Cherish the old ~ Embrace the new

September 2021 Newsletter

Written by Ayellet Rubinstein

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Posted on September 28 2021

Hi Everyone,

The most enjoyable aspect of my work is the one-on-one time I share with my customers in the dressing room. Learning about your weekend plans, your job, your family, and everything in-between enriches my work and allows me to give you the best possible experience. The more that I get to know you the better I am able to help you build a wardrobe that makes sense for you and your lifestyle. Even more - I feel connected to you and my work becomes personal.

Throughout the years of interacting with customers the one comment I consistently hear is "I don't like... (fill in the blank body part)." It's human nature to focus on our "flaws," or all the things we don't like about ourselves. I am just as guilty of it. A while back I was at a friends house and in conversation, I mentioned the dark circles under my eyes. My friend looked at me and replied that she had no idea what I was talking about. She called her daughter into the room for a second opinion and after a close look they concluded that my under eyes looked completely normal...

I had been obsessing over something that no one else saw. When my friend looked at me she saw all of me - a whole person, my physical appearance as well as my personality.

Later that night I really thought about the conversation we had and I made the decision to stop being so critical of my "flaws." I am a whole person not a barbie doll or a robot. I am perfectly imperfect and I am okay with that.

Accept yourself, all of you, every part. We are all beautifully created. We MADE it! We were given the gift of life - let's enjoy every imperfect second of it.

When you come to visit us we want you to have a great experience, one you can only get in a small business environment. The connection we have with you and the ambiance we created for you is the essence of your experience and ours. We are here to give you a boost of energy to look and feel your best and we hope we achieve that every single time.

Best,

Ayellet.

“When you’re 20 you care what everyone thinks, when you’re 40 you stop caring what everyone thinks, when you’re 60 you realize no one was ever thinking about you in the first place. You have enemies? Good. That means you’ve stood up for something, sometime in your life.” - Winston Churchill

WHY WE LOVE DE PALMA LEATHER

A few years ago on my buying trip to New York, I was on the search for a new belt brand to carry at the store. After walking around the vast show building, I stumbled across a small booth hiding in the back with beautiful leather accessories.

I started trying on the belts and chatting with the guy mending the booth who turned out to be Bryan Hessler, the designer himself. The belts were amazing and Bryan was enthusiastic and informative. The craftsmanship and dedication that goes into his work was undeniable. Later I spotted some wrap bracelets on display (being the bracelet addict that I am... you can never have too many) I tried one on and loved it so much that I decided to add a bunch along to my belt order.

Later that evening I was out to dinner with friends when I looked down and noticed I was still wearing the bracelet I had tried on. I never took it off and had accidentally walked away still wearing it. I called Bryan to apologize and asked him to add the bracelet to my existing order so that I could pay for it. He laughed, thanked me for my honesty and told me not to worry about it. "It's yours, Keep it."

Bryan Hessler - The Man Behind the Brand

If you don't have enough reasons to love de Palma Leather, this article from The San Diego Union Tribune, will give you a few more.

Leather craftsman Bryan Hessler could be called a hopeless romantic. His design career was sparked in 2003 by an attempt to impress the girl he loved.

What a “catch” Hessler is — he made the lucky lady a leather handbag. What woman doesn’t love a great bag, especially a handmade one? The girl, an art student at the time, loved the bag, and Hessler found his life’s passion.

Bryan Hessler makes handmade leather goods out of his Logan Heights-based studio, an old converted warehouse that he shares with other craft artisans.

“When people see something made by hand, they’re attracted to it. I think they understand there’s love that goes into making each piece. God’s in the details. People intrinsically see the value in something that’s U.S.-made. It generally tends to be a better product,” Hessler says.

When Hessler’s not in his studio, he’s surfing off the beach in Coronado.

If you’re curious about whatever happened to the girl who launched a thousand bags and belts — they broke up. But Hessler’s still in touch with her, and in an odd turn of events, she’s recently begun designing handbags.