We live in an age of limitless creative freedom. Build your own brand, share your ideas, sell your products, start a movement. Yet how is it that this freedom can also be so profoundly debilitating?
Those first steps to chasing your dream are impossible to navigate. The “just do it!” mentality does not translate likes into dollar signs. How do we go about finding our passion and believing in them so steadfastly that we’re willing to spend hours of our own free time on a side hustle”? And then what benchmarks do we meet in order to turn that side hustle into our main hustle; to quit our full-time jobs to chase after this intangible future even without the means to do so?
To me, the best place to start is to surround yourself with those people who you know are chasing after their passion; those people who have found it or been called by it and have listened and have been pushing through boundaries and often dragged along the bumpy road that becomes living a deliberate life of creativity. Listen to them. Learn from them. Bathe yourself in their energy, and keep them as a guiding light even if you’re on your own creative path.
I bring you the voices, the energy, and the life behind the brands with my Profile of a Hustler series. This week we talk to Leslie Quenneville, the light and life behind Paul Paige.
Leslie has always been one to light up a room. Her infectious spirit seems to never dim. She’s a relentlessly creative soul with an empathetic heart and unapologetically friendly disposition. She’s one of those people who you are inherently drawn to because she is so definitively herself.
So when I saw that she had started a lighting company, somehow I wasn’t surprised.
If you’re finding yourself in a creative or otherwise rut, read on and be inspired by Leslie’s creative journey and the day-to-day grind that brings a very real perspective to the glamour of creation.
Brooklyn, I’m Trying: When did you first realize you had a thing for lighting?
Leslie Quenneville: It was after college. I was working as an art director at Royall & Company, now EAB in Richmond, Virginia. They used to throw huge holiday parties and they always asked the art directors to come up with a holiday decoration for each building. My last 2 years we designed installations that both involved light. That probably turned me on to my passion for 3-Dimensional art instead of just print/web design. The last year in particular we not only utilized lighting but also used all recycled materials. We collected over 1300 glass bottles from our fellow employees and built a 13-foot tree. Each bottle was cleaned, de-labeled and hung around a fabricated metal cone. [laughs] Honestly I can’t believe they let me do that!
BiT: What about your professional and creative background led you here?
LQ: I have a creative brain and I’ve always known that. I went to school for graphic design and communication. I do consciously remember choosing Graphic Design because I knew being an “artist” meant struggle and not making money, and Graphic Designers were needed in all realms of corporate and freelance, so it just made more sense. However as an art director at a corporation, I realized that I liked the work but I hated sitting at my desk for 8 hours a day and feeling like I can’t get up and just walk around for 20 minutes every few hours. I work better when I work for a few hours at a time, and I didn’t have that freedom.
BiT: I’m sure having that freedom fosters more creativity.
LQ: Yes! That’s when I started to realize maybe I am more of an artist than a designer, because instead of just digital work, I like working with my hands. I always felt like artists were way out there and much more creative than myself. I’m definitely motivated by creating things, but also by earning money from them. I knew I wanted to find a way to do what I’m good at but also make a living.
BiT: How would you describe your work ethic?
LQ: Put in the work, but get it done with 100% quality and efficiency.
BiT: Walk us through a day creating for Paul Paige.
LQ: Every day is different. I try and get up around 7 and have my coffee. [laughing] I tend to make a lot of to-do lists because I’ve realized I can’t remember anything now that I wear 7 hats.
BiT: [laughing] I’m the same way. It definitely helps give my day a little bit of structure and definitely helps me feel more accomplished.
LQ: Exactly. Then I get my computer work out of the way first; I respond to emails, send emails and spend some time working on the website, then I get to work out in the carport.
BiT: In the carport?
LQ: Yep that’s my studio. Fortunately in Los Gatos it’s usually not that humid, but it’s toasty; 95 sometimes. I’m still working outside everyday so trust me, I be sweatin’.
BiT: That definitely creates an added challenge.
LQ: Yeah, I just have to work through it. So let’s say I have a wholesale order for 10 fixtures. I prefer to work in an assembly line because I’ve learned that it’s easier and faster to do the same movement. You’re almost using muscle memory which not only makes the product better, to follow the steps for each one in the same order, but it also alleviates stress for me knowing I’ve done every piece correctly.
BiT: I’m sure that brings some structure to the craft.
LQ: It helps. I need to and want to have more time to design new things, but for me, again, my daily motivation is I need to be doing things that are actually making me money. Designing is wonderful but for now I have to stick with what I’ve introduced to the public first, and perfect more things for the business like providing great customer service, figuring out how to ship and who to ship with, and how to package stuff and all that jazz. It’s all a reflection of the brand which is a reflection of me. So it’s a lot to manage.
BiT: Right, because owning a business is about so much more than just doing your craft.
LQ: Exactly. I’m working 7 different positions on a daily basis.
BiT: There’s a lot that goes into turning your passion into your profession. How do you define “hustle” and how did you take the leap from making it a side project to your full-time gig?
LQ: I remember selling my very first light that I had purchased and recreated. It was originally an 1800s Turkish brazier that I bought from Class & Trash in Richmond, which is still one of my favorite places. I showed it to a woman who I knew was renovating her house, and she was like, ‘I love that!’ and bought it. And so she was kind of my first professional job. Then I sold a few more lights and I remember using that money to take a trip to the Northwest and I thought, sweet I’m going to get paid for this, this is awesome. Once that happened I started focusing more on it as a side hustle and doing it more often. Another women I know, her boyfriend at the time, was a potter and he was having a show and asked if I wanted to display some of my lights. I said sure, and I went and set up a little section.
