03/11/2026
Sablewood has been named a finalist for ās Best Of 2026 and, well, Iām overwhelmed with gratitude š
When I saw my name listed, my first thought was: this is the start of a new season for Sablewood.
The last 18 months have been hard on a personal level. I pretty much disappeared from social media, sticking to sharing stories more than posts or reels. I didnāt take on styled shoots (I usually do several per year). I didnāt send any newsletters, didnāt promote my products.
Apart from my family, my clients were the most important thing to me, so I focused on them. Theyāre the best and always have been. š«¶š»
For those that donāt know, itās just me running things behind the scenes here at Sablewood. I do everything: all of the illustrations, the designs, assembly, and mailing. The client meetings, the proposal writing. I designed my own website and keep it running (try to! š
), and I do all of my own marketing. I pay all of the bills and do all of the cleaning at the studio.
No one helps me, but I have a lot of support. Friends in the industry (shoutout to my Seattle stationers), , my non-industry friends and familyātheyāve all been an amazing group to keep close.
So being named a finalist is making me feel all of the feels, because taking a step away from social media/marketing your business online is one of the worst things you can do as a business owner.
Because how can you be relevant if youāre not out there?
But itās not about relevance. Itās about relationships and community and staying in your lane to create the best version of your business that you can.
And sometimes, after a decade of long hours and actual tears and more paper cuts than you thought possible, you can feel a blossoming in your business: a new chapter.
Thatās what being named a finalist means to me, and Iām so grateful for all of the love and support that Washington has shown me ā¤ļø
