Simone's Boutique

Join me and my creative comrade this weekend at Harlem Week!

I’ll be vending tomorrow July 27th along with my artsy friends, ooooweeeoooweeeoooo! 11am-7pm at 62 Hamilton Terrace, Harlem. Despite the art gallery’s name - this event is not specifically geared for children, but they do host children’s art workshops, inquire within. Sunday they are serving a delicious Dominican breakfast! Check it out!

I’ll be vending tomorrow July 27th along with my artsy friends, ooooweeeoooweeeoooo! 11am-7pm at 62 Hamilton Terrace. Despite the art gallery’s name - this event is not specifically geared for children, but they do have children’s art workshops throughout the month, inquire within. Sunday they are serving a delicious Dominican breakfast! Check it out!

Happy International Women’s Day!!!! I give thanks, honor and adoration to all of our mothers, sisters, aunties, daughters and the divine feminine energy with us! I love us! We got today but this is a 24/7 365 vibe.

.unity Unpacking 25 Years of NYPD Policing. NYC community leaders balancing the conversation on NYPD and community relations. Sunday February 25, 2024 | 5:30 pm - 7:00 pm Register to join and speak during Q&A: https://bit.ly/unpack25

We getting lit this Tuesday 7pm at Rhythm and Fashion Runway Event at ! Join us for an intimate evening of music and couture as we celebrate culture over delicious food! Grab your tickets today via bio. Simone’s Boutique will be in the house with handcrafted Afrocentric jewelry. See you there!

I am my hair. Thank you for blessing my head with your care, skills and artistry. 🙏🏾

Peace and blessings to everyone during this Sacred Season. Giving thanks to Olodumare/ Chineke, my ancestors, spirit guides and Ori for another year full of joy, exploration, healing, love, and growth! Thank you to all of my customers and supporters throughout the year! It has been an absolute joy and privilege to design and share my art with you. I am taking a brief break, so the Simone’s Boutique shop on Etsy will be going on vacation from today and will be back in the New Year. May you and your families experience joy, peace, abundance, good health and love as we enter and throughout 2024. Ase!

Join us tomorrow from 11am to 6pm at the to check out and shop from local artisans, located at 62 Hamilton Terrace.

Join us tomorrow!

Evening festivities canceled due to this historic storm. Chillin inside tonight. Y’all be safe.

I love designing for my people. Watching ascend and shine her light throughout the years makes it much more meaningful. May you continue to walk in blessings and love on your journey.

Lil something to brighten up the day

Joins us as we celebrate wellness of the mind, body and soul this Saturday at at Marcus Garvey Park at 2pm. I will be vending favorite and new designs. Come catch us ousside as we enjoy the remainder of the summer.

I’m out enjoying the sun but the sale continues!!! 20% off your purchase plus free shipping on orders over $25. Link in bio.

Been enjoying for a cool minute and I’m excited to be a vendor for ! Come out next Saturday, June 17 at St Nicholas Park for good vibes with good people celebrating Black Liberation ✊🏾. I will have some new designs from our RBG Pan African collection! Click the link in the bio at to rsvp.

Been enjoying for a cool minute and I’m excited to be a vendor for ! Come out next Saturday, June 17 at St Nicholas Park for good vibes with good people celebrating Black Liberation ✊🏾. I will have some new designs from our RBG Pan African collection! Click the link in the bio at to rsvp.

Truly an honor to join pan-African elders, youth, community and faith leaders commemorating the life and legacy of Malcolm X. This was my first time attending this ceremony, which has taken place since 1965 and facilitated by the Sons of Africa, Organization of Afro-American Unity and Malcolm X Commemoration Committee. My heart is full and I’m inspired. It was a beautiful ceremony and I learned a lot from the sharing of stories and memories of Malcom X. Truly blessed to glean so much wisdom. I give thanks for Malcolm X, his life and example that inspires and teaches us today. I love Malcolm X’s ethics, his character, his love for Betty Shabazz and his daughters, his witty and masterful oratory skills, spiritual walk and political analysis. He inspires me to live a life of Iwa Pele (good character) and to trust the process of my spiritual, political and philosophical evolution. I am inspired even more to unite my people across our religious and intra-cultural differences as African Descended people. ♥️🖤💚

Shout out to Nova Felder, Robert Fields Jackson and Coulcilwoman Kristen Richardson Jordan and everyone who played a role in funding and organizing the Harlem bus to Fernclif Cemetery. I hope to make this pilgrimage every year.

