Search Results for “girlboss” – Page 2 – Snapshots & My Thoughts by Ailee Petrovic

#GIRLBOSS July 14, 2015

#GIRLBOSS: Joy of Priya

My friendship with Joy dates back fifteen years to the very glittery days of competitive cheerleading in 6th grade. Joy and I remained good friends throughout middle school, high school, college (in different cities), and now see each other every few months (although I wish it was more often!) now that we’re both living in Houston. It is safe to say that I adore Joy. She is one of the most genuine people I’ve ever met. Not only is she incredibly talented with apparel design, she is also a savvy business owner, as well as being a dedicated philanthropist (more details below!).

Joy is definitely one of my business role models. After graduating from The University of St. Thomas in 2011, Joy launched Priya, which originally sold artisan-crafted silk purses and bangles made by women in Asia who had been taken out of human trafficking and were being taught useful skills like sewing. In 2014, Priya debuted its first contemporary jewelry collection – the Zama Collection, which I posted about here. I adore all of Joy’s gorgeous pieces of jewelry, and I cannot wait to watch as Priya continues to evolve.

Joy launched a Kickstarter campaign yesterday to raise $30,000 to help support The Priya Foundation. I encourage you to watch the video, read the interview below, scour the Priya website, and if you feel moved by this cause, then support this campaign. I can guarantee you that the money will be put to good use.

#GIRLBOSS June 19, 2015

#GIRLBOSS: Jenny of A Fine Flourish

I followed Jenny of A Fine Flourish on Instagram for awhile before finally meeting her at Christina Leigh‘s Tinsel and Tables workshop last winter. She was teaching the attendees calligraphy, and I was seriously mesmerized with her perfect script. Her handwriting is truly flawless, but what really stuck out to me was how genuine and sweet she is.

Flash forward a few months, and I was running on our regular path with Isla when I saw Jenny outside her parent’s house. We stopped to chat, and I realized she was the real deal – she’s one of those people whom you meet and just cannot help but like. Soon after, we met again with three other talented ladies to discuss how to foster community in the creative community of Houston. And the rest of our friendship is history!

So, the second #GIRLBOSS interview (first here) is with this gorgeous mama (I die over this photoshoot with her gorgeous daughter, Bailey). Happy reading! After seeing her photos and scouring her Instagram, you’ll know whom to contact if you need any hand lettering done! I’m not going to lie, I cried while reading her post. It’s very motivational!

#GIRLBOSS May 22, 2015

#GIRLBOSS: Meredith of Cake & Confetti

I’m very fortunate to have recently been plugged into a group of successful female business owners in Houston, and being newly self-employed, I want to make sure that I am learning from these inspiring girl bosses (or #GIRLBOSSES – which, by the way, if you haven’t read Sophia Amoruso’s book, you’re missing out). I decided to start a Q&A series with these women, and the first interview is with Meredith Staggers, the owner of Cake & Confetti.

Meredith and I only recently met, but we have 140 mutual Facebook friends, so I feel like I practically have known her my whole life (lots in common to chat about). I’ve had so much fun getting to know her over the past month and a bit, and I am so impressed with her business savviness. Cake & Confetti just turned two (see some sneak peek photos we took this week on her and my Instagram!), and I know that there are so many amazing things ahead for this boutique company. I hope you enjoy reading Meredith’s answers below – I definitely did (insert confetti emoji) – and definitely make sure to follow along on Instagram. I promise it’ll make your feed just that much prettier.

Personal October 12, 2015

Week in Review

Another week flew by, putting us that much closer to Thanksgiving and Christmas, and perhaps even more excitedly: our Australia trip. I need to start planning things! All I’ve figured out is our flights and accommodation.

Like I mentioned last week, family photo season is in full swing, so my weekends have suddenly revolve around sessions, which is really fun (albeit a tad exhausting). Sasha and Isla are my biggest fans though, and I’m so grateful that he is so good with her and does ‘Daddy Duty’ magnificently when I’m gone for bed routine.

The only low point from the week was Isla developing a rash over her whole body (most prominent on her legs). You can see it in the pumpkin painting photos below. It looked pretty severe, but the rash associated with Roseola shows up as the virus is dying off, so hopefully it’s gone quickly and she’s completely healed!

