Browse the FANCY SPRINKLES® menu and you’ll find edible glitter and luxe sprinkle blends with names like “gold digger,” “glam squad,” and “royalty”. There’s no doubt: these are some fancy AF baking products.
So it may surprise you to learn that founder and CCO Lisa Stelly doesn’t subscribe to the traditional definition of “fancy” (even as she incorporates cheeky nods to it with her sprinkle blends), and she sure as hell doesn’t fit the fancy mold.
“Fancy doesn’t mean better than you or prettier or unattainable or expensive,” said Stelly. “Fancy really is just a feeling for me. I describe it as the feeling of when you’re in your car and you’re listening to Beyoncé, it’s a sunny day and the window’s down. You've got sunglasses on and you’re having a really good skin day. You catch a glimpse of yourself in the rearview mirror and you’re like, ‘Damn, I am that b*tch.”
For Stelly, a single mom of three girls who has been open about her struggles with postpartum depression and anxiety, getting to a place where she is living that truth for herself has been all about finding confidence and self-love — and she doesn’t sugarcoat the messy journey it took to get there.
“I’ve been doing a lot of work on my own self-confidence and my own image issues for the last year, and I’m not ashamed to say that, because I don’t ever want anyone to look at me and think, ‘ugh, she’s further along in life than me,’” said Stelly. “For so long I have seen influencers’ picture-perfect Instagrams and thought, damn, I’m fat. Oh my god, my kids’ hair is never brushed, we never wear matching pajamas. It would just make me feel like shit as a mom. I was like, at what point do I stop following these people because all of this is fake anyway. Their kids are screaming behind the scenes. They had a terrible flight to Bora Bora, let’s be honest.”
Stelly, who described herself as the “least confident person in the world” when she was younger, is here to remind you that it starts with focusing more on how you perceive yourself than how others perceive you. “If I feel confident and comfortable in something, I’m gonna put that energy out and someone is gonna pick it up. I’m a huge proponent of wearing what makes you feel sexy. I feel sexiest in streetwear, honestly. Like, leggings, sneakers, and a cool jacket. That’s how I feel like a million bucks. Just do what makes YOU feel good.”