Community with S Designs

Hello friends! It’s been a while since I’ve sent out a long-form newsletter and I’ve genuinely missed sitting down and writing to you. I’ve wanted to send this newsletter for a while, but the longer I held off, the more it became this anxiety snowball of my perfectionism getting in the way of actually doing. I was snapped out of this perfectionist anxiety snowball when I went on a vacation and was able to give myself a little reset.

I want to chat today about community - I’m a true sucker for it! As I’ve gotten older, I’ve realized the true power that community has in our lives and just how important it is to build a community that is supportive, accountable, and loving toward you.

The Besito Necklace - named by YOU! Every time I release a new collection, I ask for help from the S Designs community to help name a piece. If I pick your name suggestion, I send you the piece for free before the collection launches ❤️ Besito means little kisses, which I think is such a beautiful way to describe the herkimer diamonds in this 34 inch necklace.

I was at a wedding recently for a couple that I met when I was working in the backcountry of New Mexico during my summers in college. Most of the guests at the wedding were also friends and the made family from those formative summers out West. I spent six years knowing that I would see them all after school had ended for the summer and that there was always a certain date when I would be able to go hiking with them or grab a drink at the James on days off. But one of the beautiful things about a strong community is that even though these large swaths of time have passed, once I was back with my friends, it felt like no time had passed at all.

The importance of community didn’t resonate with me until I got older. I had a wonderful group of friends when I was growing up but I was too young at the time to understand that I was creating skills and figuring out my boundaries for my future communities. I hit bumps along the way and got hurt by who I allowed around me, which ended up helping me navigate who and what I wanted around for my future.

Friends are one of the biggest sources of inspiration for me. These are named the Anna earrings after one of my close friends - I thought these earrings encapsulated her so well! Green for her vivacious energy with the hints of the golden branch backing as homage to her love of the outdoors.

I also work in healthcare which sheds light on others and their created communities - sometimes for the lack of it too. I’ve been able to witness people rally around their family members during some of the worst times of their life, and I’ve also been able to sit down and recognize that I’m blessed and am grateful for the community that I’ve built.

So when I started intentionally thinking about S Designs as a business, I also really wanted it to be a thoughtful, inspiring, and kind community. I remember telling my partner, Alex, that I ultimately didn’t care if I didn’t sell a single item if I ended up gaining a group of like-minded people that I could chat with about what makeup was inspiring me to be daring or get recommendations on books that made you cry recently. A place to feel connected to others than just those who were here physically in front of me. I hope that the content I create and share with you naturally leads you to feel good about yourself or inspires you to take adventurous leaps with your jewelry. Truly, I’m grateful for the daily DMs giving me lipstick suggestions, pictures of your girl’s night out wearing your stacked ear cuffs, and you telling me you’re going to come hang out at the next market I attend!

I want to hear your version of what community means or what impact it has on you - my DM and email is always open!💓