Meet Liz Joy Murray of Inspired to Taste in High Desert

Today we’d like to introduce you to Liz Joy Murray.

Thanks for sharing your story with us Liz Joy. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
I actually fell into the world of baking completely by accident. I used to work as an Art Director for a Hollywood agency and, after nearly a decade there, ended up getting extremely sick and having to take an extended leave of absence to prioritize my health. A couple of weeks into being stuck at home, though, and I was desperate to find some sort of creative outlet to occupy my time. I decided I might as well teach myself to bake, and that I wanted to chronicle my efforts on Instagram. Some of my early cookie designs happened to get featured by Instagram influencers, and I almost immediately began receiving inquiries and requests to design cookies for well-known brands and events. Everything took off from there and, since then, I’ve been lucky enough to get to create custom desserts and food-centric social media content for names like Christian Louboutin, Urban Decay Cosmetics, Sephora, and Tori Spelling. And my work has been featured in Forbes, Grazia, BuzzFeed Tasty, and KTLA5.

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
I’m honestly having the time of my life, but this journey has not been without its challenges. I’d say the biggest struggle was starting before I was ready. I’m a big believer in saying yes to opportunities that both excite and scare you, and I’ve done that plenty of times since starting this business. I’d only been baking for a few months when Inspired to Taste started taking off. I’d never baked before then, and I’d never run my own business. I didn’t really have a clue what I was doing, but I just kept moving forward and figuring things out as I went. There have been tears, freakouts and lots of cursing along the way, but I’ve learned SO MUCH. The process can definitely be stressful, but it’s also exhilarating.

Let’s talk about business. Tell us about Inspired to Taste – what should we know?
At Inspired to Taste, I specialize in creating one-of-a-kind dessert designs and food-centric social media content inspired by fashion, beauty and pop culture. I’m best known for my fashion and portrait cookies as well as my pie art. I love creating edible art that’s bold, vibrant, playful and unique. One of the things that sets my work apart is the fact that I love bringing fresh new ideas to life in edible format through the use of mixed media, textures, color, and layering. This means constantly trying out new concepts, materials, and techniques. It’s my goal for each new creation to top the last in some way.

Any shoutouts? Who else deserves credit in this story – who has played a meaningful role?
My family and friends have been so incredibly supportive of this venture, and it’s made the process much more exciting and enjoyable to have them by my side. Quitting my job as an established art director to take up baking (which I knew nothing about!) was scary as hell. Taking that plunge wasn’t easy. My husband, Jay, urged me to try it out, though, and to enjoy the process and see what happened. He has supported me through every obstacle and celebrated every success. He’s also very business-minded and has been wonderfully helpful on that side of things. And my parents and friends are quick to jump in when I need feedback or help of any kind (especially as taste-testers! Haha.). This business has actually brought us all closer together, which has become an unexpected and extremely special aspect of it for me.

Contact Info:

• Website: inspiredtotaste.com
• Email: [email protected]
• Instagram: instagram.com/inspiredtotaste
• Facebook: facebook.com/inspiredtotaste

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