6 THINGS WITH LAUREN CARON

I am currently the principal designer and founder of Studio Laloc, an interior design firm based in Seattle, WA with a satellite office in Brooklyn, NY.

My mother is a talented "hobby" decorator and some of my earliest childhood memories are from time spent at wallpaper, upholstery fabric and antique stores. I always felt compelled to do something creative and I went to college for fine arts and illustration, however two years into college I decided to change my path and move to New York to study visual presentation and exhibition design at the Fashion Institute of Technology.

In this program, our course work was very similar to that of which you're taught in interior design, however, the focus was more on retail, museum exhibitions, galleries, and hospitality design. In addition to this program, I finished my degree studying business, which I truly believe was instrumental in awakening my entrepreneurial spirit.

While I was still studying, I started working in retail taking on freelance work and I was driven to work for a few top luxury companies that focused on their interior visual merchandising and window displays. My first corporate job after school was working for Tiffany & Co. in their creative services department and then I took a position at Bergdorf Goodman as the visual presentation manager of non-ready-to-wear. It was in this role at Bergdorf's that I was given the chance to design spaces that were very much inspired by residential interiors. After several years in this role, I felt the pull to start my own company that would be a split between designing creative services and store design for retailers and residential interior design.

Near the end of 2014, I took the leap and started my design firm, Union Adorn, and then I rebranded the studio in 2019 to Studio Laloc with my focus more on residential interiors. I also wanted a brand that had a strong connection to my name; Laloc stands for LAuren LOthrop Caron, initials pulled from my name.

3. Most treasured home decor item?

I have an antique map of Paris that my mother gave me a number of years ago. The frame is extremely beautiful and likely worth more than the map itself. In addition to being a souvenir [of sorts] from my favorite city I've traveled to, what I love most about this piece is that the map shows the hands of the person who owned it. They highlighted and starred locations throughout the city that must have been must see or favorite locations. It also was made before the Eiffel Tower was built, and that feels really special to me.

4. What’s the best advice you've ever received?

"Stop dreaming and start doing." Creatives are big dreamers, so often we find ourselves dreaming about the future and things we want to do someday, without actually ever making such things happen. Sometimes there are external reasons that get in the way of being able to follow our dreams, however, I think we also [unconsciously] see dreams as unreachable goals, and internally we accept that many will never happen.

When someone told me to stop dreaming and start doing, specifically about starting my own business, I realized that I was using the concept of the dream as an excuse to not follow through. Perhaps because I was afraid of the risks involved or imposter syndrome took over, but more likely it was a bit of both. I made a point to change my perspective. I no longer see dreams as unattainable goals. Dreams are the initial first step in many actions that need to be taken to get to where I want to go or things I want to do. Believe me, doing is so much more rewarding than dreaming. We can accomplish a lot more than we think we can.

5. It's 5 o'clock at home. What would you be pouring?

I don’t drink too often, usually I like to try to finish off my necessary water consumption for the day when I return home. However, some days I really want a nice glass of wine to enjoy while recovering from the day. A glass of Pinot Noir is an old standby especially since there are so many great options to choose from in the PNW. On other evenings if I really feel like I need to unwind, I’ll go for my favorite herbal tea by Yogi Tea, Honey Lavender.

6. What are your favorite 6 accounts that you follow for inspiration?

@houseandgardenuk
@tat.london
@artichoke_ltd
@slow_roads
@theworldofinteriors
@salvesengraham

"I made a point to change my perspective. I no longer see dreams as unattainable goals. Dreams are the initial first step in many actions that need to be taken to get to where I want to go or things I want to do. Believe me, doing is so much more rewarding than dreaming. We can accomplish a lot more than we think we can." -Lauren Caron