Community Highlights: Meet Rosario Annette Gonzalez of Rosie’s Regalos

Today we’d like to introduce you to Rosario Annette Gonzalez.

Hi Rosario, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start, maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers. 
I started my local business in 2020, following in the footsteps of my grandmother, who raised me and taught me how to sew. While my story is mine, it’s a continuation of hers. 

My Nana, Martha Valenzuela, was a career seamstress and sewed everything from curtains and tablecloths to clothes and costumes (& even a short period where she made men’s underwear). When I first came to live with her, I would spend hours sitting at the kitchen table with her as she made clothes for the 5 granddaughters she was raising, eagerly waiting for my chance to use her sewing machine. Because I was so young, I was usually only allowed to help with hand-sewing and threading the machine. My chance finally came when I was about 10 years old. My Nana taught me how to make hair scrunchies, and I started practicing with scrap material from my Nanas projects; our childhood home was soon filled with countless scrunchies. I was so nervous using her machine the first time but was so proud of making something beautiful out of what would typically end up in the trash. 

Over the years, I’d spend endless days with my Nana inside sewing while my sisters caused chaos outside playing. She taught me how to make drawstring bags that we loved gifting at special events and filled with all sorts of goodies and blankets she would gift to each newborn in the family. 

My motivation to start a business came from a vision-boarding activity I did in 2020. My Nana passed away in May of 2019, and even though my childhood prior to living with my Nana wasn’t easy, losing her was still the hardest thing I’ve experienced. In my grief, I yearned for anyway to keep her memory alive. While creating my vision board, I came across an R in a beautiful font, and it just hit me, I needed to dive back into sewing and keep the craft that she passed on to me alive. 

I’ve always gone by middle name, Annette, and ironically enough my Nana was never a fan of my first name, Rosario. But in losing my Nana, I began to search for myself, and re-owning my given name was a big part of that. And that’s when Rosie’s Regalos (Rosie’s Gifts) was born. I felt the name honored my Nana thru the gift she passed on to me and allowed me to reassociate with my first name in a positive way. I started my business creating the first thing my Nana taught me how to make scrunchies! Over the years I had made baby blankets for expecting friends and quickly added blankets to my product offerings. 

Today, I take many custom requests from hair bonnets and nursing caps, pen holders, and reusable facial rounds. One of my favorite product offerings is memory bears, which are stuffed bears made from the clothes of passed loved ones. 

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back, would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Life, in general, is not without challenges, and my path to sustaining this business has been bumpy. Covid is an obvious one; I started this business right in the middle of that, and there weren’t many in-person events going on, so getting started was tough. I relied a lot on social media postings and word-of-mouth referrals. Thank goodness for amazing friends and family who hyped me up and kept coming back for other products. My sister was a big help since she worked in a hospital. She talked to her coworkers about my business, and I quickly had many customers requesting scrub caps. 

Another challenge I’ve encountered has been finding the right balance of what I want to sew (everything) and finding the right product mix customers will love. I love exploring my creativity and learning new things, so my interests are high and wide. I get extremely excited when I find something new to sew. Taking that excitement and translating it to something marketable isn’t as seamless (pun intended) as it seems. 

Lastly, and probably one of the biggest challenges has been believing in myself and the vision I have and putting myself first. I have a great 9-5 that I’ve worked hard for and has afforded me a comfortable life, so I’ve kept my personal business as a lower priority. I’d love to be able to move from that headspace and take the plunge into furthering my personal success and truly living my dream. 

Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Rosie’s Regalos is a handmade boutique that specializes in sewing crafts and products. While I’m the creator behind all items, my family is a huge support system. My niece helps with scrunchies, my sister helps with sewing on buttons, and my wife helps with administrative and bookkeeping tasks. I do consider this a family business, and there is so much love and energy put into each item made. 

My main product offerings are hair scrunchies and blankets, but if you have an idea, I’m all ears! I love solving problems for people that store-bought items can’t solve. One example of this is a product I made for Sondra, who referred me to Megan. Sondra’s mom went through some difficult medical issues and found herself wheelchair-bound, making it difficult for her to do daily tasks. They needed a garment that made it easy to perform these tasks, so I made her wrap skirts that were easily removable while still in the wheelchair but still looked like clothes someone would wear. These are the type of projects I like engaging with. 

One of the products I’m most proud and excited to offer is memory keepsakes, which are products made from passed-on loved one’s clothes/personal items. I’ve created blankets with pieces of clothes sewn into them, and memory bears have been a high-interest product. I really love making memory bears because they are uniquely made and customizable. It’s important for me to learn about the relationship you had with your loved one to incorporate some of those details into the bear. 

One thing I want readers to know about my business is that while it’s my homage to my Nana, it’s also my way of bringing consciousness back into business. My main sourcing for fabric is a local fabric store I’ve visited with my Nana since I was 8 years old, SAS Fabrics. I also strive to be as waste-free as possible and save all scraps to reuse in other projects. 

Alright, so before we go, can you talk to us a bit about how people can work with you, collaborate with you, or support you?
The easiest way to contact me is on IG (@rosiesregalos) or via email (rosiesregalos@gmail.com). Feel free to reach out to place an order, collaborate on a project, or even just share my work with friends and family! 

Pricing:

• Scrunchies – 1 for $8, 2 for $15, 3 for $20
• Memory bears – start at $65 for med bear
• Blankets – $120+ (throw size)

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rosiesregalos/