I totally heart today’s BTS girl. That’s right, I said it. Grace Atwood, of the blog Stripes and Sequins, can do no wrong! Girl’s got crazy good DIY skills (examples of her projects here and here and here…I know, right?) and her blog is always full of inspiring, thoughtful posts unlike anything else you’ll find in the blogosphere today. I know for a fact it’s because Grace puts a ton of time and effort into her posts. I’ve been fortunate enough to get to know her through both Twitter and via email, and she’s come to be a fantastic sounding board for all my crazy questions and ideas, as well as just a super cool girl to talk to. I’m excited to give you a sneak peek into her fabulousness today! Go for it, Grace.
Grace Atwood, 30
New York, NY
Croatia – I’ve wanted to go to Croatia for years now. The beaches, the coastlines, the cliffs… (And I hear that it smells of lavender.) I imagine that it must be one of the most tranquil, beautiful places one could visit.
Thailand – I’ve never been to Asia and am dying to go. I have a terrible fear of heights, but I am (somewhat bizarrely,) dying to ride an elephant.
Australia – It would be the longest flight, but so worthwhile.
Venice – Does it get any more romantic? I visited Rome this Fall with my boyfriend…if we had more time in Italy, I would have loved to visit Venice.
The Dead Sea – Another place that I’m dying to go. I use so many products that are from the dead sea (mud masks, salt scrubs, the works.) It would be amazing to experience it firsthand.
The Paris Wife – I have a major obsession with all things French – and I love that this book takes place in the twenties with all the greats – Hemmingway, Fitzgerald, Gertrude Stein. After watching Midnight in Paris, this book has been at the top of my reading list.
A Year in Provence – This has also been on my reading list forever. Again, my obsession with all things French continues… and moving to Provence would be a dream. Someday…
Room – I bought this ages ago and I still haven’t read it. I’m hoping to tackle it while I have some downtime over the holidays.
HTML for Dummies – This isn’t a fun one, but I have so much more that I want to do for my blog… learning to code is a must.
This is going to make me sound lame – but right now, I live in New York City. Life is fast-paced, and downtime is precious. I’m hoping things will have slowed down in 5 years – I’d like to be married, living in a house… with a baby or two… and my own business. I’ll be 35 by then, which is hard to imagine right now.
1 – Baubles, Baubles, Baubles. When I’m not blogging, I’m the Director of Social Media for BaubleBar. I handle our blog, Facebook, Twitter, other social channels, and all of our blogger outreach. It is fun, but hectic. I spent so many years slaving away at super-corporate jobs… working for a start-up has been a welcome change… it’s fast-paced and exciting… and most importantly, you can really have a say and can make a difference in how the business is run.
2 – Taking Stripes & Sequins to the next level. It’s ever evolving, constantly changing. I’ve been focusing on producing the best content I can, with the goal of growing my readership 15-20% each month… On top of that, I’m making a bunch more design changes, learning to code, perfecting my photoshop skills, and hammering out all the legal stuff. I’m such a perfectionist… I’m not sure if I’ll ever be entirely happy with how it looks!
My own business. This is a big “someday…” things are still too hectic with BaubleBar and S&S to even think about adding something else to my plate… but I know that down the road I would like to find a way to earn living from DIY, blogging, and possibly selling my own jewelry?
Stripes and Sequins are my two greatest obsessions. I started the blog two years ago – it was called “Perfectionist in Rehab,” chronicling my attempts to de-stress. A little over a year ago, I changed it over to Stripes & Sequins… because I noticed that I was either writing about stripes or sparkle (sadly, shopping plays a huge roll in my de-stressing process… I’m working on that… DIY is a great alternative!
There are so many people who serve as inspiration to me. My parents are amazing – small business owners who work together and are still happily married 31 years later. My boyfriend constantly inspires me. He is generous, thoughtful, kind, and sees the good in others, no matter what. His positive attitude helps me immensely – I have a tendency to worry/overthink/stress about everything. The entire BaubleBar team inspires me. It is such an incredible, hard working, creative group of people. On the blogging front, I’d be remiss if I were to list them all, but Lauren & Erica from Honestly WTF never fail to inspire me. Everything they do is flawless, and I love their overall worldview.
