Camera Roll is an interview series where we glimpse into the current moment via the mundane and the ordinary — the life documented and forgotten, lived through our phones and beyond.
Designer Sarah Brown has done art direction and styling for everyone from local bead stores to Sandy Liang — her multigenerational Bostonian family calls her “ahtsy-fahtsy,” and she admits she is. She’s taken some of the practical New England lessons her dad taught her with her on her professional journey, aiming to create pieces suited to anyone who walks the streets of New York with their hands full at AUTO, the bag brand she created with her friend Connor Stankard. We spoke with Sarah about her Dario Argento-inspired phone upgrade, starting a brand over drinks at Clandestino, her ‘thing for grapes,’ and more.
what kind of phone do you have and how many images are on it?
I have an iPhone 15 Pro that I got recently, and I’m actually mad about the camera because it’s too good. I miss my iPhone 12 camera, which had less of a sharp focus and more muted colors — but I did get a shiny red case that makes me like it more. I was watching this Dario Argento movie and someone used a corded shiny red phone. I felt so envious of that. There are 21,438 images on it. This is something that is constantly stressing me out — the idea that there’s beautiful images on here that I can’t find because there are too many others. But I hate deleting any of them.
When did you get your first phone, and what do you remember about it?
My dad and I went to get our first cell phones together when I was in 8th grade, and we got the same one. It was the black Nokia 8210. I played so much snake on it.
How long do you typically spend on your phone in a day? Do you keep track?
Too long — but I am very good about charging it in the other room at night, so I don’t look at it for the last hour before bed.
what is your morning routine like?
I’ve been trying to have more consistency in my routine and not always be semi-working, so what I’ve been doing is waking up around 7:30 or 8 am. I drink coffee and read magazines for half an hour, take my dog out for a walk (he’s really good about sleeping in — one of his amazing qualities), and then I do this dance workout that’s very ‘90s aerobics-feeling before I sit down at my computer.
can you describe your lock screen? what made you choose it?
Star-shaped grapes. I know it’s photoshopped but it just makes me so happy to look at. I also have this photo of grapes hanging in a fruit market in Lisbon in my camera roll. It makes me really happy. I love the way that the shopkeeper arranged them to make this beautiful sculpture-looking design. I guess I have a thing for grapes.
where are passersby likely to spot you? what are you doing there?
Carrying too much stuff in Midtown — one of each model of our AUTO bags, one of those giant plaid Chinatown bags, probably my phone in my hand, and maybe my dog’s leash in the other hand.
Tell us a little bit about your background and journey. Where did you grow up and what was it like?
I grew up in the Boston area, near my mom’s huge, loud, Irish Catholic family. It’s very Massachusetts — my uncle has his own lobster traps and everyone has thick Boston accents. They all love me but think I’m a freak and call me “ahtsy fahtsy” — and they definitely don’t understand what my job is.
How did you first get into styling and design?
I started working at a bead store in high school and got into making my own jewelry, which led me to a career in the industry. That gradually expanded to other accessories and styling and being involved in the marketing side of things. When I started working with Sandy Liang, I was styling and art directing the jewelry campaigns in addition to designing with her. I love seeing designs all the way through, from initial concept to final photos. I started my own handbag company with my friend Connor Marie Stankard in December, so I’ve been focusing on that and picking up freelance art direction and styling work on the side. I love collaborating with other people. I think it challenges you to make better things.
It’s really crazy how personal things feel when it’s your own project. We launched December 7 and I’ve already learned so much more than I did in years of working for other brands. It’s also super different working with people face-to-face in NYC, rather than over email with factories overseas.
Tell us about AUTO. What was the inspiration behind it?
Connor and I started AUTO over beers at Clandestino. We both had an idea for a handbag that we really wanted to make. Connor totally came up with the name. She was like, “What about Auto — because bags are cars for girls?” And I was like, “You’re a genius.”
We went back and forth with how much we wanted to lean into the car slogan visually. We brought in my friend Steven Yatsko pretty early on to work on the brand imagery with us. He came to our first creative meeting with this big stack of ‘90s car magazines.
How do you find visual references for your styling and design work? What are some important influences for you?
I would say older women and movies inform me the most for styling, but I also just pay attention to what’s around me. We were at Toad Hall the other night, and there’s this beautiful bartender — she’s been working there for decades. She was wearing a beret, a buttoned-up cardigan, and leather pants. I wish I could pull off a beret, but I’m definitely going to copy the cardigan and leather pants combination. And movies — the French ones from the ‘70s are endlessly inspiring. And Manga — I love going to Kinokuniya and looking at the book covers on the top floor for styling inspiration. We live in a Hasidic neighborhood in Brooklyn, and I love the outfits the women wear; on the sabbath, they wear these white bandanas. And something about the proportions of a short puffer jacket and slim maxi skirt are so perfect to me. I really like opposing things together, like a bomber jacket and pearls or chipped nail polish with a suit.
I’m obsessed with designs being super practical, which I think I get from my dad. He has always sailed and would say to me, “Everything has a place on the boat.” It’s a small space, and you can’t have things knocking around when you’re on the water. I try to bring this into my designs: I want to make things that look cool, but I also hate when something is too heavy or uncomfortable.
Are there things you feel like you must capture on your phone, or ones that are better left just lived in the moment? Do you go back and delete things?
I do the classic thing of deleting photos when I’m on the plane. I’ll pick a random year or location and just start sorting through those.
What do your days look like?
Every day is different. I’ll describe one day last week. I went to our studio on Canal to work, ate soup dumplings on Mott, got my sunglasses tightened at Optical 88, met Connor to pick up leather and lining in Midtown, went for a Guinness at Peter McManus, picked up Indian food on the way home, and watched Birth starring Nicole Kidman.
How do you make time for your personal life and strike the balance between work and free time?
This is really hard for me, especially now that I have my own company, because I look at my phone for work and then open Instagram, or go to text a friend and end up opening my work email. I recently turned off my email notifications, and I also try to carry a book around as much as possible to have something to look at besides my phone.
Any advice for those who want to get into your field?
Find inspiration offline — remember that everyone is looking at the same things if they’re on the internet. And be nice to people.
What are you watching and reading?
I’ve been really into Catherine Breillat lately. She portrays women and girls in a really honest way that can sometimes be ugly.
Right now I’m reading Imperial Bedrooms by Bret Easton Ellis because I’m on my way to LA. I’m also reading The Use of Photography by Annie Ernaux, which is sort of a blend of memoir and art writing. It’s a good book to bring to the bar because the chapters are short.
For newsletters, I always read Kaitlin Phillips’s Gift Guide.
Favorite thing you’ve bought or come to possess in the past year?
My husband gave me a bottle pendant by Elsa Peretti for Tiffany that he found on eBay. His grandmother was a taxidermist and she gave me this white fur coat that has her name embroidered on the inside.