“Sometimes I feel as though I am so close to knowing what I want and where I want to go. Other times I feel so far away. But I think I am getting nearer and nearer to being the person I want to be.”

I grew up in a small town called Sidney and I lived on Byron Street. My childhood was a time of unlocked doors, waving to neighbors, walking to the library, the bank, the grocery store. The town of Sidney and my home on Byron was where I learned to skate on winter ponds, swim in summer creeks, visit cousins, aunts and uncles who all lived nearby. It’s where I fell in love with adventure.

Some of this is still there in my small hometown, and some it has left, like a whisper of smoke on the wind. But what remains within me, wherever I go, is a sense of substance and balance. Integrity and authenticity. The security we feel when we know who we are and where we come from.

The memory of Sidney and Byron is vividly alive in me, and I keep it that way. As I travel the world, far and wide, I like remembering and honoring where I came from.

The greatest lesson I ever learned in Sidney is that the most exciting things in life happen when you get outside. Outside of your room, your house, even yourself. When you experience the new. Find out what’s happening down the street, at the park, or across town. And then, after a day of exploring, feeling held in the comfort of knowing you can return home. To your people. To yourself. To who you are.

I have been fortunate enough to have spent time in over 70 countries and wherever I travel I feel like some new part of me unwraps itself and spreads its wings, but I believe that at my core, I am still the same person who grew up in Sidney, on Byron, and it is precisely that knowing that gives me the freedom to journey.

I hope you feel some of that freedom too. The zest for exploration, the inclination to wander outside of yourself and see, smell, taste, touch and listen to how glorious our world really is. To take a moment to remind yourself that we are all connected in more ways than we are separated. That there is no wrong way to discover.

I want Sidney Byron to be known for offering beautiful accessories which I consider "luxe sensible".  Accessories that serve multiple purposes and easily fit in a suitcase.  Accessories from different parts of the world, to inspire each of you to start your own journey, from your unique starting place, your home base, your beating heart.

Much love,

 Christina Kite