Having the courage to leave my super-corporate (but super-secure) job and go to a start-up. Also, running three marathons. I’ve run the Nike Womens (SF), Chicago, and Boston… but that all feels so long ago!
At home on our couch. A soft cozy blanket, a big glass of wine… my laptop… that’s where I rest. I also love a nice, hot bath. A little lavender oil and a face mask… the stress just melts away.
I started my blog about two years ago. As I mentioned, it was all about de-stressing. I felt a little bit trapped and stifled at work… I needed a creative outlet. I didn’t really care about what it looked like, or any of the stats stuff. Then, it started to slowly take off and turned into this wonderful way to connect with others. I started commenting on other blogs and making blogger friends. When I started doing my weekly DIY projects, I was hooked. Today, I keep doing it because it keeps me creative… and I love the friendships I’ve made. It’s gotten to the point where every time I go anywhere… LA, DC, etc… I’m scheduling meet-ups with blogging friends who have turned into real friends.
I love this BTS! Stripes and sequins is one of my favorite blogs and I think Grace is super sweet, creative, and an all around awesome girl. So inspiring.
I adore Stripes and Sequins, great BTS choice!
Grace is such a doll! Love that she started her blog to de-stress… She is such a talent and her blog always makes me smile
love it. Grace, you are the cutest! hope those dreams come true, girl! ox
I love Grace and it’s so great to get to know her better through this post. I feel like I know her well by reading her blog and tweeting with her, but so many of these details are new info ;)
fashiontruffles.blogspot.com
I love Stripes and Sequins, and it was fun to hear more about Grace! Thanks for a great interview :)
Such a wonderful BTS! I loved getting to know Grace even more. It will make it even more fun to read her blog knowing a little bit more. She’s amazing!
xoxo,
Carly
Aw, Victoria, thank you so much! I have long been a big fan of this series and was honored to be included. Totally blushing at my desk this morning. :)
What a sweetheart! I’m not familiar with Grace or her blog, but clicking over now to check out Stripes & Sequins!
It was great to know a little bit more about Grace!! Her perfectionism shows in what she does! And The Paris wife also on my reading list…
Love this series! Grace is the sweetest girl – and a serious genius with her DIY crafts!
Great post! I love her blog! I am dying to travel to those places too!!!
This is such a great post. Been reading Grace’s post for a few month’s now and it’s good to hear more about her. x
I spy a couple of books to add to my ever-growing to-read list!
I love Grace! So excited to see her here! How fun!
Grace is definitely an inspiration and so positive/ energetic! I have to say I am most impressed that you had the guts to leave your corporate position and go after an opportunity that really seems to make you happy. This is something I think we all {those of us in corporate} struggle with.
PS. Definitely blogger meet up next time you are in DC!
Grace’s blog is one of my daily go-to reads..Im always so impressed by the DIY stuff, so creative!
<3 Blonde Vivant
http://www.blondevivant.com
Love getting to know Grace better, we have so much in common. The more know, the more I love her!
I always look forward to BTS! Keep em coming!
I absolutely positively adore Stripes and Sequins!
S&S is one of my new faves! I do something similar to what she does, and can total relate. It’s a crazy business to be, but I totally admire her for leaving corporate America!
Love Grace! I like how she changed her blog name. I was thinking that I wish I could change my blog name to a more representation of me (since the one I have now was ashley & mines) But, everyone knows this blog name. So I think I am stuck with it!
On another note, I have been seeing that Paris Wife book everywhere! Need to check it out!
I loved learning more about Grace! You’re both such fabulous bloggers!
Oh this is so great! Love Grace she is always so gracious and über creative. And a marathon runner? Wow. Impressed.
Grace I know you will find a way to make a living off your creativity and I for one willbe standing in that long line to buy a piece from your collection!
I love Grace. It’s nice to learn more about her.
Absolutely love. YOu know I adore her beyond words so I love learning more about someone than you’d likely to ask via regular question. Leraning more HTML is on my list for 2012, as is travel… she has some great pics! Australia is on my list and Venice and the Dead Sea are incredible. Grace definitely has the skill, talent and drive to totally rock it with her blog and I hope she starts her own jewelry and accessories line!