Monthly Feature: Meet Hero's Heroes!

We are excited to introduce you to another member of the Hero Arts family. In this feature we show you the people behind the scenes that work hard to bring you quality products and inspiration. We call them Hero's Heroes because they are how we do what we do!

Today we are introducing you to Zeresh Aria, a member of our talented Design Team.

What do you do for Hero Arts?

Along with the design team, I design and illustrate products for Hero Arts. I have been here a little over a year. One of the first stamp sets I designed was the Eat Cake All Day Stamp & Cut. I remember how cool it was to see my sketches become stamps and then be used by the card makers that brought it life!  

What do you like the most about working here?

I think the best part about working here is being able to draw/design. I was always passionate about art. My biggest dream growing up was to become an artist. In fact, my parents said that when I was little I would draw all over the walls with crayons (oops!). Working at Hero Arts is great because I get to do what I love as my career, and more importantly I can inspire others to be creative. It is very rewarding to see so many card makers using the illustrations I create to make heartfelt, meaningful cards. It is really special and a blessing to be a part of spreading a little love, laughter, and kindness through card making. 

What is your favorite stamp set?

My favorite set is the Unicorn Stamp & Cut because I love unicorns and it was fun to design! I also like the Color Layering Sea Turtle and Cool Fox because those were my first Color Layering sets. 

What are 3 words to describe Hero Arts?.

Creative, Inspiring, Fun.

Where you are from originally? 

I grew up on the east coast. I was born and raised in Philadelphia, PA along with my older and younger brother. After graduating college in 2016, I got married to my best friend Joey, and we drove across country to California. It was really fun but tiring! Though it was hard to leave my family, I always a dreamed of moving to CA.

Do you have any kids or fur babies?

I have a furbaby named Rosita. She is a beautiful Lynx Point Siamese cat whom my husband and I adopted from a local shelter. She loves to climb, cuddle, and eat. She is strikingly similar to my family cat Tiger who I had since I was 8. He was a stray cat that my family rescued. I had him for 15 years, and he brought me so much love and joy. Sadly, he passed away last year due to illness. It was very hard to lose him but he will forever be in my heart.

I also recently fostered an adorable puppy named Lucky. I found her in the middle of the road as I was driving home from Hero Arts one day. I immediately parked my car, and carefully scooped her up because I didn’t want her to get hit. She was in bad shape with fleas, skin mites, and tapeworms :( ! We gave her a bath, took her to the vet, and fixed her all up. She was only 4 months and needed a lot of care, which was hard with our busy schedules. I wanted to give her the best life she could have, and though it broke my heart to give her away I knew it was best. I miss her so much, but we found a wonderful family that loves her. And of course I will always love her too.



What do you enjoy doing in your personal life? 

I actually spend a good amount of my free time drawing and designing. I have a lot of sketchbooks where I mostly like to illustrate cute things that make people smile. I also like to brush up on my typography skills and push myself to become a better designer. Aside from that, I love: fashion, music, cute animals, sweets, venturing to new places with my hubby, and binge watching shows on Netflix.

What is the best vacation you’ve been to? 

It’s a tie between Colorado, and the first time I went to California. The first time I went to CA was really special. It was right before Joey proposed to me. He introduced me to his family, and took me around the area. We went to the beach, the California state fair, Charles Schulz museum and Bodega Bay, which was absolutely gorgeous. Colorado is also great. I go there often because my aunt and uncle live there. I enjoy visiting the Rocky Mountains, rafting, going to Vail, visiting the Stanley hotel, and tons of other stuff. It’s always a blast going there!

If you could interview one person (dead or alive) who would it be?

Charles Schulz. He was the creator of Snoopy and the Peanuts comic strips. He was actually one of the reasons why I wanted to become an artist. When I was younger the first Peanuts special I saw was the Easter Beagle. After that, I immediately fell in love with Snoopy and the rest of the gang. His comic strips always inspired me and made me laugh, and I remember saying that I wanted to be an artist just like him someday.

If your house was burning down, what is the one non-living thing you would save? 

If it's a non-living thing then my purse!!

Do you have a favorite quote? 

“If you can dream it, you can do it.” – Walt Disney

 AND

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.” -MLK

Thank you, Zeresh, for helping us to get to know you better. We are grateful that you share your talent with us.