Move over, friendsgiving. SISMAS is here.
It’s not a new thing, though. Simone Smith, jewelry designer and wife of LL Cool J, has been hosting a sisterhood centered holiday celebration for over a decade. This year, she gathered a group of “chicks in tuxedos” to celebrate the holiday season at a private estate in Upper Brookville, New York.
The event allows Smith to express appreciation for the “honesty and love” found in sisterhood and the women in her life who provide it. “I’m very intentional about celebrating friendships,” she tells ESSENCE. “We always celebrate one another. It’s so important because life is to be lived.” In addition to being a nod to sisterhood, SISMAS is also a play on Smith’s initials and the name of her popular jewelry line, Simone I. Smith, which delivers “the hottest hoops” and more to women all over. “They all call me ‘SIS,'” she says.
Smith grew up watching her grandmother build community by hosting prayer breakfasts. She would spend weekends in the kitchen helping her prepare to host. Now, she’s taken up the mantel of hosting. She routinely leads prayer meetings and bible studies and was previously known for throwing lavish barbecues and other fun events to connect women in New York. But it was a partial relocation to Los Angeles that inspired her to create SISMAS.
“When my husband started working in Los Angeles, on the television show, I think maybe the second year he was working, I said, you know what? I have to get together with the girls, and we’ll do something,” she says. “My husband would always say to me like I don’t know how you can gather the women that you gather, and all my girlfriends say that too. I get that from my grandmother.”
SISMAS is more than just a place to celebrate old friends though; it’s an opportunity to connect with new ones. Smith recently welcomed Crystal Etienne, an investor and the founder of period-proof apparel brand Ruby Love, into her sister circle.
“I met Crystal a little over a year ago through one of my besties, Debbie,” she says. Attending a social event at Etienne’s home allowed her to recognize that they both loved bringing people together. “She just had this gathering of women all Black and brown, and everybody was doing something, you know? Doing their own thing. It was just so amazing to see that she was able to gather women,” she says. With that in mind, this year, they co-hosted SISMAS.
During this year’s celebration, guests dressed in the playful tuxedo theme were welcomed into a winter wonderland with a mechanical dancing Black Santa, trivia games, a runway display, multiple Christmas trees, and a signature SISMAS sign. The theme changes annually, allowing everyone to express their personal style.
Attendees gathered for this year’s SISMAS toasted with matte black goblets of Mary J. Blige’s Sun Goddess wines, and guests also snacked on crisp salmon cakes, savory cabbage, and more dishes from Soul Food Sunday’s Chef Tosha.
Celebrities like Justine Simmons, wife of Run DMC’s Rev Run, Mary J. Blige, and other guests were suited up to play games, trade compliments, and playfully poke at one another throughout the evening. The hostess floated from room to room, hugging and laughing with her friends in a black tux with a purple tie. Her lavender eyeshadow matched her choice of shoe for the night: Air Force 1s.
“It’s just really about getting together with your girlfriends, your sister friends, your friends that you call up when anything is bothering you,” she says. “It’s about fellowship and just togetherness and dancing and singing and laughing and putting on talent shows.”
Even though the night was rooted in joy, there was some stiff competition during the talent show. The ladies didn’t come to play. One guest in a sage green tuxedo shimmied down the hallway while Simmons incorporated a rap performance into her presentation. Another contestant sauntered in a satin crimson number that she accessorized with a cowboy hat adorned with crystals.
There were men present amid the group of women, and one came with a special mission. He was the boyfriend of Smith’s good friend Debbie Robinson, and the hostess shared the spotlight with him so that he could propose at the party. The guests flooded outside to hide the proposal prop, which was a lighted “Marry Me” sign that was cleverly hidden by the glow of the SISMAS decorations. Robinson’s close friends were front and center as her beau popped the question. It was one joyous moment amid a whole evening’s worth of them, brought to life by Smith. She couldn’t have been happier as she honored all of the women in her life.
“God has blessed us with this life to be of service. So I’m always of service, whether it’s my girlfriends, whether it’s my husband, my children, my church, my business,” she says. “I think that one of our purposes of life is to serve others.”