Meet Ashley Brooke. Connoisseur of all things sweet, sassy and stylish. Her company, Ashley Brooke Designs, creates the cutest custom-tailored paper and daily necessities for life’s big moments and everyday adventures. From her darling stationery, to lovely notepads and witty mugs, Ashley Brooke Designs offer everything a trendy collegiette needs! You can check it all out here. We caught up with Ashley Brooke and got to ask our favorite new designer some questions!
Tell us a little bit about Ashley Brooke Designs.
Ashley Brooke Design is for the girl who loves life, and is always looking for an opportunity to be just a bit sassy!! Our brand has really become a lifestyle brand and I think that sets us a part in a BIG way. When you buy something from ABD you are buying a feeling and that is what we want.
You were a UCF Knight! What was your major and minor?
I attended UCF Business School from 2005 to 2008, and also attended Seminole State College of Florida during the same period. I graduated from Seminole State College with an Associate of Science in interior design.
What is one of your favorite UCF memories?
The first UCF football game in the Bright House Stadium!!! It was one of my favorite days at UCF!
What made you want to go into the design and stationery business?
Honestly, it was an idea that was birthed out of necessity. I was laid off from my fancy interior design job when the market crashed and just decided that I needed to do something and do something fast. No one was hiring for ANYTHING, so I decided to do my best to take control of the situation and start something. I put all my skills together with the resources I had, and Ashley Brooke Designs was born. It’s been pretty crazy.
I didn’t have a business plan or an outline. I just asked a bazillion questions to anyone who would listen to me, read every business book I could get my hands on, and hustled. I worked really hard and made lots of mistakes, but every once in a while I would succeed and that is what kept me going. I have a fairly persistent personality, so I focused all my energy on that.
What’s your favorite aspect of your business?
The ability to build and create something that I am truly proud of, even though each day has its own struggle. I get to wake up every morning and do what I know that I am good at, and there really isn’t a better feeling. I would be lying if I didn’t say that I also reallllly like being my own boss. When I was little, I would get in trouble on the REGULAR for being a bit too bossy. My dad would say (daily), “You being so bossy is one of my favorite qualities you possess, and one day this whole bossy thing will work to your advantage, but child, today is not that day.” Ha! So I guess being my own boss was kind of inevitable!
What is your personal favorite design of yours?
Oh gosh! That’s a hard question… I love the buttercup cards and the hustlin’ mugs! Those two are probably my all time favorites!
Where do you get your inspiration?
Truly? My everyday life. My life in general is a bit crazy, and so the sassiness and the touch of girly-snark just comes out and I will realize, “Gosh! That would be cute on a mug!” Also, I have stopped designing for what I think my clients might like and I’ve started designing for myself and things that I need… like a Happy Thoughts notepad!
How do you think your brand is similar to your personality?
Oh gosh, it’s one in the same… the only difference is that ABD has a bit of “stage make-up” on! And honestly that is what I love most about my job–that I get to literally be myself every day, just a more “saturated” version!
Grab these perfect pictured designs or explore some of her other originals at ashleybrookedesigns.com