She is the friend who you can always count on to care and dream with. Magic seems possible when you accompany her into the ideal she pursues. Educated at Concordia University with a B.A. in Studio Art and Education, she enjoys teaching, writing, and speaking about women’s issues, beauty, and spirituality. A dreamer who first and foremost aspires to live for others, create beauty, and tell hopeful stories, she believes in impacting her immediate circle for good, and blessing those in need. She hopes to always have the perspective of seeing the masses as individuals, and encourage people to live their most brave and courageous life.
“She packed up her potential, and all she had learned, grabbed a cute pair of shoes, and headed out to change a few things.” -Anonymous
She’s the friend who sees beauty everywhere, and who you can always count on to find hope in brokenness. With a degree in Public Relations and Marketing from Pepperdine University, she is a professional communicator and a unique blend of perfectionist and creative-type. Her greatest desire is to inspire and empower women to live healthy, confident lives of true beauty. She currently does that through her friendships, her writing and her work as Executive Editor for Darling. You can find Natalie sharing honest talk about beauty, style wellness and life at Thoughts by Natalie, and follow her on Twitter at @natalieborton.
“Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.” -Martin Luther King, Jr.
She is the friend that you can trust. The one whom, in common laughter, you find healing. With a Bachelors in Broadcast and Documentary Journalism, Joy currently works within the exciting and challenging world of LA television. The pressure and challenges she sees for the women around her enables her to write to the depth of important issues. She exudes bright hope as she learns from her life experiences and teaches others along the way.
“We are all apprentices in a craft, where no one becomes a master” -Ernest Hemingway
The friend who will always listen, wait, and then just when you need, give you the wisdom from a spirit of strength and truth that you were longing to hear. Currently working as the program coordinator to The Westside Pregnancy Clinic and a full time Doula, she is well acquainted with the deep issues that woman encounter and experience at all stages of existence…from birth to birthing. To her the scenery is the most beautiful when taking the long route in life, a route that she will gladly share with you. You may also enjoy her at www.snugsandtheman.com.
“You belong among the wildflowers. You belong in a boat out at sea. You belong with your love on your arm. You belong somewhere you feelfree.” -Tom Petty
She is the friend who feels beauty and despair deeply, choosing to transform even the dull in life into something magical and hopeful. A graduate of FIDM, (Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising), she now works in the fashion industry in the areas of education, design, research and consulting. She believes traveling all around the world has enabled her to believe that the unseen is real, alive, and active. That power exists to transform the souls of all who are willing and believe. Find her on Twitter at @mercedeslamph, and see more of her work at www.mercedescurran.com.
“Aim at heaven and you will get earth thrown in. Aim at earth and you get neither.” -C.S. Lewis
She is the friend that is so full of freedom and joy, her presence enabling you to be a bit more free yourself. A graduate of Brooks Institute of Photography, she is the eye behind the camera for Darling. Now the Production Coordinator at White Cross Productions in Los Angeles, she exhibits a natural talent of putting images to words. Able to appreciate the purest forms of beauty and the details of culture from around the world, she gives us something to look at that makes us smile. See more of her work at www.2dbcreative.com.
“I myself am made entirely of flaws, stitched together with good intentions.” -Augusten Burroughs
She is the friend who will help you think things through… who will challenge your heart and mind to get to the truth of the matter. Sarey is a Los Angeles native who majored in Humanities at Concordia University. She was inspired by one of her favorite authors, Dr. Francis Schaeffer, to look at the arts as the mouthpiece of culture. With a decade of experience in the entertainment industries (TV, fashion, film, music), she loves to write about the human condition the way it conveys itself through media – a zeitgeist cocktail of beauty, creativity, and brokenness. She also has a special fondness for good food, live music, sci-fi nerdiness, her dog, and of course, her loving husband. Follow her on Twitter at @sarey.
