[1] Paiva Cruz joined the Porto Academy of Fine Arts, becoming a student of the painter João Marques de Oliveira and sculptor António Teixeira Lopes.

In the following years, he held several exhibitions in Lisbon, including at Salão Bobone [2] where the proceeds from the sales of her works were given to the Portuguese Women's Crusade, a feminist charity that supported those suffering from the consequences of the war.

[1] Taking advantage of her success, in 1931, Paiva Cruz opened a lace school in Lisbon, with the aim of supporting not only the more traditional arts, but also providing women with instruction in crafts to create an opportunity for them to earn a livelihood and financial independence.

That same year, together with the painter, Emília dos Santos Braga, she joined the Conselho Nacional das Mulheres Portuguesas (National Council of Portuguese Women - CNMP), at the invitation of the vice president, Sara Beirão.

The CNMP was a feminist organization, led by doctor and suffragist Adelaide Cabete, with the aim of fighting and defending the social and political rights of women.