CityView Magazine

38 | September/October 2015 artistry and loves that it keeps her busy. Her biggest challenge has been how to keep things fresh. She once took a watercolor class and realized she paints with her own style and flair. "ere is no right or wrong way to do it. Art, just like beauty, is in the eye of the be- holder," Rika resolved. Luckily, people who approach her already have a strong love and appreciation for her work. She wants to share this passion through workshops of her own to help fuel crea- tivity and assist up and coming artists to find their own individual styles. Rika puts a lot of thought into these things. Aer one of her projects, her client was so extremely thankful and told Rika, that as a creative, most people under- value their work and that she "should never do that." Rika was very apprecia- tive with that feedback. Clients like this, she said, make it worth all her efforts. Rika's inspirations are developed from up and coming artists like Kelly Ventura and Pearlyn Kim. She even method is word of mouth. Brides see her work and inquire about stationary for their weddings. Calligraphy is very time-consuming and it takes Rika ten minutes to finish one card. Imagine writing 200 envelopes. Rita stressed, "Wedding cards are so demanding that I have to refuse clients oen due to time constraints." She systematically sets up her days so she can pour love into these individual craed pieces and still make time for her family. Family continuously comes first for Rika. "Being a housewife is my main priority, but calligraphy is very self-ful- filling," she said. "My creativity comes from a place of love and passion." is love and support is derived from her husband, who is her number one fan. In fact, the first t-shirt created by Rika was with gold metallic foiled lettering that read "wifey." Even with so little time, Rika's studio is finally coming along. "My workspace is exceedingly vital to me, from my own pieces that hang from the walls to the t-shirt press I recently added," she expressed. As an artist, Rika said she gets the biggest high by the simple fact someone entrusts her enough to be part of their big moment or day. She finds it genuinely endearing when people email her and ask to help create invitations for the wedding. "It's a good feeling when people consider me and allow me to be a part of such events. is is exactly why I continue to create." When asked how she maintains dis- cipline, she promptly responded with a giggle, "Well, because I have no chil- dren!" She continued, "I see other wom- en, who are entrepreneurs, that have kids and not just one but multiple kids and it amazes me how these women are able to pursue their dreams all while having a husband, children and a house to look aer." It keeps Rika driven and extremely grounded. Her passion con- sumes a lot of time, but luckily it bal- ances her life. She engulfs herself in her

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