That day stuck with me, seeing my own creations. Once I hit my limit sitting at a desk, I went to work for a custom menswear brand that was moving their headquarters from New York to Richmond and needed a creative manager. I was only there for 3 months when one day my friend contacted me and said, “are you still trying to do lighting?” I told him I was, and he said, “I’m doing a website for this salon owner from New York who’s opening a salon in Richmond and he asked me if I knew any local lighting designers.” I met him that day, talked about what he wanted and shared some ideas that I had, and he said “Yeah, let’s do it.” I went back and quit my job.
BiT: That’s amazing. You just realized that you were being called to do something completely different.
LQ: Trust me I was still nervous. I called my mom before I did it. And I was dating Matt, my now fiance, at this point and I knew how much he thought of my lighting and that what I did was really awesome. There was just a lot of support towards what I was doing as a side hustle, and I thought fuck it, I need to make a move.
BiT: Sometimes those signs are impossible to ignore. How do you maintain energy in your craft and push through periods of frustration between projects?
LQ: I am bad at reminding myself what I have accomplished, but I have been trying to do that more. I have accomplished a lot. My business has constantly been growing, but the actual activity of what I do, it varies. Normally I take a break because continuing to work through less active periods just aids my frustration. And when it comes to people I struggle, I work alone, I am here at my house all by myself all the time and there are very few people in my life who know and even understand what I’m doing.
BiT: I definitely understand that. Working from home is bittersweet.
LQ: Yeah. Before we moved I started to have monthly meetings with Jason, who used to own a lighting business and is now the production manager at Shades of Light, Doug the welder I was using and Grace who also works for Shades of Light. They could relate to questions and issues I had and were interested in the same topics to talk about. It was a very nice outlet. It’s more difficult now being across the country.
BiT: Finding ways to surround yourself with the right people makes a huge difference.
LQ: Definitely. I’ve met a lot of people who I’ve found are very similar to me, and I appreciate and respect them a lot. I met one guy at the first Renegade I’d ever done, this guy named Max. He has a passion for light and lighting design and I was so inspired by him. Meanwhile, he’s telling me the same thing which felt great! I never really thought I was a true artist. It took a while to convince myself of that, whereas he’s definitely an artist. Everything he has created are projects for himself. He’s never sold anything and in a way, I admire that. I’m trying to design more mainstream products to put into market but definitely want to keep doing one-of-a-kind installations. Max and I have met a couple times and talked about doing an installation at Burning Man, which would be super awesome. Things to him seem tangible, they don’t seem impossible. To find someone else who shares the same passion as you is not only inspirational and motivating, it makes your ideas feel achievable.
BiT: From what do you gain inspiration? Any artists or brands in particular? What about makers?
LQ: I really look at design as a whole. I pay attention to whether or not there are trends amongst many platforms and stores so I know what people are designing and what people are actually buying. I wouldn’t say there’s one particular artist or designer that I really follow closely but I’ve always loved everything vintage. Big Daddy Antiques is a shop in San Francisco and in LA. They source from around the world and have mostly large furniture and lighting that’s very rustic and industrial. I want people to realize it’s better to reuse, repurpose, recycle and fix things that already exist. It doesn’t mean they’re not good quality just because they’re used. There’s so much value and nostalgia in old things.
BiT: Which speaks a lot to your childhood.
LQ: Right. I’m thankful for that.
BiT: I’m sure. Tell us more about the house you grew up in and your parents influence on Paul Paige.
LQ: My parents bought 6 acres with a “shack” that was literally overgrown with poison ivy and all kinds of crap. It was built in 1796 so it’s really freaking old and crooked; I had to shim up my dresser in my bedroom because things would roll off of it. My parents added on to the original two over two colonial and have continued to make changes and remodel room by room my entire life. There’s definitely a mix of primitive and modern design with it’s vaulted ceilings and bay windows in the bathroom. My dad built a wooden spiral staircase which was always my favorite. Everything was customized but still holds its historic and rustic appeal. Obviously both of my parents are creatives; my mom owned a fabric store for 38 years and is now working with a woman to start a clothing line, Charlottesville Dress Company; my dad has always been good at building things and worked in construction but also has a very detailed brain, so he l likes tedious jobs. He’s the one who taught me how to wire lighting. Growing up in a very non-cookie cutter home led me to look at things very differently and it taught me that anything is possible and things aren’t always as they seem.
BiT: Has there been a moment where you thought, holy shit this is happening?
LQ: I have that occasionally, normally very short moments, because then I’m like ‘stop you need to stay focused.’ But if and when I ever sell several lights at one time, I get really excited. When I was still living in Richmond, I was introduced to builder Josh Romano; he owns Cobblestone Development. They had a pilot on HGTV called Richmond Rehabbers which didn’t get picked up but he was the first big purchaser. I sold 5 lights to him and once I got back in my car I screamed! I thought, this is great, I’ve made a connection with this guy who is not only buying and flipping houses but he’s doing it a lot! That thought is what gets me extremely giddy.
BiT: Where do you see Paul Paige in 5 years?
LQ: I see a studio space, not a carport. I do see some employees. And that could be just building a relationship and a community of people who are all working together. I love what I’m doing but I’ve realized quickly that it’s so hard to handle it all on your own.
Keep following Leslie’s journey on Instagram and bring her light into your own space on paulpaige.co.
Leave a Reply