Q&A With Darling Founder Sarah Dubbeldam
From the moment I met Sarah Dubbledam, I knew our paths would continue to cross. Sarah has been along for the Jackie journey and she recently launched the Darling clothing line that Jackie now will be making available to our clients. This timeless collection will be sure to speak to you in every walk of life. I wanted to sit down and hear from Sarah and ask questions that would educate all of our readers about the brand and the mission behind it.
So, how did you and Amber meet?
We met at a Darling retreat! We were sitting across the table from one another at our Darling Dinner the first night and had the greatest conversation. I discovered that she was a successful entrepreneur and after the event, asked her to mentor me. I admire her confidence and ability to stay optimistic; she’s walked me through many seasons of my business!
Can you share why you created Darling and who you were hoping to reach with the message?
I created Darling out of my own personal need when I was 22 years old. My friend Kelli and I wrote the mission statement together as a description of the type of women we wanted to become, and our hope for the future of feminism. We saw a hole in the market for relatable, heartfelt, and honest articles that dealt with real issues we ourselves were facing such as anxiety, depression, career direction, and relational advice. We also felt that the depiction of “beauty” was unattainable and narrow in modern media, so decided to become the first women’s magazine to not retouch women’s skin or bodies and use diverse sizing on our covers and throughout the magazine. We hoped to reach women with the message of “you are a work of art,” not in need of alteration, but beautiful as you are—especially from the inside out.
Is Darling Magazine still around?
Yes! We just released Issue No. 26, currently available on darlingsociety.com. We are hoping to do one or two issues per year.
What inspired you to take Darling in the direction you have with the new clothing line?
During covid, we had to halt all our production on the magazine, so we had the margin to dream more about the future of the brand. We’ve always wanted to expand beyond the magazine and reach more people with our mission. Clothing came into view because we felt like getting dressed every morning is so closely related to our self-esteem, and we could encourage women who buy our clothing with our mission. Our goal is that when women wear the clothing, they are reminded of our message and feel encouraged daily.
Is there a community element to Darling?
Yes! We have an Ambassador program that allows women to represent our brand, and this is building the community element of our brand through our Darling Dinners, pop-up shops, and other future events. As a group of women, we hone in on different themes per season and create conversations in our communities and on social media that further our positive message.
Where does the inspiration come from for the styles you are creating?
The original inspiration came from me wanting the line to have a European yet attainable aesthetic for the everyday woman. The goal has always been that it’s classic, easy, and diverse and can be mixed and matched. Our team is very diverse in age and we are all in different life stages. Some of us are mothers as well, so we all bring in inspirational pieces that we like, and then our designer uses that as direction to create original pieces. So it’s definitely a group effort! As the Creative Director, I keep an eye on the consistency of the look and feel, trying to make it feel like it’s the style of the magazine comes to life!
Who is your style icon and why?
I really love Alexa Chung. She’s so chic and “cool” yet doesn’t seem to try too hard. She mixes dressy with casual and is super creative with the way she styles herself. There’s always an element of surprise in her outfits!
About Darling
Darling Magazine began in 2012 as the first magazine to not retouch women’s skin or bodies and fill a need for deeper conversations around mind and soul wellness. In 2023, they decided to expand into a lifestyle brand offering a clothing line and home décor products in hopes that their message of “you are a work of art” stays with you as you wear their clothing.
Follow along with Sarah and Darling: Darling’s Instagram | Sarah’s Instagram | Darling Magazine