Giving honor to our mothers, grandmothers, great grandmothers and beyond. Our spiritual mothers, our community mothers and all of those who are mothering. Sharing our love today!

This is my jam, this song and the necklace! New designs have been uploaded to the site, link in bio. This necklace is made of blue faceted jade beads, recycled and powder glass, hematite and an Asante brass pendant bead. I’m looking forward to an amazing weekend and hope y’all enjoy yours too!

Umoja- to strive for and maintain unity in the family, community, nation and race. Our Power is in our Unity. The challenge is Unity is difficult because those of us of African descent are so diverse: old to "new Black", Boomers to Gen Z, Diaspora to Continent born, able bodied to differently abled, Black poor folk to Black billionaires, African traditionalists to Muslim, to Christian, to Atheist, those who know how to play spades to those close to losing their card cuz they don't, Leftist to Right wing, salt to sugar grits, men, women, nonbinary, trans, LGBTQIA to LMNOP and then we have vegans.....the list goes on. So what does Unity look like? And who determines the agenda we Unite around?

I believe, when we hear out and lift up ALL boats in our communities, we can accomplish greater Unity. Thats means addressing the needs of those most marginalized within our communities in our larger agenda. That means those of us with more privilege within our community be conscious of it, be ready to listen, learn, empathize, receive feedback and make adjustments. When we leave folks out, our people suffer which impacts us all and our political enemies divide and conquer. When we keep the village in our fold, we lift all boats, we have more buy in, we have more unity and ownership of the agenda.

What does Unity look like to you and how to you strive to advance it in our communities?

Happy Kwanzaa!!!!

It’s giving Tuesday and I’m lifting up our work at where we work to to uproot the attitudes that contribute to intimate partner violence in our homes and increase the capacity of our community leaders and institutions to prevent and address intimate partner violence. I have the honor of leading CONNECT Faith with faith leaders committed to preventing and addressing IPv in their faith communities. I invite you to support our work today!

Give to transform our culture of violence. If you can, consider donating via one of the following ways:

- Text CONNECTNYC to 44321
- http://bit.ly/connect-nfg
- http://Facebook.com/connectnyc
- http://connectnyc.org/donate

I cannot say no to a good leopard print. So when I saw these leopard print Krobo beads at the Koforidua market in Ghana - babayyyy - I knew it was on and poppin! The Black Auntie spirit in me could not help it! I nicknamed this bracelet Sweet Like Honey. These beads are made with recycled glass, burned, molded then painted by designers. This bracelet also features a brass cowrie shell pendant made by Asante metal artisans. The cowrie shell can mean different things in different cultures, it was used in some African kingdoms as currency, and it also represents fertility. Check out our store wide end of summer sale today by clicking the link in bio - 10% off everything, 15% off $100, 20% off 150 and free shipping when you spend over $35.

During my trip to Ghana I was challenged about a problematic narrative that I hear so much I didn’t realize it was marinating in my spirit. It was the notion that “THEY (Africans) sold US (African Americans). I felt this challenge after a conversation with a Ghanaian peer who mentioned his great great uncle was sold into slavery and how it was traumatizing to their family. I couldn’t help but think how my great great grandfather was born into slavery on this land (it wasn’t that long ago).Then I visited Jamestown Fort and our tour guide informed us that before the Homowo Festival, their spiritual leaders make ritual to honor their enslaved ancestors before the festival begins. He showed me the tunnel coming out of the door of no return, now flooded, where community members get water from that has blessings from the ancestors who perished in the Middle Passage. During our visit to the Cape Coast slave castle our guide spoke about the trauma, pain and suffering of those whose family members were sold. But he also spoke of the impact of having so many able bodied adults sold on the development of Ghana, and how she suffered. I am familiar with the impact of colonialism on African countries but I never really thought about the impact of the slave trade on Africans who remained on the continent. The pain and trauma exists on all sides in different ways whether we recognize it or not. It’s not as simple as “THEY sold US”. This was a tragedy involving “WE” and conquering/colonizing forces from Europe. WE shall continue the work of liberation, healing, restoration and rebuilding on the continent and in the diaspora. My newest fave design in the Mama Africa necklace made with brass from the Asante people and recycled glass from the Krobo people in Ghana.

