Meet Baleigh Graves of Grungebygraves in Bakersfield

Today we’d like to introduce you to Baleigh Graves.

Baleigh, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I started my business in June of 2016. My husband and I had just had our first born and I still had the obvious baby weight post pregnancy. As a new mom, I wanted to be as cute and comfortable as possible without crampin’ my style or looking like a complete bum. You know, I wanted to look like I fashionably had my ish together when I didn’t 😉

My husband’s band tees made their way to my side of the closet more and more often. They literally became my “go-to” everyday. I would pair them with some super distressed jeans, a pair of vans, throw my hair in a top knot mom bun and feel so cute- effortlessly! That was the best part. Creating these one of a kind tees made me feel effortlessly CONFIDENT and it all started with something as small as my outfit. I loved the bleached and distressed look I was seeing in clothing stores but knew I could create something similar myself. I started messing with my honey’s tees and created something unique enough that anytime I’d wear the shirts I would get complimented. I decided to start taking pictures of the shirts and created an Instagram account. People took serious interest in what I was doing so I decided to start selling them.

Fast forward to three years later I’m still making these badass tees out of my garage because of the love and support I continue to have from my incredible customers. I owe it all to them for making this dream I couldn’t have imagined better for myself, come true. Most of my tees sell within minutes/seconds of being posted, it’s insane! I’ve been so fortunate to be able to stay home with our son since he was born but I couldn’t help wanting to contribute to our family in some way, even if it just be a little bit. My business has not only now blessed me with an income to help support my family as well, but it has blossomed me into the boss babe I am today and has allowed me to meet so many new people (as a stay at home mom that’s important!); all while being completely available to my babies and husband at all times, just how I like it. The only bosses I have call me “mama”.

We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
I would say yes and no. Yes, because it came so natural to me. My mind races constantly with ideas and this opened up a way for me to express that without boundaries or limits from anyone. Whether it be through my posts, stories, outfits I put together for my pictures, captions, branding, advertising. It’s all an outlet for me to creatively show the work that goes on in my head. I seriously have so much fun playing dress up! And No because, (and this may sound very minute), but because my business is based solely off of word of mouth or social media, I felt in the very beginning as if it wasn’t taken seriously. Like it wasn’t a real “job” to others because I literally get to spend all day with my babies, while making money from home, doing something I freaking LOVE; just from posting pictures on the internet! I thought people felt like “How could that be considered a job?” when I explained to them what I did. So it took me a while to recognize how damn proud I should be and to give myself the actual credit I deserve for the business I’ve made. I’m so proud of how far I’ve come and look forward to seeing where I continue to go.

So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the GRUNGEBYGRAVES story. Tell us more about the business.
I bleached and distress old/new school band tees. That sets me aside from other business’ because of how unique yet extremely affordable my brand is. There’s not a million artists like me doing what I do. Every.Single.T-shirt I make comes out differently each time. No tee is EVER the same and you will never have the same one as anyone else, like ever! How cool is that? Another part of my business that makes me different from the rest is my matching “mama + babe” sets. For all my amazing mama’s out there, you can now rock certain style band tees while twinning with your little babes. My kids are so rad and being a mom is my biggest blessing in life so this was special to add into the mix for my business. It’s been a huge hit!

Has luck played a meaningful role in your life and business?
Honestly, I’m a huge believer of the law of attraction. Whatever you put out into this world, I believe is exactly what you’ll receive. I don’t believe luck has anything to do with it. My husband taught me that.

Pricing:

• Bleached + Distressed tees $30+
• Mama + Babe sets $45
• Custom Orders $20+

Contact Info:

• Website: grungebygraves.com
• Email: grungebygraves@gmail.com
• Instagram: @grungebygraves
• Facebook: Facebook.com/Grungebygraves

Image Credit:
Cristabelle Camacho Photography

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