We recently connected with Elyse Terry and have shared our conversation below.

Elyse, appreciate you joining us today. We’d love to hear the backstory behind a risk you’ve taken – whether big or small, walk us through what it was like and how it ultimately turned out.

The journey for me to pursue creative entrepreneurship has involved taking many risks, the biggest of which happened only 9 months ago.

I had worked my way up through leadership positions at Enterprise Rent-A-Car, and had been working on the side as a hand lettering artist for Punkpost, which I still do.

During that time, I met a self-made female entrepreneur who became a friend and mentor. She developed an interest in my work and encouraged me to pursue art full time. In my family, art has always been a way of life. While I had dreamt of being a full time artist before, I wasn’t sure I could ever leave my corporate job.

In July I decided the risk was worth it and left my job. I listened to those who believed in me, and now there’s no looking back.

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?

My name is Elyse and I am the Spunky Artist. Growing up, I spent every summer at Interlochen Arts Camp, surrounded by some of the most talented creators in the world. I developed a love for fonts and colors, and you’d frequently catch me doodling in a journal or lugging around a giant bag of pens.

I started working at Starbucks as a young adult and quickly became the in-house chalkboard artist. That led to a focus on chalkboards and event signage as my “side hustle.”

Meanwhile, I was finishing my bachelors degree in fine arts, and becoming highly interested in greeting card design. After graduation, I did some traveling, but ultimately got sucked into the corporate world.

Around this time, I began also working as a hand lettering artist for Punkpost, a greeting card company, and it became obvious to me at that time that art was essential.

I continued working for Enterprise and Punkpost, but I wasn’t fulfilled. When I decided to leave my job, it was the scariest decision I’ve ever made. In the last 9 months, I have been building the foundation of my company, while continuing to design and create products.

At this time, my product line includes funny, sweet, and shocking greeting cards, custom stationery, invitations, stickers, gift tags, art prints, gifts with custom hand lettering including mirrors, chalkboards, and photo frames. Some of my favorite projects are custom pieces, and I am always available for something silly or shocking.

How can we best help foster a strong, supportive environment for artists and creatives?

In order to support creatives, we need to reunderstand the value of handmade art. In a world of mass production, artists give you the opportunity to own a one-of-a-kind piece. There is a vulnerability in putting your art in the world for people to judge, and I find many makers (myself included) feel supported through the viewing of our work. Communities that create space and opportunities for local artwork to be viewed and enjoyed and purchased are the communities that have a thriving creative ecosystem.

Another obvious way to support artists is to invest in their art! I feel lucky to be able to create for a job, but the truth of it is that artwork is real work. We are constantly consuming art in this society, but it seems as though sometimes we forget that someone made that object for us to look at, and they deserves to be paid for their craftsmanship and expertise.

Have you ever had to pivot?

When I left Enterprise to pursue art full time, I was on track to become upper management, and my day to day life changed abruptly. In order to follow my dream, I had to make some personal sacrifices. I left my very nice apartment to move into a much simpler place with less amenities (to put it lightly). I went from managing a large team at the Detroit Airport to working by myself most days. Instead of a jam-packed schedule and known expectations, I was now in completely in charge of what my day to day operation looked like. This was a major pivot.

Contact Info:

• Website: Www.thespunkyartist.Etsy.com
• Instagram: Www.Instagram.Com/the.spunky.artist
• Facebook: Facebook.com/thespunkyartist