ABOUT ME

My name is Crystal and I am the owner of The Fancy Cat Studio. Growing up, I always wanted to be a graphic designer, but the path to get to where I am today was not straight.

After graduating from the University of Washington in 2011, I went on to get a Master of Science in Marriage and Family Therapy. I practiced being a therapist for 5 years before getting extremely burned out, and transitioning to Recruiting at Microsoft.

The role at Microsoft was under contract, meaning it was temporary. After 18 months, my project was completed and I was laid off. Thank goodness for this, because due to the financial security this job gave me, I would have never quit.

The year I was laid off was also the year I got married. I had money saved up and decided not to transition to another corporate job due to a few trips we would be taking later that year.

That summer, commissions started to pick up, and more people discovered my business. By The Grace of God (and a lot of sleepless nights), I eventually gained enough work to become a full time freelancer.

I attribute my success to not just talent and hard work, but a lot of luck, my support system, and clients who believed in me, even when I barely knew what I was doing. I know what it's like to be unhappy at your job, and feel incredibly blessed to find something I wake up excited to do every day.

As my business continues to grow, a lot of my time is spent working on it, but in the free time I do have, I enjoy spending it with my husband, two cats, and turtle. We're homebodies who love getting takeout, trying out new bubble tea places, and watching shows like It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Nora from Queens, and South Park. We also recently started a garden... I never knew the satisfaction of witnessing literal growth until now. If you haven't tried it, I highly recommend it!