20 Years of Tangled Love

Barbara Engel
Mar 4, 2016
5 min read

It’s been 20 golden years at The Divas & Devils HOUSE OF STYLE. Beginning as a love story fueled by fashion and music, these past two decades hold cherished memories and carries an air of immense value and rich history. This HOUSE offers so much and is a true specialty boutique... This HOUSE, full of life, has a story...This HOUSE is a home. A home and refuge for those seeking artistic expression, creativity and even comfort. Its spirit influences many and evokes a feeling of passion.

The soul of this place lies within the heart of its creator Michelle Torregrosa. Her unbridled passion is real; both palatable and contagious. Her mission is to deliver an experience that provides an inexhaustible source of inspiration that is personable and memorable. Through this, an attachment has formed and a family created. Walking through the door you are greeted with a feeling a nostalgia. Stevie Nicks’ vocals float over you as you shop, whispering tales of our store’s great past. Divas & Devils has seen and cherished a long legacy of Diva Doves that transcends through the generations. Together, we have grown through extraordinary situations, from rocking fashion shows and music festival pop up shops, to live window mannequins and champion parade floats. It has also gifted us invaluable experiences that have touched our souls and left a lasting effect: including our work in Haiti through Soles 4 Souls, efforts in the fight against cancer, and countless events helping individuals within our local community.

In our 20th year, we are embarking on yet another journey. A journey set out to give back, pay it forward, and recognize the goodness in ourselves and others.

The first step in this mission has been our creation of a unique collection of jewelry we call TANGLED LOVE. A section in which the customer interacts, designing a personalized collection by mixing and matching layers of charms, chains, leathers, and mixed metals that tells a story of their unique journey.

TANGLED LOVE is meant to promote the connection of where you've been, what you've experienced and where your journey will take you next.

However, it was truly designed to serve a purpose far greater; to spread awareness and knowledge of the challenges faced around the world. We have discovered a variety of highly respected organizations that are accomplishing great things. In an effort to support these causes, we are donating 10% of the total cost from everything purchased from this collection. You will be given tokens that represent one dollar each, and will have the opportunity to choose which of these organizations you wish to support.

The first organization that truly inspired this entire project was the David Shedlrick Wildlife Trust Fund and their exceptional work in elephant conservation and anti-poaching initiatives. The David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust started as an elephant orphanage, rescuing many baby elephants whose mothers and entire herds were viciously attacked and killed for their tusks. This organization rescues and rehabilitates abandoned baby elephants who have experienced immense emotional trauma and starvation. Elephants are extremely emotional creatures, developing the same types of bonds and relationships as humans. The babies are not only rehabilitated but raised into new herds and conditioned to be released back into the wild once they’ve reached adulthood.

The David Shedlrick foundation works together with the Kenya Forest Service and Community Group Ranches in order to promote conservation of elephant habitats and prevent or arrest poachers who are illegally hunting elephants.Elephant populations have been threatened for many decades due to a variety of environmental factors, but the rise of the ivory trade in the black market of China has brought elephant deaths to an all-time high within the last decade.

According to a report by National Geographic, “Ivory-seeking poachers have killed 100,000 African elephants in just three years. During 2011 alone, roughly one of every twelve African elephants were killed by a poacher.” However, elephants have a much higher economical value alive, promoting the tourism industries of Africa and Asia; “Ivory from a poached elephant sells on the black market for about $21,000, while a living elephant, is worth more than $1.6 million in ecotourism opportunities. Elephants are the largest land animals in the world, playing a vital role in the ecosystems of Africa and Asia. National Geographic discussed their importance as a keystone species, helping to balance all other species in their ecosystem.

As we continued our research we found an endless number of causes that need help around the world, and believed that helping one cause wasn’t enough. We wanted to find an organization making a difference within the environment and quickly discovered the Eden Reforestation Projects. Forests are being destroyed at an exponential rate, “some 46-58 thousand square miles of forest are lost each year—equivalent to 48 football fields every minute.” The Eden Reforestation Projects have stepped in to help save these trees and our environment, but they do much more than planting trees. They support local economies by only hiring residents within the community for their job positions, pulling thousands of families out of extreme debt and slavery. The organization began planting the Malagasy mangrove in 2007 and continues planting at a rate of 1.4 million trees a month.

The Eden Reforestation Projects also build up schools by setting up farming and gardening projects. They teach and emphasize the importance of trees and eco-friendly living. One of the final steps in this plan is teaching individuals within the community how to produce and maintain sustainable farming methods, securing the survival of all trees planted. Once they are experiencing consistent success within one community, they expand into other suffering countries. They have already established successful planting nurseries and farming projects in Ethiopia, Haiti, and plan to expand into Nepal. The Eden Reforestation Projects are drastically helping the staggering number of forests by planting 79,730,000 trees in Madagascar to date, all while creating 797,300 consistent work days within Madagascar alone, improving the lives of families and the environment all in one movement.

Through our journey of looking beyond ourselves and into the future, we couldn’t help but think about our real future… our children. We knew exactly which organization to help, someone we have been donating to for years. We chose St. Jude Children’s Hospital, an organization that has been improving the lives of millions of families and children for decades, conducting research and paying hospital bills all in the fight against cancer. Imagine if your child was diagnosed with cancer. Imagine the total devastation you would feel as a parent. Imagine a place like St. Jude acting as a guiding light for your family while providing emotional support and financial relief. You will never receive a bill from St. Jude for anything- not for treatment, travel, housing or food- because they believe all a family should worry about is helping their child live. It is one of the world’s premier research and treatment centers for childhood cancer. With their unique clinical trials, innovative science and comprehensive patient care, their physicians and researchers are defining new frontiers in pediatric oncology. Treatments invented at St. Jude have helped push the overall childhood cancer survival rate from 20% to more than 80% since it opened more than 50 years ago. St. Jude is more than a hospital, but a home. They are saving lives and saving families.

We are truly amazed and humbled by the magnificent accomplishments achieved by these three organizations. We carry the same passions and concern for elephant conservation, environmental restoration, and the never-ending battle against childhood cancer. The goal of our TANGLED LOVE Collection is to raise money and awareness for these organizations, while inspiring others to go find a cause that’s special to them. We hope this ignites a spark of passion to pay it forward, starting a ripple effect of positivity. So come spread the love! Create a special piece of jewelry, channel your inner tribe vibes, and begin your journey of being the change you wish to see in the world!