Later, when she was sent to the private school, Notre Dame Des Oiseaux run by Catholic nuns, she learned the other “3 Cs”: “Christ, confession and cheating at exams! Following her prompt expulsion, Hélène worked as a model for Hubert de Givenchy, who encouraged her to enter the Ecole des Beaux Arts in Paris.

Although she felt the lure of the Ecole, the fashion world proved to be much more enticing than school, so she traveled to Milan, London and New York for modeling assignments. Upon returning to Paris for a Givenchy show, she befriended a publishing mogul who gave Hélène her first interior design assignment: he asked her to completely design the interior of his Parisian penthouse facing the Eiffel Tower. While the experience was a tremendous success, modeling provided Hélène the opportunity to travel and absorb the different architectural styles and design sensibilities of major world cities.

Nevertheless, when she was in France, Helene pursued important design projects, including one for Fiat, as well as the design of a country getaway for a high-ranking government official. It was not until Hélène arrived in Los Angeles that she began to pursue and embrace her passion for design as a full-time profession.

Hélène moved with her family to California’s Santa Ynez Valley, just north of Santa Barbara, and began restoring the vintage clapboard farmhouse into a country gem, replete with a working barn and a menagerie of pets.

The addition of Hélène’s home furnishings and lighting lines was a natural progression of her desire for detail and her love of whimsy and fantasy, resulting in a line of beautiful, unusual furniture. Hélène’s current work has been featured by national and international publications.