My First Real Job Was at Neiman Marcus
©Laurie Pace Graphics One Design 2026
Threads of Grace 1969
Most people are surprised when I tell them my first real job was at Neiman Marcus, but the story actually began years earlier.
At fourteen, I was modeling at the Dallas Apparel Mart during Market for a couture company from New York. Being a jazz dancer gave me confidence, posture, and the ability to quickly change outfits and return to the showroom floor. Without realizing it, I was learning professionalism at a very young age. (I worked markets for years to come.)
When I turned sixteen, I applied for what I thought would be my first "real" job as a waitress.
I didn't get it.
I came home discouraged, wondering what had gone wrong.
The next Sunday morning, while reading the want ads in the Dallas Morning News, one listing caught my attention. Neiman Marcus was looking for a clothing model for their advertising illustration department.
I gathered my fashion sketches and portfolio, rode a bus into downtown Dallas, and interviewed for the position.
That unexpected opportunity changed the direction of my life.
For the next eighteen months, I worked alongside a talented fashion illustrator from New York who unknowingly became one of the first people God used to shape my future as an artist.
Looking back, I realize that what felt like disappointment was actually one of the first Threads of Grace woven into my life. The job I didn't receive led me to one I never would have imagined.
Sometimes the doors that close simply guide us toward the ones we were meant to walk through.
• self-interest vs selflessness • New Year Christian reflection • faith and relationships • humility in relationships • God’s calling to serve
Laurie is an international artist, her paintings are collected in Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Hong Kong, Germany, DuBai, Portugal, Italy, France, Germany, the UK, Ireland, Sweden, Norway, Poland, Canada, Brazil, Mexico, St Thomas, Romania, Greece, Croatia, and Ecuador.
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