In this series of articles, we feature several members who make up our amazing sisterhood. They all come from different backgrounds and have different passions and talents, but they all share one commonality: They are Tri Delta.
Hableland is a magical place. Located in Athens, Georgia, the design studio of Hable Construction is a constant moving environment of color, form and art, filled with energy, music and creativity. Just steps outside the door is a garden where Susan Hable Smith, Alabama, and her design team draw inspiration.
“It’s where all of our ideas flow into the products and art that we sell,” Susan says of Hableland, “We paint every day and take cues from the garden that changes with the seasons and plantings…All of the creative work and concepts come out of the studio.”
Sixteen years ago, Susan and her sister Katharine Hable Sweeney, Mississippi, started their business Hable Construction, taking the name from their family’s now defunct road construction company. They merged their two talents — Katharine’s business experience with Susan’s artistic ability — to create personal accessories that they sold to customers like Barney’s. After a couple of years, they decided to shift the focus of their New York-based business to the home market, developing home accessories and textiles such as fabrics.
“We wanted to pave roads of a different sort and let the business move and change as the market shifted and as our interests expanded,” Katharine explains. “Textiles was a natural fit after making things by hand at the beginning. It was always about the fabrics, and when the idea came about to make actual yardage to make into an array of products, we felt it was the best next step.”
Today, the company’s portfolio includes fabrics, a furniture collection with Hickory Chair, a glass collection for wall divisions for hospitality and healthcare, home decorative accessories, mirrors, and even an interior design book, “A Colorful Home,” written by Susan.
Though the sisters attended different universities, they found the same sisterhood, and both attribute their own personal growth and development to Tri Delta.
“Tri Delta reinforced the life skills that our parents taught us and encouraged us to be strong women,” says Susan. She adds that the characteristics Tri Delta reinforced in her life are “graciousness, being open-hearted and supportive of those who are in need, and the ability to maintain a high level of expectation of oneself.”
Katharine says that Tri Delta taught her teamwork and “the amazing goodness of philanthropy.” Tri Delta has also given her a network of close friends and sisters. “Having good friends through such a tight network is an amazing gift, and through Tri Delta, it’s one that has lasted 30 years.”
There are more than 200,000 Tri Deltas around the world who make up our sisterhood. Tri Delta wants to hear from YOU! What makes you unique? Tell us on social media using the hashtag #IamTriDelta.