The Story of Me, Cece Marie!

In the countryside of Marin in Northern California, nestled in a grove of trees, atop a little hill there is a white country house. And in this little house there is a little girl. A little girl with big dreams and an even bigger imagination. Her nickname is Cece.

Cece’s parents, a master craftsman and avid seamstress/art collector, knew early on that she had inherited their creativity. It was in this little house in the country filled with antiques (some fancy, some funky) that Cece’s creative inclinations were cultivated. Visits to museums in San Francisco to see the art of her grandparents and relatives showed Cece that a livelihood of creativity was likely for her future. Whether tending to the family gardens, caring for their many animals or bringing to life a found treasure, Cece’s parents taught her to see the beauty and potential in the simplest of things.

At five years old, following in the footsteps of her entrepreneurial family, Cece told her parents that she would like to open a dress shop at the bottom of their long, winding driveway. In addition to frilly dresses she would specialize in donuts, ones with rainbow sprinkles...of course! After concluding (under the advisement of her parents) that a country road may not be the best locale she put her business plans on hold...but she knew that someday...she would have a business where she could share her feminine frillerie with the world!

Well, many years passed...and with her dream in mind, Cece studied business and later fashion design at San Francisco’s Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising. She studied couture techniques and flirted with the idea of one day being a couturier like those she had seen in Paris and London.

Managing upscale San Francisco boutiques and working for local designers gave Cece the knowledge she would need to someday have her own business. But dreams are exciting...something you put up on a pedestal to shine down on you and give you a twinkle in your eye. Making those dreams a reality on the other hand can be...well...scary!

A few years passed and Cece, having endured a few frogs, finally found her prince, Richard. His support and encouragement gave Cece the confidence she needed to finally make her dream a reality and start her business! And so...without any further adieu...in April 2006 All Dolled Up by Cece Marie was born!