Featured Friday: Meet Mahala Bloom of Bloom Stud.io

Today, I am so excited to kick off my Featured Friday series by introducing you all to Mahala Bloom. Mahala is a powerhouse of talent, with experience as a designer, illustrator, artist, and photographer. She is also owner and creator of Bloom Stud.io. Let’s get to know Mahala!

Photo by Sharon Hughes Photo

To start off, tell us a little bit about your background and your work.

My name is Mahala (Haley) Bloom, and I'm a 32 year old graphic designer and illustrator, artist and photographer. As it goes with designers, I've picked up a collection of skills over the years, but my true passion has always been illustration and art. A lot of people don't know what I actually do as a designer - the answer is a little bit of everything, honestly. When I worked at American Greetings and Papyrus, I designed social media posts, marketing emails, print product catalogs, photographed and art directed photoshoots of product, and even designed a few greeting cards on rare occasion. I worked in marketing for a construction accounting software company, which was interesting and very different from my work at a greeting card company. I worked for the amazing Danielle LaPorte, designing her monthly membership magazine, which was a very beautiful and soulful experience. She has a fabulous team of incredible women. And most recently, I opened Bloom Stud.io, where I create coursebooks and e-pubs for women (all women) with big ideas. There are so many women with knowledge that can change the lives of the people around them, and some of them just need some help standing out from the crowd (hello, fellow introverts) or want to create something truly unique and special and soulful that their students will love - they want to create an experience, rather than just another course or ebook. And I use my knowledge of design and illustration to help them create that vision and experience for their students. And I'm also adding illustration and art to my services - because commissioned art is so special and unique to the person. I've done a lot of paintings over the years for colleagues, friends and family to commemorate events or celebrate life and love, and people hold on to their art. They keep it as a beloved memory, and it's such a huge honor for me to be a part of that.

Photo by Sharon Hughes Photo; Mahala using one of her techniques, Watercolor and Micron pens.
Mahala on her technique: “Usually if it's a commission, I create my composition digitally first, showing clients the line art first, and then the color palette, getting approval on each before applying to paper. This allows the client to have a beautiful piece made to their specifications, without wasting materials and adding to landfills or recycling facilities.”

You also have a Discord specifically for artists. Tell us a little bit more about that.

This is in its super infancy stage ;) I have a dream to create a community of artists that is supportive and kind to one another, while offering real support and positive critique. A place where we can all learn how to become better artists and also share our passion projects and gain traction on them. Promoting one another and ourselves, while all learning to become better at our craft. If you'd like to get in on the ground level, there are about 3 or 4 of us right now. You're welcome to join us!

“Geo Poppy” by Mahala Bloom

How did you get into art/design?

My parents were always supportive of me, and I am so grateful for that. I spent as much time as I could drawing and painting since I was a child. As you get older, you start feeling the pressures of the world, and they start to bite at you a little. Even with my parents' encouragement, I had this fear I would end up not making it as an artist. So I went to college for Spanish Translation (I also love learning language and about culture). At the end of my Freshman year, I realized I needed art in my life on a consistent, daily basis. So, I decided to switch to Graphic Design. That was my "compromise." I could see salary jobs in Graphic Design, which was a comfort. My first job was at a local newspaper- first for the college newspaper, then for my city newspaper. I created print layouts, illustrations, made ads and even wrote a few articles for the student newspaper. It was fun, and set the stage for the direction my career was heading. Some marketing, some publication design, some true art and illustration.

“Breathe” by Mahala Bloom
Mahala on her technique: “One of my techniques for creating art is a monoline approach I create exclusively on digital platforms - I use Photoshop with a wacom tablet or Procreate on the iPad to achieve this.”

What is something you want your viewer to know about your work?

I take on projects I believe in, and it makes a massive difference in the quality of the work I produce.

I think most people have had at least one job in their career that has made them question their career choice. "Why am I doing this? Maybe I'm no good. Maybe I'm not cut out for this." The same happened to me early on, but I continued in my career, worked for multiple luxury/premium brands who really loved my work, so I knew that this imposter syndrome was false. When I look back, I can see that I had those feelings the most when an employer, client, or product had values, beliefs, or cultures that misaligned with mine.

I'm at a place now in my career where I can be picky, and I'm so grateful for that. I work with clients who I adore and respect and believe in, and they give the same back to me. They respect my work and my time and my value as a career professional. If someone asks me to do a project and it doesn't align with me, I have vowed to myself to turn them down and refer them to a person I think who could serve their values and purpose better, whenever possible. When I work on your project, you get the absolute best of me. I care about you and your vision, and I pour my heart and soul into that.

What has been the most challenging thing about being a creator?

As I mentioned above, I think creators are often highly sensitive people, and many are introverted, and sometimes that culminates into imposter syndrome. Social media makes it worse- You see all these amazing makers out there doing beautiful work, and you ask, "Why am I not there yet? Why isn't my work that good?" I think that's the wrong way to look at it, though. Sometimes you're comparing apples to oranges - you're not creating remotely the same thing. The fact is, you're doing what you do, in your style, and nobody will ever create what you're creating in the way you can create it. It's okay to take inspiration from other creators, but keep it to that. Inspiration. Maybe you can take inspiration from a piece of what they're doing that you like, and translate that into your style, and take it for a test drive in part of your work. Maybe you'll like it, in which case - congratulations on expanding your style. If you don't, then it was never really something that would ever have a voice in your style in the first place - your style is just fine without it. Regardless, it doesn't mean your work was bad before you tried it. You just tested out a new tool.

