Fashion Slow Lane!

How do you know when its time to break up with a client? ☺ As an entrepreneur, this is a difficult question that I have not had to deal with very often until recently.  I was in Los Angeles recently and one of my clients thanked me for being so tenacious.  She said she really appreciated my follow up on a project we were working on.  As a designer who handles the entire process from the first sketch through production with the China factories, it is my job to make sure I keep everything running smoothly and on time. I offer the same level of communication and follow-up regardless if it's a large chain store or a small online business.  I want everyone to get their orders on time and I want to make sure that I am doing everything to make the process go well. I recently had a client that placed an order with one of my factories in China. The factory issued a Proforma Invoice for their order.   I followed up to get their logo on the pre-production samples. W...

In the past year, we have seen fashion go from minimalist to crazy busy.   What was popular in 2015 was a plain tote handbag with zero hardware.  Today all the fashion magazines are showing handbags and accessories with crazy patterns that do not match and embellishments everywhere.  It is the opposite of the minimalism of 2015.   What is going on? I decided to jump on the bandwagon by designing a fun pop art collection of girlish accessories for my vegan-friendly customers that demand fashion bags and accessories that are fun and affordable. Check out my sneak peek here! From emoji coin purses to fun handbags we have got you covered! Love the lips and eyes! XO Tara www.tarasauvage.com Love Emoji's?  We can design those too! Just send us what you want and we can design it for you!   Want to see more?  Email us today to find out how to order or make your own designs:  To order contact us at roccodant...

Fashion: Evolve or Die.   Whenever I read an interview about Madonna, she talks about reinventing herself.  It may sound clique, but it is true.  As a kid who grew up in the 1980s, I remember Madonna was gyrating on the floor dressed in crazy ripped dresses, gloves, and giant plastic neon hoop earrings. Now at 58, she is still putting on major sold-out shows in concert venues around the globe.  Why? Because she reinvented herself every few years. Madonna c. 1985 In the fashion industry, if you don't evolve, you die out. It seems like once a year, I have to reinvent myself.  What worked 5 years ago does not work today. You either dinosaur out of the industry or reinvent yourself. Digital Marketing has changed the way people shop and the way we do business.  Before the Great Recession, I could sell $10,000 worth of leather handbags a month using Facebook.  Today you cannot sell anything without spending hundreds of dollars on Facebook ads. E...

I have been reading a lot of blogs lately on minimalism.  I have been a minimalist by default because we move every 2 to 3 years for the past decade which means I have to downsize by default.  In Seattle, we went from a 1500 square foot townhouse to an 800 square foot apartment.  Half my stuff ended up in storage.  Then in 2013, we moved back to Southern California into a more spacious La Jolla apartment.   I actually had to buy a few things to fill it up.  Then recently we moved again, this time into a house with a two car garage and a huge storage space.  I have never had this much space to hoard stuff! Note the zen plant and lack of clutter. I am a minimalist when it comes to furniture and house accessories however my handbag collection is easily over 500 pieces and don't even get me started on the belts.  I use the bags for my inspiration for future collections. To be a true minimalist, does that mean I need to get rid of all these ...

As a fashion consultant to start-up brands in the fashion industry, I have compiled the top 5 mistakes that new designers make. Want to manufacture their products in the USA but expect to retail for Target prices.   The main request I get from new designers is to design their collection and then they request that I help them produce it in the USA, yet they want to retail it for the same price as Target.  I let them know that that is impossible because the cost of production in the USA is 5-10X that of overseas depending on the product.  New designers need to educate themselves on production costs in the USA vs. Asia before they start their collection.  Do not have a core target market.   Often new designers do not have a target market. They want to design a collection for everyone.  Big mistake.  It is nearly impossible to design a fashion item for a target demographic that is everyone.  When I try to pinpoint the demographics of their ...

My Experience as a Solo Female Wanderer  January 2017 update:  Recent political chatter about rape culture, women's rights, misogyny, and other cultural issues reminded me of this article I wrote about 3 years ago.  I decided to repost it as maybe my timing of writing it 3 years ago was not as timely as it is today.   Originally published on January 2014. (Disclaimer:  Graphic language.  These are my personal experiences and opinions and do not reflect the experiences of anyone else) The recent news of the gang rapes of female tourists and local women in India is appalling.  Today this was a strong headline in the New York Times:     NEW DELHI — A young woman in West Bengal was gang-raped this week on the order of a village council, to punish her for planning to marry a man from outside the village, according to Indian police .   Click here to read the entire article in the New York Times . This news reminded me of my e...

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.