How Painting Surfboards Shaped My Style

For those of you who don't know, before I ever painted murals, I painted surfboards. I’d already been painting on the streets, on wooden boxes, and exhibiting in art shows long before I ever stepped into a surfboard factory. I was always searching for new surfaces, new textures, new ways to bring my ideas to life. But when I started painting surfboards, something clicked, it was where my two greatest passions finally merged: surfing and art. I recently posted about this on Instagram: follow the link to see more photos and read the story.

It’s funny to look back now because at the time, I had no idea I was laying the foundation for my future. I was just following instinct, doing what I loved, in a place that I loved, painting what I loved, on a canvas (surfboard) that I loved.

I spent years working in surfboard factories in Costa Rica and San Diego. I painted custom commissions for clients, but more importantly, I experimented endlessly on my own boards. My time in the factory was like being in a classroom, and I was a young and eager student. I loved surfing, and I loved surfboards. The smell of resin and acetone, the steady hum of sanding machines, dust and mess everywhere, it was sensory chaos, and I loved every second of it.

Most of the photos from that period are more than a decade old. The low-resolution snapshots (and the fact that I’m riding shortboards) give away just how far back we’re going. But even in their grainy imperfection, those images capture something pure: the beginning of me developing my artistic style. Back then, I was obsessed with stencils, spray paint, and the airbrush gun. I didn’t overthink anything. I just made things. I experimented. I made mistakes. I learned by doing.

Working in those factories was the best kind of apprenticeship, one without rules, where the only requirement was curiosity. Surfboards became the perfect bridge between my two biggest passions: surfing and art. They taught me about flow, patience, balance, and impermanence, and these are qualities that still guide my creative process today.

Looking back now, my early work was simple, even rudimentary. But it was real and  honest. It was me, at my most raw and unfiltered. I was just a girl who wanted to paint and surf, and truthfully, that hasn’t changed. I’m still that girl (just older, wiser, and with a lot more practice!)

If you’re in the early stages of your creative path, here’s my advice:
Paint everything.
Experiment with every surface, every medium, every tool you can find.
Make bad art. Make mistakes. Learn, grow, and evolve.

Your style won’t come from thinking about creating things, it comes from actually creating things. You can’t discover your artistic style without first being willing to start from zero and make bad art. Have the courage to start something and not be very good at it. It's all part of the process.

If you’d like to go deeper into this story and see the early chapters of my creative journey, watch my short documentary, Being an Artist: Painting a World of Possibility on YouTube. I talk about this period of my life, what it taught me, and how it shaped everything I create today.

And ifyou’re feeling called to develop your own creative style and need guidance along the way, this is the work I do through Creative Guidance. Together, we explore your authentic expression and help you build the creative confidence to make your art (and your life) your masterpiece.

You are the artist of your life.
Life is Art. Art is Life.