California

I am now living in Southern California.  I have not totally assimilated.   The older I get the longer it takes for me to adapt to change.  When I was in my 20's I could move from Seattle to Thailand, then California and back to Thailand.  Now I just moved a few states away and I felt a lot of anxiety and insomnia.  It is funny how one gets set in their ways as the decades move on.   Is it an age thing or is it because we are wiser and are parents, so its not just about me anymore?  Its about other people as well.

I just hope I don't have to move for a long time, unless its like a super cool reason.  Everything is new, new living space, new grocery store, new hair place, new doctors, new pharmacy, new vet, new schools, new friends, new faces, new neighbors, new car wash, new laundry mat, new streets, new way to recycle, new weather, new building, new everything.  The first few times I was driving back to our new apartment I got lost.

Hopefully I am not too stuck in my ways to adapt to the new everything, because some of the new could be better than what I had in Seattle.  So far, the weather is better.  The rest...TBD.

Goodbye Washington! Seven Years.

Me on Washington Coast

I grew up in Washington State.  It has been good and bad to me.   I feel like times flies very fast when I live in Seattle, but nothing changes, and everything stays the same.   People are not as open in Seattle, it might have something to do with the rain.   I tried for five years to be part of the local fashion community but it was and is stale at best.   I have made a few great friends, but I don't want to retire here or live here, so its time to move on.  I feel like I still have a lot of growth to make as a person, in my career, and I feel like I have been frozen in time in Seattle.

Rocco on rare Seattle Sunny Day

Goodbye, Seattle.  It has been fun.  Seven rainy winters, Seven bouts of S.A.D. during the Seven long and gloomy winters.   Rocco has been depressed for seven years...he misses the sun.   I have to make it up to him so he can retire in sunny Southern California.



I went to visit my grandma yesterday in Bothell.  She is 101 years old now.   When I turned to say goodbye to her, I really just had a melt down.  I have taken her love for granted for about 4 decades now.  God, I love that woman.  She is like your coolest aunt, your mom, your grandma, all wrapped up into one person.  When a person is that old, you do realize that may be the last time you see them.  I knew it and she knew it.  I was so sad, but at the same time I realized I am really blessed by all the wonderful times we have shared in my lifetime.   I am lucky to have had her for all these years, most people my age don't have grandparents.   I woke up this morning on the floor crying into a quilt she had made for me when I was a kid.  (I sleep on the floor most of the time, learned that in Thailand).   It kind of is heartbreaking to feel this way, but I can't change love.   You really don't realize how much love someone has poured out to you over the years, until its gone.   (:

My Grandma Sauvage and my daughter April 20, 2013.  

It was funny though, I was only there a short time and she told me she liked the shorter blonde haircut and she admired my Rocco e Dante handbag.  We used to spend a lot of time together at Bellevue Square Mall when I was a teenager and she was in her 80's.   She is not as fashionable now and her sweaters have food drops on them because her eyesight is not so good, but she still knows a good handbag when she sees one!

Time flies, but we must fly with it.

Love,

Rocco

My Favorite Park in Bologna, Italy.

This is my favorite park in Bologna, Italy.  Have you ever been here?

I also like the interesting door knockers.  Love this one.  I guess I will move here someday.  It has more interesting things to view than the United States for me anyway.

New Website for Made In The U.S.A.

Ciao darling,

In the past few months many start up entrepreneurs have reached out to me randomly asking me for factory names and suppliers to start their fashion line.   Although I appreciate the interest in my knowledge, nothing is for free, or is it?   When a client hires me they get all my knowledge as part of the consulting or design fee.  It took me over 10 years to learn everything there is to know about building a handbag line, so why should I give it out for free?   Besides, I need to pay my rent and eat just like everyone else.  (But I guess everyone thinks that I don't need to eat or pay rent because they ask me for free advise-LOL)

Fortunately there is a new website which lists many USA based factories in the fashion industry that I would like to share with those of you who tend to contact me to get my contacts.  This website is free to sign up and makes a great resource for a start up brand in the fashion industry.

The website is www.makersrow.com

Now that you have found a factory to make your handbags, hats or apparel line, feel free to contact me for design help.   I mainly specialize in making handbags and fashion accessories in Asia, so that is another animal.   This website specializes in "Made in the U.S.A." which is amazing!

