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The things worth returning to
Some things stay with us because, years later, they still feel right. A reflection on personal style, design, longevity and knowing what deserves to stay.
There is something lovely about finding your way back to an object, or a special piece you once loved.
Not because it has suddenly become fashionable again. Not because someone has told you it matters. Simply because, after some time apart, it still feels right.
I’ve been thinking about this lately.
As a designer, I’m usually looking ahead. There is always another idea in my head, another drawing on the bench, another shape I want to explore
But making something new doesn’t mean everything that came before has lost its relevance.
When I look back at earlier designs, I often notice something I didn’t see at the time. A proportion or composition I still love. A line that still feels strong. A piece that has lasted beyond the moment in which it was made.
Those are often the pieces I find most interesting.
Maybe you do something similar with the things you choose to live with.
Over time, we become better at recognising the difference between something we bought on impulse and something that genuinely feels like it belongs to us.
The coat we keep reaching for.
The chair we would never replace.
The artwork we still notice, even after years on the same wall.
The jewellery that continues to feel like us, even as we change.
I find that reassuring.
We are constantly exposed to new. New colours. New seasons. New trends... But new isn’t always better.
Sometimes refinement is simply becoming clearer about what deserves to stay.
Recently, I’ve been looking back through earlier inSync work with that thought in mind.
I wasn’t asking, “Was this popular?”
I was asking:
Would I still make this today?
For some pieces, the answer was immediately yes.
They came from different moments in the studio, but I could still see the ideas that matter to me: movement, asymmetry, lightness, contrast and the pleasure of a strong form that doesn’t need embellishment.
So I made them again.
There is something quietly satisfying about that.
Perhaps the more useful question isn’t always:
What’s new?
Maybe it is:
What is still good?
What do I still love?
What still feels relevant?
What still feels like me?
And what is worth returning to?
Iris x
About Creative Reflections
Creative Reflections is a journal by Iris Saar Isaacs, founder and designer of Melbourne wearable art jewellery studio inSync design. It is a place to explore creativity, personal style, design and the confidence to trust your own taste.