Fabulous People: Roxane Kyte

Roxane Kyte is the Designer and Owner of Couture Aprons – luxury, handmade aprons for the ultimate hostess. Roxane had a love for fashion from a very young age and she is finally making her dream a reality. Read more about Roxane Kyte…

Hometown: Santa Barbara, California Born / Raised – Edmonds, Washington Lives in Scottsdale, AZ

First job: Nordstroms – Aurora Village – Edmonds, Washington – Worked at Nordstroms during my High School Years – part of my DECA class program. This was before Nordstroms became the icon in the fashion market. I enjoyed working with customers and spending all my paychecks on clothes. Could be the reason I was awarded the Best Dressed High School student my senior year. One thing I have always remember from this job was when my department manager told me she always takes her cottons to the dry cleaners. I thought it was odd, but I do the same today. I love cotton for its crispness, and it breaths.

Favorite AZ restaurant: Bandaras for their drinks, food, excellence service and best of all the house-made oreo ice cream sandwiches made with crème de cocoa.

Person who has impacted your life the most: My mom, she always supported me when it came to sewing and designing. My mom’s sister lived next door to the Edmonds Community College Home Economics Teacher. Every summer for 3 years, starting at the age of 9, I would take her summer sewing class program – 8 hours every day for 3 weeks. Super fun, I learned just about everything you can think of – I could sew snow skiwear to swimsuits when i finished my final summer. After that my dream was to be a fashion designer. I took classes through out high school, fashion illustration to grading patterns. My mom always believed we could achieve anything as long as we tried to do our best. This I have passed down to my 4 daughters, never say no to a dream because we are all have special gifts given to us and we must use them to be a blessing to others.

Your biggest accomplishment in your eyes: Phoenix Fashion Week 2017 – Never really ever thought that I would achieve my goal at 50+ years old, to be recognized as a Fashion Designer. The experience was so awesome, I have always enjoyed Fashion; but to be in the heart of it is stimulating.

The biggest obstacle you have overcome: Standing up for myself; even when no one understands what I’m trying to achieve by designing Luxury Aprons for parties, dinners and special occasions. Creating Memories that will last a lifetime, giving moms, daughters and granddaughters a tool to use as their secret ingredient to life’s best times shared through good food, wine parties, holiday parties and bridal showers. The Apron has survived for centuries – dating back to the Middle Ages – French called the Apron – Naperon (napkin). First used in the 13th century, the apron became popular quickly. I’m bring the Apron back as a kitchen staple; but with a new twist of fashion added to make it a must-have!

Someone who inspires you: Coco Chanel’s life story – Creating fashion for femininity, and for not being afraid to be different. She is the example to all designers. Coco said: “Fashion is not something that exists in dresses only. Fashion is in the sky, in the street, fashion has to do with ideas, the way we live, what is happening.” I think she must have been the first designer to understand what branding is all about. Her timeless designs have lasted through the years; even today we can still enjoy their beauty. She saw a need and designed her fashions to fulfill needs in the marketplace. She changed the meaning of fashion and introduced an uncomplicated luxury

Favorite quote: “In order to be irreplaceable one must always be different.” – Coco Chanel. This quote represents how my mom raised us. Always be different, always embrace change, with exuberance and drive the challenge home for success.

Advice to someone pursuing a career path in what you do: Don’t be afraid to fail, but pick yourself up and try, try again. Never let fear stop you from your dreams; no dream should be wasted. I encourage you to live the dream and drive your dreams to success by doing the diligence, staying on the path and don’t let the nay sayers fog your hopes and dreams. Have courage to stand tall and show your talents, beauty and uniqueness to the world.

What makes someone fabulous: Their love for themselves and others. Someone who is willing to stop and take a moment to do something nice for someone else even if they are a stranger. The Bible tells us – we were loved first by our creator, then we must love ourselves before we can love others. This to me is self esteem. If we are confident enough with who we are, secure in ourselves and love our uniqueness, then we are ready to share that beauty with others. If I can share kindness, love and a smile, I know someone will feel fabulous.

Learn more about Couture Aprons and shop the designs at coutureaprons.com.