Meet Marie Ruskin | Lifestyle Blogger & Small Business Owner

We had the good fortune of connecting with Marie Ruskin and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Marie, what led you to pursuing a creative path professionally?
From a very early age, I have always been creative and had an entrepreneurial spirit. I yearned to make things and sell them to anyone I could. I remember going to a craft show with my mom and seeing these decorative pens with the fuzzies on the end being sold by a vendor and thinking to my 11-year old self, “I can make those!” For reference, this was the pen Cher had in Clueless. Every Millennial girl had one, or wanted one, and I was here to sell her one!

My sister and I started selling them at school and our business took off! We were taking orders, coming home from school, and working on our custom orders. Business was booming, so much so that we caught the attention of the Principal, and he wasn’t happy. We were told that it was a distraction and we could not run a business at school! I think it’s hilarious now but at the time, I was devastated because that was our only access to a lot of potential customers, our classmates.

Fast forward and I’m still just as creative and just as motivated as I was when I was eleven. Instead of fuzzy pens, I’m crafting up blog content to inspire my readers, working on social media campaigns for small business owners, or creating a tasty menu to serve at a dinner party. The reality is, that pursuing a life full of creativity is imperative to my happiness, it isn’t a matter of “should I” but rather “I have to”.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
Most would probably consider me a multi-passionate person. At times, I think I make my head spin with all the ideas swirling around, but the one idea I had almost 14 years ago, to start a lifestyle blog, has been one of the proudest, most exciting moments of my career. I love to write, take pictures, and make things look pretty so it was a no-brainer to create a space I could put my stamp on; something that was all mine. I think what makes me most proud is that I set out to teach myself everything I could about setting up my own website. I learned WordPress, SEO, and photo editing just to name a few. I’m all self-taught when it comes to building my website.

Outside of being self-taught in that area, I pursued my degree in Marketing, and that has been instrumental in helping me build my digital marketing business, The Branding Boutique. I help small businesses with their social media and digital strategies. I figured since I love social media and find it very beneficial in growing and promoting a business, why not help others with their business pursuits as well? It means so much to me to see others thriving and achieving their goals. I believe there is always enough space for us to all have a seat at the table.

To say that this journey has been easy, would be a complete lie. Creating a blog, building a business, and putting myself out there have been some of the most vulnerable moments in my life. I’ve thought about giving up so many times, but then I remind myself why I started, how I’d feel if I didn’t have this anymore, and what I’ve been able to give to others through my work.

One thing I’ve learned through these up and down moments has been to stay the course. There is nothing wrong with taking a breath and recalibrating but never lose sight of your “why”. I believe some of the most successful people understand the beauty in the pivot. Never stay married to an idea, always be flexible and willing to change and adapt. And, on the contrary, if change is not what you seek, stand in your truth and hold firm to that. Be true to yourself and your dreams beyond everything else.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Oh boy, this is going to be fun! Let’s paint the picture, shall we? It’s late summer in Ohio, football season has just begun but the feeling of summer is still very much in the air. It’s a Friday afternoon, her plane just landed at John Glenn International. The first thing we’re doing is heading to lunch. Since we’re near Easton, I’m taking her to the newest hot spot, Del Mar. We’re most definitely sitting on the patio, soaking up the views of the fountain and Tiffany’s, of course!

After lunch, we peruse around Easton for a little shopping. The crowds are minimal at this time and we can get the full experience. After some shopping, I drive her to her hotel, I recommended she stay at The Joseph downtown because of its eclectic vibe and central location to all the buzz the city has to offer.

The next day, brunch is the first thing on the itinerary. We’re heading to Forno because, in my opinion, they have one of the best brunch menus in the city and the ambiance is such a vibe. After brunch, we hit up Penn & Beech Candle Co. to make a candle since we’re in the Short North.

Saturday night, I want to show her the vibrant nightlife scene so we start with dinner at Rooh. The decor alone makes this place stand out as one of my favorites but the menu is the highlight. Their Butter Chicken is delicious and a must-try for anyone who loves Indian food. After dinner, we head to Ginger Rabbit for some jazz music and cocktails. The night is just beginning though, we head to Mandrake to catch some rooftop views of the city and experience the upscale environment it has to offer.

The next day is a Sunday and we need to recharge after our fun-filled night on the town. First stop is to Budd-Dairy Food Hall. Since we can’t decide between breakfast or lunch, why not go where there are plenty of options? My favorite food stop inside of Budd Dairy would have to be Modern Southern Table. Who doesn’t love southern comfort food!? Budd Dairy Food Hall also has this amazing rooftop space which is perfect for grabbing a mimosa and heading up to catch a breeze and enjoy the outdoors. Once brunch is done, we head over to Huntington Park to catch an afternoon Clippers game. The stadium is so nice and the perfect place to enjoy some baseball and a cold beverage.

With the busy weekend that we just had, we’re in need of some recharging so we head to Paloma spa in Grandview for a much needed Lymphatic drainage massage.

The rest of the week is filled with thrift shopping at some of my favorite consignment shops in the city. Second Chance and One More Time are some good ones and I seem to always find good gems there. We hit up Boss Gal Beauty Bar at Easton for some Hydrofacials and lunch at the beautiful Restoration Hardware Rooftop. Afternoon lunches there are just gorgeous. We hit up Pins Mechanical at Easton for some duckpin bowling and life-sized games of Jenga followed by the most delicious ramen at Slurping Turtle.

Later in the week we check out the new canopy walk at Blacklick Woods Metro Park on the city’s east side, soak up the outdoors, and then head to the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium to check out Heart of Africa and the other wonderful exhibits the zoo has to offer.

Finally, we wrap up her visit to Columbus by visiting the very popular, Bridge Park in Dublin. We grab drinks on the rooftop at Vaso and catch the last bit of the beautiful summer sunsets, then we head to dinner at Valentina’s for some delicious Italian food.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
My shoutout must go to my husband, Drew. It was 2010, blogs were just becoming a “thing” and I was working a very uninspiring job at a bank while finishing college. I was on my lunch break and came across this blog called Cupcakes and Cashmere. I was immediately inspired. This was such a beautiful medium and I had to be a part of it. I came home and told him how I wanted to start one for myself. He told me that whatever help I needed, he was there to support me. Soon after, he became my photographer, proofer, hype man, you name it. To this day, he still reads my posts, takes my pictures and continues to cheer me on.

Now, whenever I have a new idea, I always bounce it off of him. He is my sounding board. When he sees that I am doubting myself, he knows exactly how to get me out of my head and focus back on the bigger picture and I truly don’t think I could be where I am today without that constant in my life.

Website: https://idreaminchic.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/marie_ruskin/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@marieruskin

Other: https://thebrandingboutiquecolumbus.co/

Image Credits
Marcy Harris-Ortiz, Matt Bricker & Matelli Graves