Behind The Blog: Melissa of Ruby Press

First of all, thanks ‘UB’ (my nickname for Uncle Beefy, aka Bradford!), for asking me to join you here in The Bedlam of Beefy land!  I am so honored to have been invited to share a little about myself and Ruby Press!

You may know our blog, the Ruby Press Blog, which is an offshoot of my PR agency Ruby Press. I started my career as a fashion editor in NYC (I was at Harper’s Bazaar and Mademoiselle) where I lived for eight years. Even though I adored New York and loved every minute of being a fashion editor, I craved a new challenge as my thirtieth birthday approached. In the spring of 2000, I was offered a dreamy position with a new fashion website in San Francisco, and decided to take a leap (a huge, cross-country leap!) and move to the west coast.

Unfortunately, the dot-com bubble burst just as my dog Lulu and I moved into my new apartment and within two weeks I was laid off. For the first year, I did a lot of freelance editorial work and signed on as one of the first contributing editors with Lucky magazine. I also took the position of fashion editor with a local San Francisco city magazine that just launched, called 7x7.  Through both jobs, I started to meet a lot of really talented designers and small business owners and saw the need for a PR agency based out here that could help these businesses acquire national press attention.

When I first launched the company in May of 2001, the company focused on SF Bay Area-based companies, but that changed pretty quickly. (Within two years we had clients based as far away as Australia!) Now, nine years later, we still select our clients very carefully, but they all still fall into the lifestyle category - our clients range from home décor to beauty to fashion accessories. (You can see a list of our clients here.) We produce events as well, and you can see photos from some of our events by clicking here.

We started our blog two years ago this month and we are thrilled to have made all of the friends that we have in the blogging community. It’s hard to imagine not having the blog!  In fact, ‘UB’ was one of the first blogger friends I made… I think we both started blogging around the same time!  I’ve filled in the questionnaire to the best of my ability… hope this paints a little picture of who I am!  Thanks!! xx

LOVE it!
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Film... Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (This movie always makes me smile and I could probably recite most of it off the top of my head!)
Book... Circus I have always been obsessed with vintage carnival and circus styles…remember that show Carnivale?  That kind of sums it up.
Food... Savory: fish tacos    Sweet:  cotton candy
Libation... Why champagne, of course!
Album... Wow, so hard to choose but maybe my desert island pick would be Joni Mitchell’s Blue?
Day... I think that would have to be Christmas morning!
Clothes... I love vintage clothes and jewelry and I think that all of my very favorite pieces are vintage.
Band... This almost impossible to answer, but some bands (or singers) I never seem to tire of would be The Pixies, Bon Iver, old R.E.M., The Smiths, PJ Harvey, Adam Ant, Carly Simon, The White Stripes… 
Blogs... Check out our blog roll.
Place... New York City or Paris.  Hard to choose. 
Person… My husband Sam (who’s also my business partner!) 
Smell... Fragrant garden roses 

HATE it!

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Film... Time Bandits (don’t ask!)

Book... Any science fiction or fantasy book.

Food... Clams

Libation... Scotch

Album... Again, so hard to choose, but any album by a boy band would be right up there.

Day... The last day of a great vacation

Clothes... Itchy, pilly acrylic sweaters

Band... The Dave Matthews Band (sorry guys!)

Place... Mens clothing stores…or mens shoe stores.  They make me so bored I want to rip my hair out!

Person... Now I wouldn’t be a good publicist if I told you that, would I?

Smell... Spoiled milk

It’s all in the details…

The best sandwich is made with…toasted fresh bread and an herb aioli. 
The place I feel safest…is at home in front of a roaring fire with my husband and two sweet dogs. 
I love the sound of…my name being called when I’m waiting for a table at my favorite restaurant. 
A singer I unexpectedly like is…Steve Perry (why does Journey sound so good these days?) and Jeff Lynn from ELO (ditto!) 
The first poster on my bedroom wall was….Michael Jackson! 
The vice that I am glad I got rid of…My vices are champagne drinking, tanning and sweets-eating and I’m afraid I haven’t gotten rid of any. 
The one that still has a hold on me…all three: champagne drinking, tanning and sweets-eating. 
I am most embarrassed by…home movies circa 1983. 
As a child I wanted to be…an actress or dancer. 
The first time I got drunk was…from drinking blackberry schnapps!! 
I really don’t like…racists or homophobes. 
The best way to cook a potato is…to slice it up into strips and fry it! 
At night I worry about…how our two big dogs and my husband will all be able to fit in the queen size bed with me. 
The first thing I do in the morning is…let the dogs out and check my email. 
Plane, train, or automobile…definitely plane, unless we’re talking about an amazing vintage car or old-time train with sleeper cars.