Fashion Slow Lane!

Exciting News! (for us anyway!) We are so excited to relaunch Rocco & Dante handbags in 2020 from sunny San Diego! The collection features premium Italian leather handbags and small leather accessories.  You can view the latest styles at www.roccodante.com and we are working on a new capsule collection for 2020. All of our handbags feature custom hardware, premium leather, and modern silhouettes. Stay tuned for new designs and features soon! X Tara

After waiting many weeks for our Palestinian embroidery artists to finish the straps and trim, we were able to complete the production of the Two Neighbors joint venture leather bag collection. I am excited to share that the bags are now in stock, they are ready to ship from Israel and we have some stock here in Southern California to ship to our friends in North America. A few quick photos here to share the newest styles. There is the "Romi" round bag which features a handcrafted shoulder statement strap, then there is the "Mira' saddle bag which is available in black, tan or red Italian leather. We also have the "Adeem" carry all tote which is great for work and can fit any size laptop! Check out the images here on our model and to shop please go to www.twoneighbors.com/shop

Check out our Leopard print collection for A/W 2017.  Vegan leather handbags design by Tara Sauvage for Modalane Accessories LLC.  For more info please go to www.modalanedesign.com Los Angeles. San Diego. China. Hong Kong.

What a heartbreaking week.  This week I had to do something that was more difficult that I had anticipated.  Dante The Pug-the namesake behind Rocco e Dante handbags passed away.  For the past year he has had worsening doggy dementia.  He still enjoyed walking a bit and eating but the constant barking at walls in the middle of the night was getting unbearable.  We tried Xanax and a few different tranquilizers that the vet gave us.  Sometimes the meds would wear off at 3 am and he would bark for hours at the wall. It just got to the point where I knew it was time.  I held him when he was given his medicine to go to sleep.   Dante did not know what was going on as he was only partly there mentally.  It was a difficult situation but the actual event was peaceful.  The vets at Wind and Sea Vets in La Jolla, CA were kind and very caring. Sweet Dreams Dante The Pug.  You were so beautiful and loyal.   It was an amazing journey fo...

As a designer I am always excited when my designs come out looking fabulous!  I have blogged about the Vertigo brand in the past few months.   We have many fun and trendy collections in production that I designed for the brand.  I designed the bags from first sketch through to production. I also handled all the product development since the handbag department was a new department for the company.  Right now I am the handbag department. (: I coordinated a photo shoot for the newest collection.  Here are some shots from the shoot, these are more for the website (not editorial).  When doing a photo fashion shoot for handbags its important to keep the bag the center of the photo.  As you can see the model is dressed in simple dark denim skinny  jeans, a black tank top and black booties.  Her hair and make up are kept simple.  The bags are meant to be the centerpiece in each shot. Check out a few shots here below: Design by Tara Sauva...

Loving my new collection for Vertigo!  Check out these amazing colors and fun shapes! As you can tell I like blue and red! Designs by Tara Sauvage.  Coming soon to www.vertigousa.com and in several boutiques! #vertigo #designbytarasauvage #fashionwatch Fall 2015.

They say it takes 3 weeks to get a new habit formed.  I am going to start by cleaning out my closets and  samples.  I have over 500 bags in my life, some old, some junk.   Its time to give everything to Goodwill that I don't want.   Then I will have more room for new stuff and more space to work and relax. I have a lot of other habits I am trying to work on right now, such as running 4X a week (because I can) and eating less.  I realize the older I get the less calories I need or its just going to end up in my spare tire around my middle, which by the way is already big enough! #DeClutter. I also need to get rid of leather swatches from 2008 and all the old handbag patterns I will never revisit again.  #doIreallyneedthis We need so much less than we think to get by on a regular basis.   I mean do I really need 8 winter coats new that I live in Southern California?  I think not. More later..I am not in the mood for blogging lately......

Interesting thought I came across today:  Don’t be afraid of the end of your life on this planet; be afraid of a life unlived.  You don’t have to live 100 years; you just have to live right now while you have the moment you are in.  Life doesn’t always give you second chances, so when a door is in front of you, open it.  I have always tried to be true to my passions, but often find myself off track chasing a paycheck instead of my passion.   I am sure this happens to millions of Americans who are working in jobs they hate, or are stuck in relationships out of obligation.   How can you be true to yourself and still make a living or have the courage to follow your passion?  That is another blog topic.  Or maybe not, it sounds kind of new-age-ish.  I am not new age usually.   I consider myself a very practical person, but at the same time I like to reflect on the big picture while living the day to day life in the slow lane. ...

Here are some new designs by me, Tara Sauvage.   It is an ipad bag and a mini messenger bag.  I like the color blocking, its fun, fresh and urban.  I like the removable tassel - it can be used on other bags or as a keychain.   These bags are made from Italian leather in my China factory. The leather is imported from Italy to the factory.  This factory does an amazing job, they also produce bags for other major USA brands. Photos by Francis Zera of Seattle.  Awesome job! Feel free to share your feedback on any of the designs.  I will be sharing more designs in the future. Ciao!

As an independent fashion designer, I know how hard it is to get funding to produce a full collection, especially when you are working with high end leather and hardware from Italy. Just to get a pattern made is easy $1,500.00, and that is for one bag design! So I was thrilled to the bone when I found a new site that is dedicated to indie designers like myself. They allow you to create an online store to sell your goods. There is other websites like etsy.com that are dedicated to indie designers but the rule of thumb on their website is that your stuff has to be made by hand. I don't sew my leather handbags and accessories with my own two hands, they are made by leather technicians in a factory setting with all the leather equipment, so etsy is awesome but not a good fit for my brand. I am so grateful for website like ustrendi.com who are dedicated to the craft and helping indie fashion designers like myself. If you have a chance please check it out at www.ustrendi.com and...

I leave in just a few days to go to Linea Pelle in Italy. I hope to find some unique leathers and really cool hardware, not only for myself but for some of my freelance work that I will hopefully have in the coming months. Freelance has been slower in 2009 than in 2008. In 2008 I was super busy and designed about 10 collections for various clients around the United States and Canada. This year, not so much. I think its because many handbag and fashion accessories designers have been laid off due to economy, and now they are also offering freelance services, so I have some competition! However, I must say the clients I have had this year so far are amazing women and have been very cool to get to know over the months as we tweak designs and deal with factories in different countries and the challenges that come with product development. I went to Bologna, Italy last year for the Linea Pelle show but I only went for one day and did not have a chance to check out everything because ...