from Arizona State University with a Secondary Education degree in 2013 and taught junior high math from 2014-2015. I then decided to take a year off of teaching to stay home with my two little ones; Roman who was 2 and Mila, my newborn. They are now 7 and 5! Wow, time flies.
Being a stay at home mom came with many challenges. During the eight months in which I stayed home calligraphy was introduced into my life through the wonderful platform of Instagram! I started following a group of calligraphers under the name @handletteredabcs, who were also mothers trying to balance life. They were such a great trio of women who helped the calligraphy community on Instagram grow exponentially.
I quickly fell in love with calligraphy and practiced a total of 4-5 hours a day. It was my escape and therapy to the new challenges of mothering two under two. As I shared more of my calligraphy journey on Instagram, requests for calligraphy orders started! I was completely surprised. It was my hobby and had never intended it to become a job. Fast forward 5 years later, calligraphy is now in my daily work routine; from hand lettering clients’ names on their invoices to drafting out an order to be laser cut and packaged, calligraphy is the single most central piece of my business that brings life to my clients’ vision!
Aside from hand lettering and laser cutting calligraphy I also host calligraphy workshops every other month at Studio 223 in Downtown Gilbert.
