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

Ruthie, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. When did you first know you wanted to pursue a creative/artistic path professionally?

I have wanted to be a professional artist for as long as I can remember. I discovered I had a talent for drawing at a young age, and my parents always encouraged me to pursue it. I took every art class that I could through high school and enrolled in college as a fine arts major. I was introduced to more mediums and fell in love with pottery. My only regret is that I did not learn more about the business end of being an artist while I was still in school. I had intended on double majoring in business and art, but when I went to my first accounting class my freshman year, the professor mocked me for registering for the class as an art major. He said something to the effect that a starving artist wouldn’t have much to account for. I never went back and ended up dropping the class. I think most aspects of entrepreneurship need to be learned while doing, but it sure would have been helpful to know how to make a balance sheet, a profit/loss report, or pay my quarterly sales tax when I started out. Luckily, my father is a small business owner and has been a wealth of knowledge for me. I had seen how hard he worked, and how many ups and downs his business endured over the years. I was under no illusion that starting a business would be easy, yet I could not imagine doing anything else. Although I knew I wanted to pursue being a professional artist, I wasn’t sure how to jump into it without any money or a clear path. I felt obligated to get a job and start paying bills right after graduation. I ended up getting a position as an art teacher at a private elementary school. And as much as l loved working with the kids, I felt the call to be making my own art, not just helping others make it. In the meantime, I fell in love, got married, and had a baby. And it is motherhood that really pushed me to make the leap. I wanted to stay home with my son, but living on one income wasn’t doable. I began taking portrait commissions and creating custom pottery. I figured out how to create a website and started taking orders online. I started really small, and have learned so many lessons along the way. As my children grew, so did my business. I’ve been at this for the past 15+ years, and have worked out a of a home studio. In the past year, I bought a commercial space and I am excited about all the opportunities this opens up. I have so many more ideas and projects that I want to accomplish, and never enough time in the day. I can’t wait to see where Artsmith is at in the next 5 to 10 years.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I was always into drawing and painting as a kid, and got more involved with pottery in college. I loved the idea of combining my two loves, and found a process that lets me transfer my drawings onto pottery. I’ve evolved over the years to add custom wedding platters and handwritten recipes and notes onto pottery. These have become my most popular items as they make great keepsakes. In this big box/next day delivery shopping environment, I think what really makes Artsmith stand apart is customer service. Although all of my business is done online, I make an effort to connect with my customers in a personal way. I want them to know that it is not just a transaction. Each order means something to me, and I hope it means something special to them as well. The thing I am most proud of is the amount of return customers I see year after year. I know I am doing something right if they keep coming back for more gift purchases. I will often have a customer return shortly after gifting a custom recipe plate and they loved it so much that they want duplicates for other family members! That sort of thing really means a lot to me.

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

I think the most rewarding aspect of being an artist is creating something new that never existed before. I just love making things. Most of the art I work on never gets seen by anyone else. I just do it for me. As I have gotten older, I have let go of the ego around creating art. I used to think it had to be “great” to be worthy of my time or to even show anyone. Now I understand that I the process of doing it is what is really valuable to me. It makes me feel more alive and more like myself. Whether I am sketching at a coffee shop, throwing clay on the pottery wheel, or making earrings with my daughter, it is the creating something with my hands that really puts the spark in my life.

Are there any books, videos, essays or other resources that have significantly impacted your management and entrepreneurial thinking and philosophy?

There are two books that really made an impact on me and how I operate my business. The first is called Living the Artist’s Life by Paul Dorrell. The stories he included about his own failures and successes is what really resonated with me. I read this early on in my business and it is important to know that you should expect and accept these failures along the way. Just because things go south doesn’t mean you can’t persevere and come out on top. And the other is Atomic Habits by James Clear. I found his way of breaking down habit changing into tiny baby steps to be really helpful. You can incorporate small changes and with consistency you’ll become closer to the version of yourself that you want to see. No excuses, just keep moving forward in the direction of your goals.

Contact Info:

• Website: artsmithshop.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/artsmithstudio/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ArtSmithCT
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/artsmithstudio/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/ArtSmithShop
• Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@artsmithstudio