We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Madelyne Oliver. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Madelyne below.

Madelyne, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today We’d love to hear about a time you helped a customer really get an amazing result through their work with you.

I paint nursery room murals regularly for expecting moms and kids rooms for toddler moms quite often, as it’s one of my most popular mural packages. My favorite customer success story for one of these murals was a superhero themed mural with Batman, Superman, Spiderman, and Gotham city for a 5 year old boy. His mom told me at the end of every painting day he would sneak up to peak at the mural in his new room to be. This mural was something special as it was more than just new room decor. This was a gift from his parents, who were expecting a sibling for this young boy on the way soon, and to help ease the transition into big brother and remind him he was still important and the love of their life, they wanted something exciting for him. It would help him transition into his new big boy room and also serve as a reminder that he mattered too in this next chapter as they welcomed their second child and he became a big brother. So I was overjoyed and a bit teary-eyed to hear he loved taking a peak at the mural in progress at the end of every paint day, saying things like “coooooolll!” and on the last day “wow, this is my room?” in ecstatic joy and surprise when he rushed (and I mean rushed) upstairs to gawk at the final result of this complete mural. He was SO happy. And while I know these mural make the parents happy too, its more heartwarming for me to feel and see the child in love with the artwork because at the end of the day, they sleep and play in that room everyday. I was so pleased and happy to hear about his reaction, and I knew truly, my client was more than pleased. That is a job well done.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

II “officially” started my business as an artist and muralist in 2022 when my daughter was born, kicking it off during my maternity leave because I didn’t want to go back to working in corporate America as a marketing automation and marketing strategy consultant in tech (which I had done for 10 years). I had been fully remote before COVID-19, but I wanted a career change that was less stressful and aligned with my true lifelong passion, which has always been art. Almost 1.5 years later, my company went through 3 layoffs in Sept 2023, and I was affected. Luckily, my business had picked up so much that I planned to quit to go full-time anyway. I now offer residential and commercial murals and seasonal window painting for business storefronts all over Austin and surrounding Texas up to Killeen, Belton, and Temple. I love my customers, who are primarily moms wanting nursery, toddler room, playroom, or office murals. I especially love my small business owners because we support each other, and I even provide social media marketing and promotion for them. More recently, I’ve been focusing on painting murals for churches, schools, luxury apartment complexes, Airbnb, and Austin Tech offices that add color and branding design to their walls to differentiate themselves in the market or bring a sense of pride and spirit to their space. I also sell art prints, host Paint n Sips, teach art classes, host art therapy workshops (a Certified Art Therapy Coach and Meditation Instructor), and children’s book illustrator. I know now this is my path, and becoming a mother opened that portal and pushed me in ways I could never have imagined to grind, hustle, and consciously choose this beautiful, artistic, creative life. One day, I hope to bring her into my business and leave it to her so she has something to stand on creatively. The world needs creatives and artists to shine. I teach her that daily, and my amazing clients also see that value. Together, I hope to continue to make the invisible, visible, and more beautiful.

Any advice for growing your clientele? What’s been most effective for you?

For me, its delivering quality. There are alternatives for murals like wall decals that are cheaper and will get the job done but what I provide is high personalization, the experience of hand painted artwork by a real artist (not AI), and making my clients feel like their creative design input matters, all rolled into a high quality service that I hope they will remember, treasure, feel when they see my artwork on their walls, and pass on as referrals to other potential clients. And a strong referral strategy with always the next client in mind is the best way I have grown my clientele. This include remaining open to opportunities no matter how strange the paint job might be. As an artist, I always find a way to deliver and that is what matters to my clients. Those are the people that find me.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

For me, is the personal proof that artists can be successful and make a living doing what we love and were put on this earth to do, make the world beautiful and have meaning. I love defying the stereotype of the starving artist. It blows my parents, and all the other naysayers’ minds when they see I’ve made it and I am thriving, not starving. And that is something I remind myself daily, people cheer you on when you are succeeding because that what they see and think it was instant overnight success. Very few people cheer you on in the early years when you are hustling, experimenting, figuring this whole art career and business out and the doubt they plant in your mind can make you give up. But you have to be your biggest cheerleader and believe in yourself. That resilience and inner faith in myself has been my biggest learning lesson as a creative, especially one who used to seek outer validation of my artistic endeavors. Just proving to myself I can and have done this comes as a result of many many tiresome teary-eyed ventures and failures but also amazing blessed experiences going on this journey, building inner resilience and faith. That is the most rewarding gift.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.createwithmadelyne.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/createwithmadelyne/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/createwithmadelyne
• Youtube: https://www.facebook.com/createwithmadelyne
• Other: Google My Business: https://maps.app.goo.gl/nUvM9oEjVUivcwgf8