Bio

Photography by MatthewBe

Hi! I’m Batya.

Thanks for joining me here…

A little bit about me:

I love traveling, photography, hiking, street art, design, architecture, food trucks, gardening, the cosmos, cooking with the seasons, politics and wallpaper! I know, my interests span a variety of categories...

I’m a New York City native (5th generation!), and I hung around the City for undergraduate before moving to New Orleans for law school. During law school I interned at the Audubon Society, Save our Wetlands and the Louisiana Bucket Brigade, before spending 4-1⁄2 years working at law firm on Wall Street. The corporate job was soul-sucking (I think that's a very nice way to put it) and I couldn't wait to leave. When I became a full-time mother I left the firm job and that's when I began to cook for the first time. I tuned into Ina Garten every day and I owe her a great deal of culinary gratitude. 

The blog was something I decided to start while I was raising Otis, our first child, and before Theodore joined the mayhem 22 months later. I loved being a mother (and I still do), but I wanted something to think about other than kids during those rare moments when mine were sleeping.

I had always wanted to learn about food: how it's grown, how it's prepared and how to make it taste good. So I borrowed cookbooks from our local library and poured over food magazines and journals. I also picked up a camera. And that's pretty much how this blog was born. Some of the early posts make me cringe (the writing is odd, my "voice" is off, and the photography…yikes, bright sunlight!), but I've decided not to edit or revise those entries. They show my growth, progress and evolution, which really is a very important part of life as we keep moving forward...

Where does the name come from?

I chose Sparrows + Spatulas because, well, I love birds ("put a bird on it!") and I think of my kids as little sparrows. Sparrows also make me think of flight and I love to travel. Before I really started cooking I owned very few kitchen utensils; the spatula was one of the first things I purchased and added to my (now) large accessories collection. 

How has your blog changed?

Over the course of 4 years the blog has evolved. While I still post food recipes, my writing now gravitates more toward our life in Colorado, our travels (both here and abroad), our garden, which consists of 4 elevated garden beds right next to our home, and my other passion- design. I occasionally post round- ups of recipes, drinks, wallpaper, kitchen accessories, etc. I tend to feature small companies who ethically source their materials and who make hand-made products which are usually, though not always, crafted in the United States. 

What do you love about blogging?

Hands down, the two best things to emerge from my blogging efforts have been my job at GoodWord PR and the community that I’ve created here in Denver through Instagram, which I originally considered an extension of my blog. When I moved to Denver I knew only a handful of people. I was a stay-at-home mom for 3 1/2 years, and when my boys started preschool I began to work from home. It could have been an isolating or lonely time (I didn't know many people in the city and all of my family was back in NYC), but I decided to use social media to help me cultivate genuine relationships with women who were around my age, loved cooking, architecture, street art, film, hiking, gardening, farmers markets, design and art. It’s been incredible! I have a wonderful community here.

What's your "real" job?

I work (telecommute) for Good Word PR- a Brooklyn-based public relations, brand strategy + social media marketing firm that focuses on a wide range of brands helping to define the modern lifestyle.  In essence, I'm a story teller. I try to convey- through images and words- the vision of the designers we work with (weavers, ceramicists, furniture makers, lighting designers, glassblowers etc.) and tell larger audiences why our clients' products are special and unique. I take on small freelance projects too, so reach out if you're interested in working together! 
My passion project is called walltawk.com - so if you love wallpaper and interiors, check it out!

Where have I "seen" you?
I've been featured in The Kitchn (a brand of Apartment Therapy), Colorado Home & Lifestyles Magazine, Hayatouki Magazine (online), The Daily Meal (collaboration) and the Paper Plates Blog.

My work and writing has been featured in Colorado Home & Lifestyles Magazine, Nourish Food Magazine and Dorado Magazine. 

Let's connect: batya.stepelman@gmail.com
IG: @sparrowsspatulas