What a great resource!  So instead of emailing me about who my factories are, check out this website!

Happy Designing!

Rocco

Trout Pout and Other Standards of Beauty..Seattle vs. So Cal.

Disclaimer:  This blog is my opinions only and the grammar sucks. (:

I am relocating to Southern California and just spent 10 days down there and now I am back in Seattle. Its only a few hours flight, but its also a culture shock in some ways.

One of the  things about Seattle women that I noticed since I moved here in 2006 is that they are less obsessed with their appearance than Southern California women.   For example, they tend to not watch what they eat, (so they are bigger in general), they don't wear much make up and they often just wear fleece hoodies and jeans.   Not all women fall into this category, but its a general observation.

I have always been somewhere in the middle.  I care about my appearance, but I hate spending time on it.  I hate taking care of my own hair because its super frizzy and just to blow dry it straight, flat iron it, etc takes over an hour.   Its really a pain the ass.  I feel the same way about makeup, its also a lot of work, so I don't wear a ton.  I like fashion, but I don't spend much time in malls.  I do try to watch my weight but I am not obsessive about the fact that I am not a size 2 and I have a muffin top (like most Seattle women).

We rented an apartment in an affluent area of Southern California.   After doing the walk through and putting a deposit down on the place, my mother in law wanted to go to eat at an expensive Sushi restaurant.   After we were seated at the restaurant, I took a look around and I did a double take.   All the women in the restaurant were fit and attractive, even our waitress was gorgeous, slim and had yoga arms.   Then three  women walked in shortly after that with the trout pout. (injected lips)   The trout point is what fake breasts were ten years ago.   Its the new thing to do, just check out Lindsey Lohan on TMZ.  www.tmz.com

I thought it was great that everyone looked so fit and fabulous, but I was like Jeez I don't want to raise my daughter in this type of superficial environment where every woman is a size 2 and has inflated lips!   We picked the community because it was safe and had great schools.   But at the same time, did I choose the wrong community?  I live in an affluent part of Seattle and one of my good friends lives on a sail boat and the other lives in a cute bungalow on Queen Anne, but neither of them have a trout pout or implants.  Its just not important here whether you have the money or not.  I pick up my daughter from one of the wealthier school districts in Seattle, most of the moms were those ugly Dansko clogs and pull over fleece hoodies.  (No Offense: Sorry, but I hate Dansko clogs-they are the ugliest shoes ever.)  At my kids new school are all the other moms going to be super thin with fake boobs, trout pouts and super expensive Mercedes SUV?  It will be interesting to find out when I roll up in my 2005 VW Jetta with the hubcaps missing.  LOL.  

My hot ride

Sexy Seattle Footwear-The Dansko Clog

Hopefully my fears about the superficial are just overblown.  I want my daughter to believe that beauty comes in all colors and sizes, just not the Barbie doll looks.  (She is Thai after all, her skin in a nice mocha color, her hair is pitch black and she will not have big boobs by default genetics.)   I am surprised I noticed it so much this time around, after all I lived in Manhattan Beach for years, and everyone there is pretty good looking and wealthy.   Its interesting about affluence and different parts of the United States have different standards of beauty and culture.   Hopefully the influence of moving back to the beach of Southern California will be to get fit and be more healthy, but I think I will pass on the trout pout injections.

Hotness defined Southern CA style

Really?

I think its important to look your best, but at the end of the day, I think we just all want to be healthy and happy.   I plan to update this blog on this topic to see how I feel about it after I move in and get settled.   Maybe my new BFF will have the trout pout, big breasts, a size 2 designer wardrobe and be the nicest person ever?

Trout Pout Examples:

She looks OK, her lips were bigger before.

Jeez.

 Ok..she is from Italy, not California

 Hmmm

Is this hot?

Sexy?

P.S. I do realize some of my good gal pals wear Dansko footwear. Sorry darlings, it just my opinion, don't take it personal.   For those of you who know me, I have my own opinions and its nothing personal.  Everyone has a right to their opinion and you have a right to ignore it.  (:  XOXO dears.