My Story
I know this transition from the inside
How a grandmother’s move inspired a business dedicated to making senior living spaces feel like home.
The downsizing
From 10,000 square feet to 650
I downsized my own home from 10,000 square feet to 650. I know what it means to stand in a room full of a lifetime of things and have to decide what comes with you and what doesn’t.
I know the grief in that moment. The weight of letting go. The memories attached to things. The stories behind objects accumulated over decades. I also know the relief that comes on the other side, when a small space finally feels like yours.
That journey taught me something essential: the size of a space doesn’t determine its warmth or beauty. Intention does. Care does. Thoughtfulness does.
The three pigs that made it to Roslyn’s windowsill.
The image that never left
Three small ceramic pigs
But my own downsizing wasn’t what inspired Rose’s Room. It was my grandmother, Roslyn.
Roslyn lived to 104. She was vibrant, creative, fully present right up until the end. She made beautiful spaces wherever she lived. She hosted family gatherings. She created memories. She lived.
When she moved into a senior community, I went to visit her room. I expected to see a woman in the space. Instead, I saw remnants. A few pieces of furniture that didn’t quite fit. A dresser with photographs. Three small ceramic pigs on a windowsill.
Roslyn was happy and well cared for. But the room didn’t reflect who she was. It didn’t feel like her home.
“It was always sad to me that a woman who had lived so fully was surrounded by so little of what made her her. That image never left me. It became the reason for this business.”
The realization
This happens to thousands of people every year
Seniors move into retirement communities, often from homes they have lived in for decades. They arrive to rooms that feel temporary. Rooms that are just waiting rooms, not homes.
Moving companies focus on logistics. Interior designers start from scratch. Senior move managers handle coordination. No one had made the emotional and aesthetic transformation of arrival their primary, dedicated work.
That gap became Rose’s Room.
For every Roslyn
Rose’s Room exists for every person moving into a senior community who deserves to arrive somewhere beautiful, warm, and full of the things they love, arranged with care. Moving is grief and possibility, loss and new beginning, all at once. My job is to honor that, and make sure the new space reflects who you are.
What I believe
My values
Every person matters
Each client has a unique story, a lifetime of memories, preferences, and things they love. No templates. Each space is designed for one person, with intention and care.
Design is emotional
A beautiful, personal space affects how someone feels about their move, their new community, and this chapter of their life. I design with that at the center.
Quality over scale
I serve one client group with depth and care. I choose doing one thing beautifully over doing many things adequately.
Partnership, not competition
I collaborate with move managers, community directors, attorneys and other professionals who share my commitment to making this experience meaningful.
Meet the founder
Hi, I’m Alexia
I grew up in Cape Town and have made my home in San Diego. For most of my working life I have been a founder and a creative director. I started Vuka, a brand that is now eighteen years old, and I have led creative and marketing teams for companies and nonprofits along the way.
I am also a collector of art, curiosities and wonders. My own walls are full of things that each come with a story, which is probably why I believe so deeply that the objects we keep say who we are. When I help someone choose what comes with them, I am listening for those stories.
When I am not working, you will usually find me playing music, often on the flute, or gathering friends around a table in a small home that is full of the things I love.
- Grew up inCape Town, South Africa
- Founder ofVuka, eighteen years and counting
- CareerCreative director, CMO and nonprofit executive director
- CollectsArt, curiosities and wonders
- PlaysThe flute, and anything else that makes music
My expertise
Beautiful, and built for this stage of life
I have spent my whole career as a creative director, shaping how brands, spaces and experiences look and feel. I have always loved interiors, and I have lived in small spaces myself, so I know how to make a modest room feel generous, personal and calm. Most of my clients are moving into spaces just like that.
I have completed CAPS I, Marketing & Communicating with the Aging-in-Place Client, the first course toward the Certified Aging-in-Place Specialist designation, and I am continuing with the program. It covers accessibility, safety, lighting and design for older adults, so every room is made not only to look right, but to work for the person living in it.
CAPS ICompleted July 2026
6 continuing education credits
What I bring
I have lived it
I downsized my own home and walked beside my grandmother through her move.
A name with a story
Rose’s Room is named for Roslyn. Every room I make is for someone like her.
Design at the heart
Making the room feel like yours is the whole point, not a finishing touch.
Gentleness and patience
Leaving a home is a lot. I go at your pace and make room for the memories along the way.
Close to home
I live in San Diego and know the communities here, the people who run them, and the neighborhoods they sit in.
I’d love to hear your story
Every move starts with the person making it. Tell me a little about them, and what home means to them.
Say hello