Smoke Break with Sydney
"My heart will replenish itself"
We took a little break after all of the show craziness but we are back and can’t wait to share what we have been working on with you.
This week, we took a smoke break with World of My Own designer, Sydney. We chatted about love, burnout, what life has looked like pre and post show, and more.
Post-show, post-finals — what’s your headspace right now?
I think I'm still in that grind-set unfortunately. I have four custom dresses to work on this week but it's honestly exciting and it's fun. It's nice to be able to work on stuff like this. I feel a lot less pressure recently. I just got back from Europe and I had a fabulous time. I have been interviewing people for summer internships and positions and just figuring out my next moves and what not.
What feels heavy, what feels light, where are you at right now?
I feel much lighter. I have way less to carry around with me 24/7..like I am able to just walk out the door and not have to think about grabbing a bunch of stuff. It feels so nice to be done with finals and this semester. I get to just close my computer and not have to open it and worry about writing an essay, all that is done. I climbed a tree the other day. That was amazing. I've been reading. I definitely have a lot more downtime…and I have been doing lots of hand sewing.
How do you feel now that you’ve exposed your heart?
I feel a little bit depleted. I think that's kind of the beauty of what happens after you expose yourself so vulnerably, you definitely get your energy kind of taken from you. But I think over the next couple weeks, the sun will shine again and it will not be so rainy. The color will come back to my face and my cheeks will be red and I'll be sun kissed, and I think that my heart will replenish itself.
What moment from “Cœur Exposé” felt like, okay, this is it — this is why I do this?
I think just seeing the connection that the show brought. There was so much love in the room that day and bringing people together is so special to me and I think that's exactly what we did. I think people formed so many connections during this process that they can take with them into other aspects of their life, beyond World of My Own. That was the moment. It was so magical to experience and see how beautiful everybody is and how kind everyone was to each other. I think that really has solidified year after year. The show days are exactly why I do this: to create such a beautiful space for such wonderful people.
What did your actual days look like leading up to the show? Paint us a picture.
Not much sleep at all, barely any. Lots of hand sewing, like so much hand sewing. Honestly, I was just trying to balance school and finals. I babysat a couple days before the show which I feel like in hindsight was kind of dumb. I just didn't have much energy. There was definitely a lot of stress, it was very hectic. I was going to school, trying to laser engrave, trying to get to my classes. I didn't get to any of them. I barely did. But I also felt really nervous. The air was just heavy. But when I woke up that morning, I felt like all of that just was behind me, and I was so ready for the day to start and everyone to see all the love that we put into everything.
Now that the dust has settled a bit, what part of yourself are you reconnecting with?
Sleeping, touching grass, seeing my friends that I haven't seen in a really long time. I've caught up with so many people and it has been so wonderful. Also having the time and energy to cook a real meal. I have been reading and journaling a lot more. I think all those things I really neglected when working on the show. I feel like I just put my heart and soul into it. I also have been loving getting dolled up and getting dressed and going out to do things. I am about to go to dinner with my boyfriend and we're gonna order the menu backwards and start with dessert. During the show I felt like I could not have fun as much…I guess it was just a different kind of fun. I miss having fun with no purpose or end goal and just being present. I've been able to connect with being present and truly looking at what is right in front of me and not thinking of what's going to happen next. Also, I have been reconnecting with my spirituality a lot. I think over the next few weeks, especially now that I'm done with school and once I finish these custom looks I'm gonna chill and I'll be able to explore and connect with the other art forms that I also really enjoy.
What do you feel like you need right now? And what’s keeping you going?
A massage, for sure. A joint. Like one in my nose, one in my ear, one in my mouth. And a horse. I would love to go horseback riding. That's what I need right now. A massage, a joint and a horse. Not all at the same time though. I think what's keeping me going is the inner knowing that I'm gonna keep creating beautiful things that will hopefully keep touching people's hearts and eyes and minds. I'm kind of starting a little bit of a new chapter this summer and really trying to make World of My Own a thing and create some real products that people can cherish and hold onto for a very long time.
What are you dreaming about for WOMO this summer — what’s next?
Tons of activations, tons of in person events, a lot of mutual aid and giving back to the community as much as we can. Hopefully a WOMO FW 25 magazine. Hopefully some more parties. I am definitely going to work on a new collection, and work on producing this most recent collection. Maybe some more jewelry, maybe a bag. I don't know, the world really is my oyster. I just have a ton of ideas and I'm really excited to solidify them and plan them out. I wanna meet people in real life and hopefully World of My Own can do that by creating some more in person stuff. The team dinner that we had was so wonderful and I just wanna create more spaces like that.
What does your perfect summer day look like?
I would wake up around nine to go for a super long walk and get a Matcha from La Cabra and maybe some fruit and a pastry from the farmers market. Then I would go to Agave and I would get a green juice and a smoothie and then I would climb a tree and read in it. Also I would go to the beach to tan and swim with all my friends and my boyfriend and play mermaids. Then I would go back to my apartment and paint and do watercolor while watching the sunset. Then I would go to dinner and then go out with my friends and dance a whole bunch. Ideally me and Rosa, my best friend, will have a DJ gig because we are going to be a DJ duo soon called These Bitches Love Sosa. Our names combined together. Book us.
What’s inspiring the next chapter of WOMO — any sparks or seeds already forming?
Smiling is something that's been on my mind. Smiling is a universal language for all people. You can feel the essence of someone smiling even if you can't see them. You can just feel that kind of energy. I am interested in energy fields and what it feels like when people move throughout different spaces and how one can be taken to what feels like a different portal. Also, human animal instincts are really interesting to me, and the loose intersection of Buddhism and fashion - even though they're so opposite. Having Buddhism be so against the material realm and fashion literally being only that I think the intersection between them could be really cool to explore artistically. We'll see how that all manifests.
What does “a world of your own” mean to you right now? Has the meaning changed since the most recent show?
I feel like at this point “World of My Own” just feels too individualistic, especially with the amount of people that have worked on the show and contributed their mind and themselves to the end vision and the end goal. It feels more like a world of our own, and I feel so lucky to have it that way. I created this at such a young age in my bedroom by myself and it's just blossomed into something so much bigger than me and my world.
That’s all for this week my loves…stay tuned for details about our NYC pop up July 5th & 6th. We hope to see you there <3