Shoe painting impressing global stars including Drake and Usher

Shoe painting is  impressing from a quiet gym shift to designing shoes for global superstars like Drake and Usher, Tesni DeLuna’s journey as a custom shoe artist has been a rollercoaster. The Cardiff-born creative, now based in Austin, Texas has transformed a hobby into a growing business, attracting attention from high-profile clients across the music and sport industries.

Born in Cardiff Hospital, Tesni moved to Connecticut at the age of 12, and later relocated to Austin during the COVID-19 pandemic after losing her job. It was there that she found inspiration for her business, while working an early morning shift at the local gym. “I was working the front desk at 5am, and during the quiet hours, I would pass the time with some colouring,” she recalled. One day, a gym client noticed her artwork and asked if she could customise a pair of Air Force trainers for his daughter. “I never anticipated where that would take me.”

Although Tesni holds a business degree, art has always been a massive part of her life. Over the years, she had dabbled in various artistic endeavours, from painting to cake decorating, but shoe painting has brought her full circle. “I found that I was using all the skills I had picked up from previous hobbies – the colour composition from cake decorating, the brush control from college art classes – it all just clicked.”

Despite past creative ventures losing their appeal over a few months, Tesni’s passion for shoe customisation has endured for three years and counting. “With shoe painting, it is so therapeutic and relaxing, but it also keeps my mind going because no shoe is the same. Every design is different, which keeps it exciting,” she explained.

Currently, Tesni manages her business alongside her full-time job as a market manager, working on shoe commissions from 5.30pm to 9pm – although this can sometimes go well into the early hours of the morning.

Her process is highly collaborative. Clients submit their requests detailing their preferred shoe style, colours and design ideas. “I create a rough digital illustration for them to review and refine before I start painting,” Tesni said. “It really feels like the client and I are working together to create something – they have a big say in what they want, if they want to add or mix things up – it is really special. With it being so collaborative, I am very conscious of never replicating a design because it is not just mine – it is also that client’s. Every shoe is unique to them.”

The scale of Tesni’s business took a significant leap forward, when a venue in Austin discovered her work. “They searched for ‘shoe painters in Austin’ and reached out to me to design a pair for rapper Lil Baby; inspired by his album cover and tour,” she shared. After creating four designs, the rapper ended up taking all four. “He even posted a photo on his Instagram story, holding all four pairs, saying he loved them… it was such a surreal moment.”

Following that success, Tesni began reaching out to venues, offering her designs for other performers. This led to her creating shoes for Usher and Drake. “Usher’s was a particularly fun project. I researched his interests and found out that he loves rollerblading. The venue asked if I could insert wheels into the shoes – kind of like Heelys. Apparently he loved them!”

Beyond music, Tesni has also created custom designs for top athletes, including golfer Sergio Garcia and CrossFit champion Noah Ohlsen. Looking ahead, she hopes to make 2025 the year of female athletes, having already worked with basketball star Cameron Brink. “There’s such a heavy focus on male athletes in the US, with the NFL and NBA,” she said. “I’d love to work with female sports stars and shine more of a spotlight on them.”

Her dream collaborations? Rising basketball star Caitlin Clark and retired heptathlete Jessica Ennis-Hill. She shared: “I know every designer is dying to work with Caitlin at the moment but I just love her laid back style and think I could make a really cool pair of shoes for her. As for Jessica Ennis, I know she is retired – but I would also love to work with her. I was completely obsessed with the heptathlon growing up, so that would just be incredible.”

Outside of sports, Tesni added that she would love to design for popstar Sabrina Carpenter. “I love her tour aesthetics – the colours! I have seen her outfits and I think I could make a really funky pair of boots to go with that.”

For now, her goal is to turn her passion into a full-time career by 2026. “I’m very measured and calculated in the risks I take, but the goal is to make this my full time job,” she said. With a growing waitlist and expanding roster of celebrity clients, it is clear that the Welsh native’s journey is just beginning. Watch this space.