On a more positive note, some of the highlights from this week include:

Attending a polo game at the Houston Polo Club with other Houston bloggers (organized by the lovely Alice of The Lonestar Looking Glass). I only there briefly, but got to stomp the divots and have a champagne toast, so it was worth it!
Dining at a new restaurant near our house, Bramble, with our good friends, Erin and Matt, for a double date night on Saturday. They ordered the biggest shank of meat I have ever seen, but thankfully my delicious veggie plate kept me distracted!
Photographing fashion bloggers – Alex of Adored by Alex, Destiny of Truly Destiny and Lauren of Sunday Beach – all three ladies are gorgeous and seriously so sweet. I’m so inspired by their outfits too! This was a bad shopping week (sorry, Sasha!).
Taking headshots for my friend Kristen at Highland Village and River Oaks District. She’s in the Rice MBA program and will graduate in May. She’s a serious #GIRLBOSS in training! We took some serious LinkedIn photos, then had to grab a few with more colorful walls.
Spending Saturday morning outside at the newly finished Buffalo Bayou Trails – specifically Lost Lake and the Johnny Steele Dog Park. We spent most of the day playing inside though, as sun exposure heightened Isla’s rash.
Photographing a few families at Menil Collection, Terry Hershey Park, Centennial Gardens and Lost Lake. I’m going to do a roundup post soon with some of my favorite family photos that I’ve taken so far! My weekends are completely booked through November 15 now, but I’m still free on many weeknights and any date after the 15th. Visit Snapshots by Ailee Petrovic and email me if you’re interested in booking a family session!
Navigating pumpkins at St. Luke’s pumpkin patch with our friends, Lindsey and Hollis, and then lunch at Tiny Boxwood’s (seriously so delicious!). We haven’t seen them in ages, so it was nice to catch up!
Visiting Texas Art Supply to buy some supplies for upcoming newborn sessions and colorful boards for photos (many of the #SAMTcolorfuldays photos are taken with them!).
Very briefly running into Megan on her birthday as I was leaving the gym, and she was going to birthday lunch with her hubs!
Celebrating Sasha’s relatives’ Slava at their house and getting to catch up with his family.
Mingling with the neighbors on our street for our National Night Out block party on Tuesday! We know almost all of our neighbors and love them.
Having a toddler skate date with Megan and Macy at Dairy Ashford Roller Rink – Isla definitely just scooted around on her bike and pushed a baby doll and stroller she found (all toys were common property!). It was really fun though.
Finishing My Paris Dream (a great read for all Paris/fashion lovers!) and moving onto 99 Problems but a Baby Ain’t One by none other than Meg (above).
Visiting Glenwood Cemetry to see the tombstone of Sasha’s uncle who passed away earlier this year. It was very emotional seeing a Starbucks cup full by his cross – he was a regular and the baristas all knew his order.
Eating dinner on Friday at Adair Kitchen (heavenly baked brie!) and running into one of Sasha’s closest friends from high school!
Very briefly running into Megan on her birthday as I was leaving the gym and she was going to birthday lunch with her hubs!
Having a bubble bath party in the wading pool outside – Isla loves it so much, and I figured our days of doing outside swims were limited! We also painted pumpkins in the same pool, which was really fun (for both of us!).
Watching American Sniper on Friday night and then crying for a solid hour after. One of my close high school friends died in Afghanistan, and I literally cannot watch this tribute video without ugly crying.

How was your week? What were your highlights?

Décor August 27, 2015

My Favorite ‘Small Shops’ (Giveaway!)

One of the greatest blessings that has happened this year is the newly formed friendships I’ve made with some incredibly inspiring women. I started my Instagram account almost one year ago, and through it, I’ve ‘met’ (and really met) very talented photographers, bloggers, makeup artists, event planners, and last, but not least, small business owners, most of whom are ‘mompreneurs.’ Being a WAHM (or ‘Work at Home Mom’ – so many acronyms to keep up with!) is not an easy task, as balancing raising children with running a business is no easy task.

I am such a big advocate of the whole ‘shop small’ and ‘shop local’ movement, which I believe was greatly empowered by the creation of Etsy. Although I would be lying if I said I didn’t love buying clothes from big retailers like Gap, Nordstrom, Carters, etc., I do make a very conscious effort to purchase a lot of our outfits and gifts from ‘small shops’ (this always feels like a funny term, since some of the stores below are far from small!).

Today, I’m sharing eight of my favorite shops, all of whom have kindly offered some of my favorite items in a giveaway (which, to be honest, I’d really like to win!). Enter using the widget below and make sure to read about each of the shops below! Also, make sure to check out my favorite Etsy stores post here for more small shop love!

PS This post was supposed to be published yesterday as part of the Shop Small linkup (here), but I had a nasty stomach bug! Make sure to check out some of the other posts in the linkup.

Shop Small Giveaway

Cuteheads: Esther, the owner of cuteheads, is one of my favorite mamas around – you’ll quickly know that from reading her #GIRLBOSS interview here. I’m sad that Isla no longer fits into her adorable cuteheads chambray pom-pom romper. It’s so cute! I am so excited to see the new collection, and I’m even more excited (read: jealous) that Esther is including a seersucker top in the giveaway.