Dallas’ Gen-Z Martha Stewart and Friend of Mine Founder, Kenzie Elizabeth, Releases Her Most Prized Product Yet

If Martha Stewart was a Dallasite, she’d be Kenzie Elizabeth Piper. The 27-year-old is all Gen-Z with a dash of Stewart, Dolly Parton, and Nancy Meyers. She’s an eponymous serial hobbyist with a resume beyond her years. 

Piper has made a career out of her deep affection for homemaking and connection. This holiday season, her home and lifestyle brand, Friend of Mine, is doing its part to ensure the spirit of the season doesn’t slip through the cracks. 

Friend of Mine recently released Family Cards, a multigenerational family conversation card game. It’s Piper’s most cherished product yet, dedicated to her late younger brother, Kody Piper. 

“If I’ve learned anything after the year my family and I have faced with the loss of my little brother, it’s that the only thing that really matters on this earth are the relationships you keep close,” Piper shared on Instagram the day of the release.

How Friend of Mine Got Started

Friend of Mine launched in September 2023 with Piper’s six-time sold-out recipe journal. The homebody-focused brand released Dinner Cards, a conversation-starting game primed for hosting must-attend dinner parties. Since then, the brand’s product offerings have grown to include Night Cap cards, Book Club cards (which are now sold in-store at Dallas’ romance-only bookstore Blush), three cover versions of the recipe journal, a recipe binder, and needlepoint canvases. 

If Piper’s name sounds familiar, it’s because the Friend of Mine founder is a YouTube sensation. Since the age of 15, Piper has amassed a kinship with her audience, amassing 365,000 followers on YouTube, 111,000 Instagram followers, and 99,300 TikTok followers. 

Her podcast, House Guest with Kenzie Elizabeth, has curated a nationwide community connecting 20-something-year-olds through their love of homemaking, gardening, reading, wellness, cooking, needlepoint, dinner parties, hosting, and more. She’s front-lined the influencer era, proudly staking her claim as Gen-Z’s Martha Stewart. 

Friend of Mine leans into togetherness, homemaking, and memory-making. 

“The brand, as a whole, is very nostalgic and healing,” Piper tells PaperCity. “A lot of it, too, comes from having a family that was so divided, and now, as an adult, I want to bring everyone together.”

Human connection is unintentionally woven through Piper’s resume. She’s curious by profession. It’s her job to ask people questions. Her interest is genuine. She’s a comforting, open book whose familial connections are the backbone of her brand.

“There would be no Friend of Mine if it weren’t for my parents, my grandma, my mom, and my aunts,” Piper says. 

Why Kenzie Elizabeth Created Family Cards

Friend of Mine’s latest product is heartwarming. Piper knew early into the brand’s development that she’d release Family Cards. When her younger brother unexpectedly died this January, the development felt imminent. Piper leaned on Friend of Mine to process her grief. 

“Friend of Mine as a whole has been a really amazing distraction,” says Piper. “For lack of a better word, it’s given me something to look forward to and to work on. It’s been a very healthy coping mechanism.” 

Kody Piper’s quizzical nature is the root of the Family Cards.

“My little brother asked questions, literally nonstop, and it was so annoying as kids, but now I’m really grateful for that,” Piper says.

The 75-card game is divided into three generational categories, including grandparents, parents, and sibling cards. If your family is untraditional, so is Piper’s. These cards are still for you, she assures.

Piper and her grandmother are connected at the hip. Their connection has grown deeper through the memory-making game. She’s learned her father’s childhood anthems and even had a giggle-filled discussion about her high school loves with her elementary-aged niece while playing the game. 

The cards have brought her family together when they needed it the most. She hopes they do the same for others this holiday season.

“Hold your family a little tighter this holiday season,” Piper said in the Instagram post. “Spend more time together, ask questions, get off your phones. My hope and prayer for these cards is that they create moments you never forget with the people you love the most.”