My summer was beyond hectic. I felt like I barely had time to sit down and think of ideas for GLOSSRAGS and ways to connect with people. My creativity felt stifled. While putting together a few special orders, I spotted The Giving Keys on Yara Shahidi's Instagram. It was simple, understated even, a key overtop of her overalls. Perhaps divinely, I happened to be in LA at the time. I looked up The Giving Keys, read the message and knew I had to have one. I stopped what I was doing, hurried over to the FIDM Gift Shop and bought my very first key. It became a sense of wearable, magical empowerment. Ideas started flowing, things eventually fell into place.
Since August, we've released five new goods that I'm incredibly proud of. Finding the energy to create when Black lives are constantly under attack can be harrowing. I couldn't stop though.
A few weeks ago, God spoke to me and told me it was time to pass on my key. He told me it'd served me well, done it's job, and that now, the time had come. One of my best friends happened to be working on one of her biggest art exhibitions in her career as a part of the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center's CTRL + ALT exhibition. I knew I wasn't going to be able to fly to New York for it but wanted to be able to send good vibes, confidence, love and perhaps the essence of art---creativity. The key is now hers. I am thankful for the blessings it brought me and excited for how the spirit of creativity will manifest within her life.
-Randi
