Valerie Legras - Interior Designer
Valerie is the founder of Valerie Legras Atelier. She is also a customer of Church Alley Coffee Bar. Her office is located directly across the street and I’ve gotten to know her and her team over the past two years. Late last year I hired her to help me redesign my house. I was lost in the space I had lived in the previous five years and couldn’t decide or know what to do anymore. Valerie and her team made my little home into a place full of art, style and comfort.
Valerie also has a wonderful podcast where she features creative professionals in New Orleans. The original episodes are so compelling and interesting.
What is the first thing you do to get ready for your day?
I am an early bird and as a mother of four I cherish a quiet time just by myself. Drinking my coffee and reading my French papers are my every morning routine. Since I am in New Orleans, I love to do this on the back porch, which is something I would have never done in my hometown of Epernay, Champagne! I try to avoid reading my email before I go to my office around 7:45am as I like to keep my mind free and unhindered.
What sets you up for success and finding solutions for so many kinds of challenges in the day?
I always look at the bright side of life. I am lucky to be born with a positive mindset. Challenges are good and healthy to me. I have a very simple life moto : How can we turn a difficult situation into an opportunity? It is so rewarding!
What is your first memory of knowing your creativity?
As a child, school was not my favorite place to be. I always had a hard time feeling like I had to fit into a box. In my opinion, school boxes out personalities and somehow kills creativity. I was not the best student and my parents gave me lots of freedom to find ways to express my voice.
When did you realize you were a creative person?
One of the ways I found my freedom was through reading a lot. It helped me to develop my voice as a storyteller. There are many ways to tell a story that are not limited by words. As a child, I was very interested in history. As a teenager, over the course of three summers, I attended Ecole du Louvre and was fascinated by the story behind every piece of art, furniture, etc. From that experience, I thought I wanted to be an art dealer, but I missed the act of creation. I attended several art classes, experimented with a variety of mediums, and eventually attended Ecole Camondo, where I earned my Masters in Interior and Product Design.
I came home to start my business, but you did the opposite. What was it like to start a business so far away from your home in France?
Being an entrepreneur is not constrained by geography. New Orleans gave me the opportunity to embrace my calling. A lot of my inspiration comes from France, as I collaborate with artisans and makers from my home country. It is a wonderful way for me to bring my roots into my work and life here in the U.S. It is vital to keep my culture alive, not only for myself, but for my children. My projects benefit from this multicultural approach.
What are some of your biggest challenges and positives in that regard?
I have learned along the way that when you doubt you can do something, just go for it and you will be surprised.
What is one of your tricks for getting inspired when you really do not feel it but you have a project that needs to get done?
There is always something to dig into, a new story to be written. This is the beauty of being somewhat a creative writer. There is a never a blank canvas where I find myself stuck. Some might be more tricky than others, but that is the beauty of creative challenges.
What has been one of your best failures?
All of them! It gives me the drive to understand what went wrong work harder and get better at what I am doing.
What has been one of your most hard fought win?
Being in a place today where I really believe that nothing is impossible if you have faith, trust, and belief in yourself. No one should have the power to make you doubt this or take it away from you.
On top of that, I am so grateful for my four wonderful children.
