Thursday, September 30, 2010

Catching up: May to September

Phew, I have a lot to catch you up on! Where do I even begin? Let’s start with one of my passions, shopping for furniture! You know me, I love to attend the annual Las Vegas Market to keep up with what’s happening in new furniture designs. Mel, Sam and I were there in July. In three days we ogled our way through three buildings of about 10 storeys each, something like 150 million square feet! My feet hurt just thinking about it. As for designs this year? Movement is still clean and contemporary, with lots of texture and metallics. Just what I love!

Right on the heels of that whirlwind was another trip to South Carolina to finalize details for our bedding and furniture lines. We met up once again with Travis and his family. Boy, am I learning a lot! And it’s a blast. I’m designing totally new textiles that are to be manufactured in coming months. I can’t wait for you to see them and will definitely keep you posted.

In early September we had the privilege of giving something back to the men and woman who give so much for our country. Being asked to do a mini decorating workshop at the Navy Exchange over Labor Day weekend was a thrill for all of us at RSVPstyle. As I did at Macy’s home department last year, I put together live onstage mini-vignettes of rooms for NEX shoppers. Military families are challenged with personalizing temporary housing, so for them I created different looks for bedroom, bathroom and living room. I loved that my mom and dad, a retired major in the U.S. Army, were able to be there. Click here to read more about that story.

Our website and company are built around inspiring people, so it was a real treat when Chaminade University asked me to speak to business students in the Hogan Entrepreneurial Program. I shared my experiences, insights, successes and failures, and most importantly, what I’ve learned through all of it. The best part was the end, when the students stood in line to shake my hand. Seeing their fresh faces and enthusiasm for the future they’re about to embark on reminded me of myself many, many, many years ago!

And now? I’ve done final tweaks for the bedding line. When our manufacturing plant in China is ready, I’ll go have a look at the samples. And tonight I’m writing a short thank you speech. My alma mater, Sacred Hearts Academy, has named me as one of its distinguished alumnae, and they’re honoring six of us at a dinner tomorrow night at the Hilton Hawaiian Village. It’s a lot to condense so many emotions and thoughts into 90 seconds, but I’m finding it’s a tremendous opportunity to reflect on all that’s been happening.

That’s it for the catch-up. I’ll keep you posted later with more!