Thistle & Clover is thrilled to be the first store on the East Coast to represent the effortlessly chic collection of Sunday’s Best, the brainchild of Brooklyn-based Sophia Keleta and Samira Chung. Their delicate wooden cutout necklaces, and girlish friendship bangles (cast from actual friendship bangles) are sure to be this season’s must-have accessories!

Tell us how you met and how you decided to start collaborating on a jewelry line.
We met through mutual friends when we first moved to New York (Sophia-CA, Samira-AZ) and have been friends ever since. In the beginning we bonded over our mutual love for jewelry and design and started playing around with different ideas. What started out as a fun experiment quickly grew into a business as people became interested in our pieces.

Why Sunday’s Best? What does the idea of putting on one’s Sunday’s best mean to you?
The expression “Sunday’s Best” represents the notion of adorning oneself with prized possessions reserved for special occasions. We strive to create jewelry that invokes the same feeling of pride and confidence associated with putting on your “Sunday’s Best.”

Your designs really reflect a marriage of your family histories and backgrounds. Tell us a little about where you each come from and how you incorporate your backgrounds into your work?
Sophia: I always cherished my mother’s collection of Pakistani jewelry and heirlooms. Growing up, I would take advantage of every opportunity to rummage through her jewelry box. Also, trips to visit my family in Eritrea have left me with memories of vivid colors and dynamic patterns—themes that can be found in our jewelry collection.

Samira: My eclectic taste is an outcome of growing up in Equatorial Guinea (Africa), Montreal and Arizona. I’ve inherited my love for intricate patterns and detailed handiwork from my grandmother who used to weave beautiful Persian rugs and tapestries and from my father who has a gift of creating beautiful objects out of leather, wood and metal.

What are your favorite pieces in the collection?
Sophia: My favorites tend to rotate—right now, I’m loving the Octagon Emblem necklace and I always wear a friendship bracelet bangle because they look great with everything!

Samira: I love the double chain detail and the vintage look of the Keyhole necklace.
The Rounded Hex Plate necklace is another favorite because it’s a nice everyday piece that looks great alone or paired with a longer necklace.

Which designers are you inspired by?
Miuccia Prada – Prada never ceases to amaze us. Her use of color is impeccable and the prints are always inspiring. Kelly Wearstler, we’re crazy about her glamorous interiors; Rei Kawakubo of Comme des Garcons; and Hussein Chalayan.

Why did you choose to live in Brooklyn? (Samira lives in Clinton Hill, Sophia lives in Park Slope-The Sunday’s Best studio is located in Clinton Hill.)
We thrive off the diversity and creative energy that flows through Brooklyn. It’s beautiful and the neighborhoods are rich with culture and history – not to mention that the food is great too!

Tell us: What’s it really like working with your best friend?
We’re really enjoying collaborating and learning from each other – working together has actually brought us closer. We thrive off of each other’s passion and it’s great to have someone to brainstorm and problem solve with. Of course, a partnership means compromise and sometimes disagreeing but it’s these challenges that make our work interesting and diverse.

Where do you see the line going? What are you working on for the upcoming year? 
We’re currently working on some rings for next season and are excited about working with precious gems and stones. We’ve also had a lot of fun working with materials like wood and rope this season and look forward to introducing more mixed materials into our next collection.