Beads stacked ✅ I’m healed and whole ✅ parents good ✅ right now I’m feeling blessed 🙏🏾 my spirit is flying high as the season changes and I’m grateful! I’m swimming in beads from my trip to Ghana and my newest creation features the Sankofa Adinkra symbol which means go back and fetch it. I love looking to our past history, heritage and culture and pulling the nuggets our ancestors gave us to navigate and evolve in our world today. It doesn’t mean we cut copy paste everything they did - we take the wisdom and lessons that can help us in our context today. Take what works and leave what didn’t. We learn from our ancestor’s victories as much as we do their shortfalls. Sankofa also teaches us to cherish our culture and heritage despite the many outside forces that seek to define who we are. Stay tuned and check the link in bio every couple of days as sales and new designs will be poppin off in September. This week it’s 10% off and free shipping over $35!

I’m looking forward to a weekend full of Black excellence, opulence and artistic expression at the ʜᴀʀʟᴇᴍ ғᴀsʜɪᴏɴ ᴡᴇᴇᴋ™] NYFW Season 10 Runway Show weekend Sept 2-4th! Check out some of the most cutting edge, upcoming Black designers and models hitting the runway - the show will be one for the books! And they will be honoring major cultural icons like Ellie Diop, Dapper Dan to Ashley Sharpton! I’m am excited to be a vendor at the Friday, Sept 2 “Stop the Violence” showcase. I will be featuring new goodies and designs from my trip to Ghana. Many of you know me as a jewelry designer, but much of my community work is around ending intimate partner violence and gun violence in our communities and I’m grateful that, true to spirit, ʜᴀʀʟᴇᴍ ғᴀsʜɪᴏɴ ᴡᴇᴇᴋ™] always lifts up topics in our communities for empowerment and transformative change. Click the link in their bio to register for a weekend full of events in Black Fashion in Harlem!

I really enjoyed our road trip across Ghana. So grateful for new friendships, beading/jewelry buddies and inspiration for creativity, entrepreneurship and spiritual formation! Blessed to have friends who connected me to solid folks across Ghana who showed a lot of love. This is my second favorite pic from the trip as it captures a pure moment of joy as I hold brass beads at ‘s shop in the Kumasi Market. I felt like a kid in a candy store! His selection was awesome but most important, he is a generous, honest and resourceful business man. If you ever visit Ghana, stop by his shop in Kumasi, it will bless you!

2022 was one of the most challenging years for me personally and this trip did what it needed to do. For all this, I give thanks! 🙌🏾 stay tuned as I upload new designs and goodies inspired by the motherland! ghana

Full circle moment. I spent time last month in my families homeland of Euwtaville South Carolina, getting rooted. Stood my bare feet on the Gilliard family ancestrial land that my formerly enslaved great great grandfather bought. I visited the Slave mart of Charleston and the McLeod Plantation to get a deeper understanding of what our ancestors endured on this land. Today my Sis and I visited the slave Castle in Cape Coast, heard very similar stories from the Slave Fort in Jamestown. I walked though the Door of No Return. And when I looked back I saw a sign that said “door of return” but I assumed I read it too fast and I tuned back to listen to our tour guide. He then pointed to the sign and said, “you walked though the door of no return, now you will walk though the door of return”. I started to tear up trying to keep my composure but I thought - no this is for me, for us, if I can’t be vulnerable here- then where? I wasn’t sad, it’s the weight of this moment knowing my ancestors (my father has Ghanaian ancestry and other African tribes came though this castle) might have gone through those doors and here I am coming back.

I give honor, thanks and praise to my ancestors that perished in this trade and those who survived so we can bear the fruit of freedom today and those who remained enduring massive loss and colonialism. This was a full circle moment. We came back, we came home from where our ancestors were taken. Our future is one of healing, reconciliation, and building together. Our tribe of African Americans, Blacks, FBA, the many names we call ourselves reconciling, healing, and restoring what can be restored and building new with our siblings on the continent and here in the US.

I’m proud of us as African Americans, our vibrant culture that gets copied in American popular culture all the way to Kumerica, our cuisine, our spiritually, our politics and resistance, fight for liberation, our dance and song. There is opportunity for us to learn more about our African siblings, and we have gifts to share as well to build up our global African family.

Happy Saturday!!!! What’s cooking? The sale is still on for one more week before I take a short break. Shop while supplies last! Check the link in bio