Who We Are
We believe that every life is a story.
You can shape your story when you can see it clearly.
Clarity is emotional.
Knowing yourself is the first act of personal empowerment.
Through storytelling, ritual, and design, Kume offers people tools and experiences to understand who they are and what they feel.
We are honored to be part of your journey.
Meet Yelka: Our Founder
Before Kume House was born, our founder, Yelka, was a young girl growing up in New York City, listening to her baba (father) speak about the power of stories. He often reminded her of their Finah heritage—a lineage of Mande storytellers, poets, and historians from West Africa who preserved culture and made meaning from life’s most difficult moments. To him, storytelling wasn’t just entertainment; it was responsibility, connection, and a way of life.
Years later, when Yelka began therapy and started telling her own story, she finally understood what her baba had been trying to teach her. She realized that story is everywhere—it's what we breathe, feed ourselves, and live by—whether we are aware of it or not. And when she gave language to her own questions, joys, confusions, and transitions, she discovered something profound:
Storytelling could be a tool for emotional clarity and well-being.
Through reflection, she noticed that we are all carrying stories—some that anchor us, some that inspire us, and some that quietly limit us. And when we name them or rewrite them, we begin to live with more presence, agency, and intention, both inside and out.
Kume House grew out of that understanding.
Yelka wanted to create a modern home for the wisdom she inherited—a place where people could practice telling their stories with guidance, thoughtful tools, and gentle space. A place where clarity feels accessible, where reflection feels calming rather than heavy, and where emotional wellness is rooted in meaning and connection.
Today, Kume House continues her family’s legacy in a contemporary form.
Each journal, workshop, and gathering invites people to pause, reflect, and reconnect with themselves—to make sense of life’s chapters, transform old narratives, and imagine new ones.
At its heart, Kume House is a practice of returning to yourself—
a home for grounding, storytelling, and intentional living.
“KUME”
The Meaning Behind the Name
In the Mande language from West Africa, the word “kume” holds multiple meanings. One meaning is “conversation.”
Our tools and experiences are your “kume” — they represent your conversation with yourself and your unique story.
Five-Star Rating from our Customers
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“Firs journal I’ve eve actually “finished”!Just ordered my second. Really well thought-out structure that gives me an outlet for self-processing and creativity.
—Kat F.
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“I bought my first Kume journal in person, and have had such a wonderful experience using it, I had to buy one for my sister. Aside from the high-quality beauty of the book itself, the info in the front, and the quotes on each page are really helpful in settling my mind and expanding my understanding. Though using the journal, I’ve had a much easier time recognizing patterns in my thoughts about myself, and the prompts really push me to reframe and treat myself with more kindness and clarity. It’s “wonderfully” therapeutic. If you’re on the fence about the purchase, go for it, you truly won’t regret it, and it might be exactly what you need”
—Mary H
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“Absolutely incredible journal! I ordered it as a gift for our company’s Employee Advocacy group, and it was a HUGE hit! Thank you for creating such a beautiful and functional product.”
—Angie B
