Fashion Slow Lane!

With the current headlines about racism and inequality in the USA, I was reflecting on my first experience with racial inequality and what we now term, "white privilege". I am a white female. I grew up in a predominately white area in rural Eastern Washington.  The population was white with a Hispanic minority. I did not experience overt racism at the time as it was a small town and everyone knew each other, and it seemed like we were all poor farm kids. My best friend was Mexican and we went together everywhere, she even lived with us for one summer.  My first experience with overt racism was when I was 18 years old. I moved from my parent's farm to Savannah, Georgia to live with an upper-middle-class white family. I enrolled at Armstrong State University, now  Georgia Southern University–Armstrong Campus. It was and still is a predominately black commuter college. I was a minority but I felt comfortable on the campus. All the students were well dressed, respec...

As the lockdown continues in California and other parts of the world, many small businesses are suffering. The reason for this post is so we are not forgotten. We want to remind everyone that we are still open for business and shipping our beautiful Italian leather handbags. Each bag is wrapped in plastic and shipped directly from our secure San Diego location. (not a third party shipping service.) To show our appreciation for all orders we are giving away a Free Gift with Purchase for each order! Each order will receive an Italian leather cuff bracelet (retail value $98!) Thanks in advance for supporting small.  Go to www.roccodante.com to browse our selection. X, Rocco 

As I was scrolling through Facebook earlier this week, I came across a photo of a coffin. It was my friend Brian from the Phillippines, and photos of his mom's wake.  His mom hosted me 3 times in my life in her house in Panabo, Davao Del Norte and she also basically saved my life. In 1994 I was visiting my penpal in Southern Phillippines. I drank some Tang she had made for me with well water. Unbeknownst to me I had required severe amoebic dysentery. My Filipino penpal took me to a witch doctor and also acupuncture. That did not help so I asked to be taken to Aunt Ame's house. After a miserable night of massive headaches and no relief and constant vomiting, she took me to a local Panabo hospital. I ended up in the hospital for a few days. I was at the point where I had lost my vision due to really bad dehydration. Luckily Ame had the thought to take me to this hospital. I ended up ok later. Her death was a shock to me, her son told me she was hit by a vehicle while walking ...

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

an important tip for New designers  It is par for the course for new fashion designers to want to create a vast collection on the first run. Caution: That exciting dream of becoming a designer is becoming finally true. That thrill can lead to collections that are large, unwieldy, and expensive.  As a start-up fashion consultant, I recommend narrowing your collection down to about 4 or 5 bags or pieces to start your vision and brand. It will save you time and money, allowing you to do a few things right rather than a lot of things badly. It will also let you establish your brand DNA early on. Your brand has a specific target market, so do not make the mistake of trying to be everything to everyone.  Remember, early success means more $$$$ to reinvest in a more extensive collection in the future. Need help and more info? Contact us at roccodante@gmail.com 

scape·goat /ˈskāpˌɡōt/ noun 1. a person who is blamed for the wrongdoings, mistakes, or faults of others, especially for reasons of expediency. Originally the word scapegoat came from the Bible. It was when a goat was sent into the forest symbolically carrying the sins of the Jewish people, but for modern usage, the word scapegoat adheres to the definition above. He is pretty cute, huh? I was recently blamed publically for intentionally hurting a female relative and ruining their vacation event, and to top it off I was accused of strategically conspiring with another relative to intentionally hurt this person and causing hurt to other people in the process. Wow.  Was I the scapegoat? I immediately contacted the accuser to ask what the facts were. The accusations did not have much merit upon further investigation.  During the past several weeks I had not talked to the alleged co-conspirator nor was I was not privy to the communications s...

Hi! If you have a start-up or established fashion brand and want to enhance or expand your collection into handbags, small leather goods, belts, or accessories, please read on.... We have 20 years of experience full-cycle product development from the first sketch through to final production in handbag, gear and fashion accessories product design, product development, and manufacturing.  Sauvage Private Label LLC works with factories and suppliers in China, India, Myanmar, Cambodia, the United States, Italy, and Israel.   We also have trusted partners in freight forwarding, metal fittings, and leather. To view, some of Sauvage Private Label's previous projects go to: www.coroflot.com/roccodante  Please contact us: Sauvage Private Label' www.tarasauvage.com roccodante@gmail.com  x