Is Betsey Johnson Saying Bye To New York?

The Big Apple is about to lose one of it's fashion icons to sunny southern California... half the time. According to an interview with Paper magazine, Betsey Johnson is going to live in California in order to spend more time with her grandchildren. The 73-year-young designer is selling her home in the Hamptons and will call Malibu her part-time home after living for more than 50 years in NYC.

"I'm moving to Malibu because of the kids," Johnson said. "I'm going to be bi-coastal, which is great because the Malibu market has more fucking fashion and uniqueness and health and grooviness. It's a very inspiring place." Her West Coast move is one of the biggest news to come out about Johnson ever since Steve Madden bought her namesake company back in 2010. Fashion's wild and crazy fairy godmother has kept busy with other projects in recent years, including competing on Dancing with the Stars and designing Kleenex boxes. It's not easy for Johnson to say goodbye to her beloved New York, but her move will allow her to focus more on her family.

"To be honest, I hate California, and I do not like the earthquakes," Johnson said. "Malibu is strange. A couple of old surfer dudes looked at me, and I looked back at them and thought, 'Wow. This is the first time that I've had any communication with a man outside of being Betsey Johnson in New York City.'"

Of course, Johnson's love-hate relationship with Cali has often veered towards the "love" side. Here are three recent examples of how the designer gave props to the West Coast:

California Girl

Hooray For Hollywood

Bay Area Love

Images: xobetseyjohnson/Instagram (3)