What has been the most rewarding thing about being a creator?

I really love creating original artwork for people - as gifts or celebrations. People recognize that handmade, one-off artwork takes time, it's a luxury item, and that it's something really special. I love being a part of that. And when it comes to incorporating art into design work, students and customers appreciate when their teacher took the time to make their experience something special.

“Harvest Mandala” by Mahala Bloom

What’s been inspiring you lately?

Other women in business and art and creative industries - what an amazing community we have. There is this new mindset of "Collaboration over Competition" that allows us to support one another in the most amazing ways. There was a period of time in my life when I felt like an outsider to female friendships, because I kept encountering this persistent undertone of competition. But I have found some new female friendships that I cherish so deeply in colleagues and community creators. I look to them for inspiration. I shout about their businesses and work from the rooftops because I am so inspired by them. And when I can, I send work their way. There's enough work for all of us. I believe that. And if you're not finding it, there's a businessperson out there who wants to mentor you and help you succeed in finding it. Not just women, although I've found a ton of amazing women mentors in the past few years.

Being a creative can oftentimes mean wearing different hats and it can be difficult to separate your work life from your personal life. How do you try to maintain balance?

I continue to learn more about this daily. Some days I do better than others - I'm a bit of a workaholic, and that's not something that should be glamorized, but I used to pride myself on it. As I get older, I've decided I want to spend more of my life living and doing what I love. For design work, I have found that by establishing boundaries, I not only keep myself from burning out, but also keep my clients happy. I start my process by establishing clear expectations and providing a clear calendar/timeline and most importantly, a contract, which helps clients feel supported, holds them accountable for their responsibilities, and holds me accountable to mine. The biggest complaint I hear from people about hiring freelance work is freelancers ghosting or not making their deadlines, which is completely unacceptable as a professional. I've hired freelancers and have been on that side of the fence. It's really uncomfortable to have to push back due dates because a freelancer under-estimated the amount of time because they didn't think it all the way through. On the other hand, I've been in the other position of being a freelancer, struggling to get a client to respond to emails or asking for additional things that changes the scope of work, and therefore, time frame. As much as I was nervous about beginning to integrate contracts into my workflow, I'll never do another project without them. They're too important.

TL;DR: Make contracts for every project. Create project calendars, and integrate feedback days on your client's best 3 days to respond to work. Make sure they know that a delay in feedback, or call rescheduling affects the timeline in which they will receive their deliverables. Make sure they know respecting the timeline serves their best interest. Respond to emails during your office hours. If you have to, turn notifications off after 5pm.

“Comission for Lila Nursery Art” by Mahala Bloom

What does self-care mean to you and how do you practice it?

There are a few different kinds of self-care to me. The joie-de-vivre savoring of things that bring you happiness - for me, a hot cup of tea, laying in my back yard on a lawn chair soaking in the sun and watching the trees, a hot bath, a great candle, or a more expensive treat like a massage or manicure.

Or, self-care can mean taking 10-20 minutes out of a highly stressful day and forcing yourself to lie on your back and breathe, even if it feels like any break could set you back. I think both are important. I have anxiety, am an introvert, and have occasional depression. It's important for me to check-in with myself when I realize my jaw hurts from clenching my teeth all day or my lower back starts aching from tension. My self-care at that point is to force myself to stop what I'm doing immediately and remove myself from my work, even if it's a five minute walk up the street and back.

How do you re-fill your cup when you’re feeling low on energy?

If I'm feeling low on creative energy for design work, I like to pull out my oil paints. It's a messy medium that I don't feel like I need to be an expert in, and because of that, I feel a lot less pressure to do it perfectly. I just create for the joy of creating, without any pre-work or plan for what happens next, and it's very liberating.

For other "generic" energy, sometimes I'll indulge in an episode of a series I'm watching or a movie I haven't seen in a long time.

“Ink Seahorse” by Mahala Bloom
Mahala on her technique: “My second, favorite technique, is black and white ink illustration, usually with microns or my most recent favorite, Rotring technical pens. I love Rotring pens because they withstand use much longer than microns and are refillable, creating less waste.”

What advice do you have for other small and/or emerging artists, makers, and creatives?

Draw, paint, or make, every moment you can. Use other artists for inspiration, but not comparison or competition. If you plan to take on clients, make a contract. I seriously cannot emphasize that enough. (I use www.hellobonsai.com because the contracts are easy and guided. No affiliate link here, I just like them.) If there are creators you idolize, learn from them - don't underestimate smaller local artists or colleagues. They're usually gracious and willing to mentor more often than some of the big names out there, and mentorship is highly valuable. Be friends with people in your industry, not competitors. You'll get more support and cheerleaders for your own work if you're equally willing to support and cheer for others.

Website: https://www.bloomstud.io/
Instagram: @bloomstud.io
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BloomStudioGDesign

*Featured Friday is a series to introduce, support, and highlight other small and/or emerging artists, makers, designers, and creatives. Know someone who you think should be featured? You can nominate them here!