“Daniel broke the king’s decree, Peter stepped from the ship to the sea. There was hope for Job like a cut down tree, I hope that there’s such hope for me. Dust be on my mind’s conceptions and anything I thought I knew, each word of my lips’ description, and on all that I compare to You.” -Aaron Weiss (mewithoutYou), The Sun and the Moon
She is the friend whom a calm cup of tea and a wild adventure are both to be experienced when walking through life together. She has a Bachelor of Arts in English and Communications with a minor in Creative Writing. Currently working for Yahoo! as an Ad Sales Associate, she also writes for Yahoo Shine, is an avid Blogger, and a novice of iPhonography. A wanderer, a poet, a visual artist, and a dreamer with a streak of rational thought, she’s sweet on birds and trees, Grandma sensibilities, and learning more about a deep spiritual life. She’s a vibrant self-professed Old Soul in her 20s–on the path of personal and professional exploration. Find her blogging at www.kellibird.tumblr.com.
“Be thou the rainbow in the storms of life. The evening beam that smiles the clouds away, and tints tomorrow with prophetic ray.” -Lord Byron
She is the friend that dwells in the richness and goodness that is laughter, a good meal and the exchanging of story. With a mind that captains the ever-wandering ship of dreams and hopes, Tracy is a moving body of water that invites new and old friends to soak their bones with her. She is light and intentionally hearted and one helluva pal whose profundities lend its capacity to encourage, to heal and to raise up. Tracy graduated from a small school on the cliffs of the ocean, Point Loma Nazarene University, with a degree in Managerial and Organizational Communications. She enjoys encapsulating the beauty of everyday things within her writing and her photography. Enjoy a deep drink from tracyatthewell.com or share her enthusiasm for creativity at tracylecreative.com.
“I would love to live like a river flows, carried by the surprise of its own unfolding” -John O’Donohue
Helen Wang - Social Media Intern
She is the friend who will dance through fields, alleys, and down sidewalks with you, and the friend who will cheer you on when you’re feeling blue. Originally from Austin, Texas, Helen is currently a student studying Public Relations and Graphic Design at the University of Southern California. She enjoys encouraging the people around her with a kind word and believes deeply in sisterhood and the power of friendship. She is especially fond of coffee in large mugs, road trips, inspirational chats with her twin sister, and would rather look at the moon than the stars. Follow her on Twitter at @misskite.
A ship in harbor is safe–but that is not what ships are for. –John A. Shedd
Keyera Williams - Editorial Intern
She is a friend that will laugh with you, for exceeding joy has now become her portion. As a student at the University of Arkansas, she takes on a dual major in Advertising/Public Relations and Broadcast Journalism in hopes of one day impacting the realm of entertainment. In her spare time you can find her writing poetry, singing sweet melodies with her favorite guitar or dancing the night away with good friends. As a twenty-something, she hopes in this season to impact the world around her in a way that out shines every ounce of darkness.
“Love makes your soul crawl out from its hiding place.” -Zora Neal Hurston.
Saralyn Weitzman - Communications Intern
An undergrad student at Biola University earning her degree in Communications and Photography. With a heart for her generation and a spirit of creativity, she aspires to influence and bless others through her writing, photography, and hospitality. An avid “I Love Lucy” fan and scrap-booker, Saralyn dreams of fixing up an old house one day and strives to make all things beautiful. See more of her work at www.selahphotographyonline.com
“Wrinkles should merely indicate where smiles have been.” -Mark Twain
Katie Essenfeld – Editorial Intern
She is the friend that will turn any situation into one ending in a fit of laughter. Katie is currently following her passion for magazines by earning a Strategic Communications degree at Elon University in North Carolina. With interests in writing, editing, design, and photography, Katie hopes to combine all four into a career full of passion and excitement. She is a listener, a thinker, loves healthy foods, bike rides, and has a weakness for celebrity news. She is the friend that will be there to listen without judgment and aims to bring laughter to any situation.
“ The woods would be very silent if no birds sang except those that sang best.” -Henry Van Dyke