Sydnee Mejia is a Creative Director based in Santa Fe, New Mexico, with a practice spanning design, hospitality, and the arts. Raised between California and Mexico City, she draws from nature, travel, and old-world craftsmanship to shape work that’s both tactile and emotionally resonant. Her experience ranges from agency to independent projects—including the concept development of Brooklyn’s Strange Delight, praised by The New Yorker for its “food-nerdy reverence.” Sydnee brings a grounded yet transportive sensibility to every visual world she builds.
I just meditated and had a black coffee while listening to morning birds in my yard. Very awake.
My abuelita used to have a food stand in front of our family house in Mexico City. When you sat next to her, you could watch neighborhood drama unfold, boisterous men playing cards down the street, and random people of all ages coming up to chat.
Last was New York. Next is Greece, then Peru. I’m hiking to Machu Picchu.
Upon revisiting the Redwoods National Park as an adult, I learned about the interesting behaviors of the old growth trees and some amazing details of that forest. Surprising fact; birds fly in from the Pacific Coast that carry small crustaceans on their feathers and when they fly up into the trees the crustaceans sluff off. There are small ecosystems sustaining living tiny crustaceans way up in the canopies.
The Oaxaca coast, I’ve been going since I was a teen.
In my kitchen full of people I adore, we were cooking several courses, the gossip and laughter was flowing, music blasting, joints and mezcal passed around, and lots of dancing.
A drive up to see the Abiquiú rock formations and the Chile Toreado truck for breakfast burritos.
Any place where I can feel warm nature near me. For two weeks I worked out of a house in Mallorca, it was perched on a hill, the desk had french windows surrounding it, letting in the ocean breeze. I could see the coast from behind my computer. My creativity was flowing there.
Sometimes witnessing service staff get mistreated by customers. There’s a lot of people out there dining who have never worked a service industry job, and it shows.
Deep savoury and salty, sometimes I just eat a spoonful of miso paste.
The homogenization of design. And the obsession with rock climbing in the lesbian community.
My 1988 Toyota 4runner with a soft top.
Marine biologist or elder caregiver.
A coastal smoky jungle, in a nature integrated home.
Most? Flexibility and an open mind. I believe that it’s important to not overplan travel. Least? Someone on their phone the entire time.
The ability to be in a constant state of multitasking. What is the point of making a full plate if you can’t taste any of it? To feel full, I guess. But we can all benefit from some presence in our lives.
My adobe home and acre of land in a mountain village in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
A vehicle made after 1999. Too much plastic and computers.
I sometimes deplore the small town energy, it can feel confining. I love the views, the air and some of the most interesting special people I’ve ever met are from here.
The energy you put out into the Universe is quite often the energy you'll receive in return.
