BIO: Designer’s Travels InspirE ; Experience Turns To Gold
RELEASE AT WILL
MEDIA CONTACT: IAN SAUDE, T. +1.805.784.0967 (EXT. 402) | E. media@iansaude.com
(San Luis Obispo, CA) — Ian Saude was born in Hollywood, California and was raised on California's idyllic Central Coast. He attended the University of California at Berkeley and studied English Literature and Classics. After graduating with honors and living in the Bay area for several years, he moved to Katmandu, Nepal principally to study Tibetan Buddhist philosophy and meditation techniques with several of its greatest living masters.
While living in Katmandu, a friend who owned an American jewelry company that was importing silver from Nepal, asked for help with a quality-control issue. In the process of correcting the problem, Ian started visiting the local craftsmen to learn more about their methods. Surprisingly, most of them still relied on tools and techniques that had not changed significantly since the Middle Ages. Fascinated and inspired by these ancient traditions of craftsmanship, Ian indulged his own lifelong love of art and design by collaborating with these artisans to create jewelry and objects which formed his first collection — so dividing his time between his new work, and other educational, spiritual and charitable pursuits.
In Autumn 1996, Ian led design and production as part of a newly-founded family business, Saude & Co. The focus was on seasonal accessory collections, cashmere casual wear, as well as providing assistance to other designers in producing unique private label luxury goods.
Saude explains, “I brought the first jewelry collection — a modest group of modern silver pieces— back with me to the United States. When I showed the pieces, everyone was noticeably impressed with the quality and design, especially given that the pieces were entirely handmade with very simple tools. That was in late1996, and fashion designers at the time were showing minimalist silhouettes with little or no jewelry or accessories. I placed the collection in a very cool accessories boutique in San Francisco known for their high-end Italian & French shoes. After a day or two, the boutique informed me that our first customer had been Danielle Steel, the popular novelist and a major jewelry aficionado. She even did a book on the subject! So, I figured that if she liked what I was doing, I had to be on the right track!”
From 1996 though 2005, Ian resided primarily in Katmandu, but traveled regularly in search of new ideas and inspirations. In addition to bringing out collections for Saude & Co., he worked extensively in product development and production of cashmere accessories for other companies as well, including designs for Giorgio Armani, Ermenegildo Zegna, Agnona, Mila Schön, Jo Malone and others.
In late 2006, Ian returned to California to live and to begin work on a new brand, IAN SAUDE: IS, which launched in May 2008 www.iansaude.com. IAN SAUDE: IS is focused on exceptional, fashion-forward jewelry crafted mainly in 18k gold and on an expanding collection of luxurious lifestyle pieces, including cashmere home & personal accessories.
In addition to business, over the past decade Ian has also served as a board member for several charitable foundations. He served as president of the Rangjung Yeshe Foundation, a American non-profit Buddhist educational foundation. He was also a founding member and former instructor at the first accredited, degree-granting international Buddhist studies program in Nepal, the Rangjung Yeshe Center for Buddhist Studies at Katmandu University. Ian continues to travel abroad regularly for his work and for new inspirations.
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