I am the “Original Girl Next Door." I have been in the fashion and entertainment industry most of my life. I watched the music industry morph into something unrecognizable. No longer were artists making money on album sales as digital downloads became available for free on file servers. The fashion industry went in the opposite direction as Wall Street’s Investment Bankers became involved as owners, directly or indirectly, via their “M & A” departments. Being a designer in London for many years, I was able to watch the financial changes come across the pond. Somewhere in a graveyard in Cimetière de Callian, Var, France, Christian Dior is spinning in his grave. The fashion industry, as it sits today, is a mere reflection of what’s to come. Simulcast on the Internet will replace the catwalks of London, Paris, Milan and New York. True haute couture will become watered down and the great ones of our times, like Valentino, will sit back in their armchairs and muse about the days passed. It’s a new day and those of us who can’t or won’t change have left for semi-greener pastures. To me, Haute Couture has always been about the finest of quality in materials and design with a specific client in mind. True Haute Couture, as I have always told my people, is “art in heels.” I live by those words even to this day. The great Karl Lagerfeld lived by the concept until the day he passed on.

I was born to a single mother in San Francisco, California. My mother Emma started school at the age of 8 and graduated high school at the age of 16. She then went on to university, on a full scholarship, where she earned her teaching degree by 18. Emma was blessed with both beauty and brains. She came from a big family of ten children. Her father owned a logging company in Fairplay, Colorado while her mother converted a Denver mansion on Grant Street into a large boarding house for professional businessmen. Her family was upper middle class for those days. Being a teacher wasn’t in the cards for my mom. Although very social in the dating world, she was bored with her life. In 1942, the US Navy established the “WAVES” ("Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service") and there, in the front of the line, was my mother. Treasure Island would become her Navy home and after four years, she would exit the Navy with her Permanent Chief’s Rank. My mother would most likely have stayed in the US Navy WAVES except for one small “hitch”….she was about to introduce me to the world!

I never knew my father. I didn’t need to although I understand he did attempt to see me when I was a child. Life with my mother was amazing. She was a woman who dressed everyday as if she was going out to a function and thus, many of my dressing habits were learned from her. We dressed to shop, we dressed each night for dinner and even when we were not expecting company. Early on, I found myself in her closets, trying on her high heels, hats, gloves and of course, freely dipping into her makeup. I wanted to be just like my mom when I grew up. That much I knew early on in my life. It was “the two of us against the world” and she was, until the day she passed, my very best friend. She taught me to be tough and never stop believing in myself. Most of all she taught me how to become a woman.

At 19, I was enrolled in a finishing school. My involvement in beauty pageants, first on a city level and then on to a state level, earned me the title of Miss Montana. I had the opportunity to compete in the Miss World – USA and was selected to the finals. As I watch Sandra Bullock, in the movie “Miss Congeniality,” I can only think of myself in that role. Some of the pageants I competed in honored me with the title of “Miss Congeniality.” Not exactly the outcome I had signed up for but one I would not trade for anything. Pageant work led to various offers and thus, my career was started. I have been in front of the camera as well as behind the camera for a good part of my life. My fashion design career started, what some would consider, late in life. A handful of years ago, I sold off my UK furriers and other fashion businesses to become an investor in up and coming designers. Along the way I picked up a handful of degrees from the GIA. Famous gems became a hobby and I built my personal collect. Months prior to Covid-19 I took some advice from my trained Swiss Banker Son, R. Chance. His years in Switzerland had paid dividends for his employer and his mother as he convinced me to “lighten my investments” and to keep my “powder dry” for a rebound. Like clockwork I saw the world stock markets tumble as I went back into the investments I knew. WCS and WTI oil became my “safe havens.” Being from Montana and Alberta I have “lived” the ups and downs of big oil. This time it would be straight up.

As the dust cleared I readied myself to re-enter the world of Haute Couture Jewelry on a full time basis, a place where my formal education had been over many decades. Paris, the City of Lights, helps me to stay close to the epicenter of the fashion universe. My offices are located in what was Mr. Dior’s last office at Place Vendôme. A place where Yves Saint Laurent had begun his Haute Couture career as the head of Dior at such a young age. It has great vibes with the windows folded open over looking the Ritz Hotel and Place Vendôme courtyard.

For now, I think about what it is I can contribute to the fashion world with respect to the old ways, the traditional ways that I was taught, the pure traditions of men like Dior, Bulgari, Cartier, Louis Vuitton and Valentino. My goal is to leave the Haute Couture jewelry Industry a little better than I found it. My investment strategy has merged into a Private Equity structure which I am the head of here in Paris. I tend to stay in my niche but at the same time I "never say never" on unfound opportunities. A famous explorer once said, that “the extraordinary is in what we do, not who we are.” I'm setting out today to make my mark beyond my own physical life; to find adventure in the world while others are consumed by chatter and the misinformation fed to them from the common day media. "The line between our myths and truth is fragile and blurry." People forget this in their everyday life and thus they are consumed at every turn as they become unable to differentiate.

I am the person who buys what others don’t. I am the treasure hunter that the world has forgotten exists. Most of all, I look for treasure that cannot be easily found. I leave little to the imagination as such and I make my own luck in the world. If you know anything about me you know I am the older version of Lara Croft. I live by the words “Everything lost is meant to be found.” Today you have found me but tomorrow it may be a different story.

"The world is full of unanswered questions, beyond all limits or reason... the answers await."

Fondly,

Christina Saint Marche’

Post Script: This is my story board and these are some of the pictures of my life. I am using Flickr like I use a fashion design pin board of my sketches for a specific client or show. I know this probably isn't how the site is suppose to be used but like a Navy SEAL, one always has to be able to improvise in a given situation. Sometimes cataloging pictures and revisiting your roots can give a person clarity. It’s like the first time you see one of your drawings come to life. Your heart begins to pound right out of your chest. I compare it to the first time your eyes connect with a gorgeous guy across a crowded room. As he approaches, deep down you know it feels right and to me, that is how it feels in the fashion world when everything clicks.

Note on my Photos: People have asked if they can take large amounts of these photos for their own personal collection. I am fine with all of that. You can post them on your flickr or websites provided my name is on them somewhere. If you wish to modify the picture(s) all I ask is that you contact me first and we discuss it. It may be easier if I send you an original and you go from there. I don't affiliate with any dating sites or adult entertainment sites so I'd like to keep my pictures off of those sites. I am sure you understand. I am open to all requests and I just ask that you think through your request by putting yourself in my position first. Then make the request after you have thought it through and I'll see how I can help. I am very easy to get along with as most everyone knows. Treat me as you would want to be treated and you will be surprised how far I will go to honour your request. Please note I don't own all of my images. Other companies own them. What is on this site is mostly my own work. On other sites that you see my image may not be owned by me but another image company or corporation. I may not be able to give that specific image to you. If you "have to have that specific work" for some reason let me know and I will do my best to put you in touch with the parties that own those images. Thank you for your understanding and respect. Christina