Notes From Home: Dezso’s Sara Beltran

Sara Beltran, designer of jewelry collection Dezso, has always intrigued me because she uses her biggest influence—the ocean, in the most atypical way. Rather than being ephemeral and shimmery, her work is sexy, edgy and elegant. I have become a big fan and friend of Sara (she is a lot of fun and has the best laugh that makes you feel as if you’re both complicit in doing something naughty), so I was thrilled she agreed to answer my Quarantine Questionnaire. She loves sharing her work and inspiration on Instagram, (see link at end) which is also the best way to get in touch with her if you’re inclined to do a little shopping.

What are you wearing often? I’ve been very into kind of a uniform, most of the days white jeans by Goldsign with either a navy blue sweater or black sweatshirt or an old vintage sweatshirt. A pleated, flowy black skirt and black sweater to feel more feminine, my jewelry and my navy blue Charvet slippers, and of course my Dezso navy kimono makes me feel very elegant.

What are you wearing too often? My sweatshirts and cashmere sweater–all from Uniqlo men’s, my only shoes–Nikes to go out, and Charvet slippers at home.

Your go-to video conference outfit: I don’t do conference video calls, only with my family for staying in touch, mainly with my oldest nephew Jesus, whom we call Canelito or Birdie. I’ve been trying to teach him Spanish, it’s fun, I love them so much.

Favorite place at home to sit and work: The living room at the end of my sofa on the right side to be closer to the window.

Latest read: Not really into reading, I get distracted very fast.

Online rabbit hole: Every morning I watch Cuomo’s briefing. It’s the must of the day, once this is over I’ll miss his, “Good morning everybody” every morning. 

New Insta discovery: I spend lots of time on IG, but talking to friends and customers and doing my stories, not really navigating.

Daily ritual you practice: Working out, watching Cuomo and cooking. 

Daily ritual you’ve abandoned: Meeting friends for fun and quality time; I miss them so much. And going to my studio, one of my favorite places to hang out, it’s so cozy.

New skill you’ve mastered: Cooking for sure, I hadn’t had the time to cook in forever, now I cook lunch and dinner and I am super happy, I’ve only ordered takeout two times since we started quarantine. And most important, I have now become a master of the Aperol Spritz. One of my favorite Friday routines is doing the bed sheets–hand-steaming them so they look beautiful and I can start enjoying my weekend. I love pretty things and interiors. It’s very important to me that everything looks pretty, and it’s all in its place all the time.

Old skill you’ve put back in use: Painting–it’s very therapeutic.

Favorite new recipe: I love cooking vegetables in a wok, just simple with garlic and jalapeños. 

Mood booster: Seeing the progress and hope from getting the “New Normal”  facts every day by Cuomo–that’s the morning mood essential, my boxing training four times a week, and yoga class four times a week with my fav guru Juan @Juan_yogi–all musts to maintain perspective. 

Favorite hour of the day: 6:30  or 7:00 pm when I talk to my friend David every day, we laugh so much. It’s easy and it’s kind of the time to start closing the day and add one more to the quarantine….Tik Tok, is it over yet???

Favorite COVID-related cause: There are so many it’s hard to pick one. I have been trying to help all the ones friends send to support, I think it’s important to help the most we can. 

Something you love to do that you can share with others: That I feel very grateful, as it’s a very difficult time we are going through, and if I think about it, I am very, very lucky–I am healthy and all my love ones are, too. It’s been a wake up call. I have been trying to embrace every day and just keep telling myself, “one day at a time, we are going to be fine”. Some days are harder the others. The first week I was very sad and had a meltdown, but then I knew it was just a matter of adjusting to what was next. Life is like that. You have to learn to adjust and keep evolving. “Stay positive”.

How are you looking at your business differently? Before quarantine, my business was changing already. I love communicating with my clients through Instagram and I love presenting my designs through images. I am also working on my website and re-designing it with my sister, I’ve been doing all the photography, that’s coming soon.

What do you miss most? My freedom of moving around without thinking about it. Now every move is super carefully planned in a way.

Where will you go on your first post-pandemic trip? To visit my family and meet my newborn nephew Mateo, then right after to a beach to take a few day off and be in nature. 

What do you hope the new normal brings? I would love things and the world to become more old school. For people to show more of their love and respect for each other and the world, and less of massive industries. I like quality in products and that’s how we should think about less is more. We have been in quarantine now for so long, we don’t need anything more than human contact. For me it’s been great as I was already in the mood to change the way I was living my life–I had been traveling like crazy. Since last fall, I decided to be present and fall back in love with NY. It’s been perfect timing to stop and live in the moment. I am happy to be in quarantine in my beloved NY.

Follow Sara: Instagram.