As we discovered during our stylish shopkeep tour, even fashionable entrepreneurs could use a daily "just do you" reminder. That's the idea behind Fred and Far, a new LA-based accoutrements brand powered by inspiring affirmations.
Created by Bellacures founder Samira Far and attorney-turned-career consultant extraordinaire Melody Godfred, the jewelry label's debut comes in the form of the Self-Love Pinky Ring, a simple yet positivity-charged gem that acts like an engagement ring to yourself. (We'll say "I do" to that.)
Handmade in LA and priced from $150 for sterling silver to $325 for your choice of 14k yellow, white, or rose gold, the lab-created white sapphire is also conflict-free, ensuring that wearers (which happens to include ladies like Lucy Hale and Amber Rose) keep a clear conscious when committing to themselves.
"We harness of the power of the divine feminine through our symbol of the upside triangle," Samira tells us. "There's no other ring like it on the market. Most pinky rings are either inspired by traditional men's signet rings, or are simply thin little bands."
We sat down with Far to find out more about her new company's mission of spreading self love, how her momtrepreneur co-founder's balancing act inspired the beginnings of the brand, and more.
Why a pinky ring?
We were inspired by the engagement ring, which to date has been the only ring women wear to signify commitment. We decided to use the big bold design of an engagement ring and put it on the pinky, the most neglected finger on our hands, as a reminder to practice self love and care.
Why was it important to you both to use conflict-free gems?
The ring is the result of a year of research and development. We scoured the earth (literally!) to find the stone that was most aligned with our mission. A lab-created stone is conflict-free — this means the stone didn't cause a civil war or force individuals to work in horrific conditions. Instead it had a clean journey before reaching the hands of our tribe members, who are making the very important decision to commit to themselves.
Wherever you may be in your life, the start of your self love journey needs to be one with clean intentions and history. Melody and I feel strongly that a conflict-free stone also has conflict-free energy.
How did your ring land on Lucy Hale and Amber Rose, and what were your reactions when you found out?
We have a wonderful team of people we've worked with as we've been developing this concept. A few members of our team shared rings with their friends and connections who embodied our brand, which is how we connected with Lucy and Amber.
Melody and I are so proud that both Lucy and Amber loved the rings and were excited to wear and share them, especially because they stand for our message of self love and commitment. We are excited that our brand inspires a diverse group of celebrities from different backgrounds and fashion sensibilities to come together.
What was the "a-ha" moment that inspired you and Melody to create Fred + Far?
Melody has an incredible story behind the inspiration of this ring. The short answer is about a year ago, as a busy entrepreneur with twins, Melody realized she had fallen off her own priority list. She decided to wear a pinky ring as a daily reminder to practice self love and self care. The result was so transformative she decided to share it with other women as well.
Unlike an engagement ring, which requires being chosen by another and can only be worn by a select group of women, this commitment ring is one that can be worn by any woman, at any stage in her life. The beauty is that these two commitments are not mutually exclusive, and in fact we believe committing to yourself makes you a better partner.
What else do you have planned for the brand?
The response to our messaging has been overwhelming. We are very excited to connect with our followers and document their self love journeys as they wear our rings and transform their lives through our newly rolled out Pinky Promise Pledge Card and other interactive elements we have planned. We are also developing our next few products, which will be aligned with our central message of self love.