Folks We Love with Kate French, actress and jewelry designer

Tell us a little bit about your journey and how you’ve come to arrive here.

I was a student at UCSB and did a student film for a friend who’s dad ended up being a creator of some shows and convinced me to move to LA and pursue acting. Once I got here I never heard from him again, so I bulldozed ahead starting in commercials to save up money while working at a jewelry store and hitting auditions on my lunch break. After two years I got my first acting gig which was a regular on a 65 episode telenovela shot for here in the states. We shot in three and half months doing up to 17 pages of dialogue a day so it was great bootcamp. After that I continued with some smaller shows and low end horror movies until I booked L Word. I shot for two years in Vancouver which is one of my favorite cities. Since then I’ve done some CW shows and independent films. I’ve been in LA for 12 years now and I always thought I would move back east but this is home now. I feel like once my husband moved out here from NY this became my forever home.

Who’s in your family? Ages? Names?

Jon my husband, Henry my son, 3 years old, Chapel my daughter, still in my tummy, Pepper our rat terrier, 11 years old, Pierre our Dachshund, 6 years old

How did you choose your kids names?

Henry was my great grandfather’s name. I never met him but he was my father’s idol so we wanted his name to live on. And Henrys middle name is after my father, William. I heard the name Chapel when I was 15, was a family friends daughters name and I knew then one day I would have a little girl named Chapel. Her middle name is DeFrane which was what my last name French was before we immigrated to America. Since the kids get Jon’s last name we thought it would be nice for their middle names to reflect some of my family lineage.

Location?

We live in Silverlake in Los Angeles.

Occupation?

I’m a mom, actress, and jewelry designer.

What’s on your manifest board?

I don’t have a physical manifest board but my mantra is to keep going and push myself while not taking any day for granted. My family would be on it and pictures of places i would like to travel as well as jewelry inspiration for my line. I’ve been working on this jewelry line for almost years now so I’m manifesting for it to succeed at the moment!

Tell us some of your most loved ways to spend the day with your clan?

A day at the beach or a day snuggled in bed. I love the whole family all in one bed playing or snuggled watching movies.

What are some silly/fun things that the kids do or say?

When we first found out we were pregnant with Chapel, Henry went around telling everyone i had a baby lizard in my stomach, now he’s warmed up to sister!

When you were a teenager what did you dream of? Do things look different?

I always wanted to be a writer. I had a real passion for creative writing, but my parents said they always knew I would be an actress. I think that had something to do with the fact that I was always in dress ups running around playing pretend. I’m extremely happy and lucky to have gotten to play some really amazing roles and there are still so many I haven’t gotten to yet. But having a family has changed the urgency of needing to have success in that realm. I love being a mom and have started designing jewelry as a way to still have a creative outlet while being able to mange my time and be more present for family life.

What are some things you really believe in?

kindness and stopping global warming

Where do your passions lie?

With my family and friends. Without them I would have nothing. Im passionate about the relationships in my life more than anything.

Has your relationship with your other half changed since having kids?

Yes I feel like our love has grown to a deeper level in sharing these little people that are such a part of us both. But it also is filled with a lot less time for just us. I do miss just the me and him moments because they are far and in-between but when we do get some time with just the two of us its all the more cherished. We’ve also had to balance the difficulty of work and child rearing. His career is in full force at the moment so mine has taken a bit of a backseat.

What are some of your favorite life lessons you’ve grown to love? (even if learning them at the time was hard)

Sticking up for yourself in situations big or small. I had a very tumultuous relationship with my step dad growing up. Defending myself and brothers made me a target and made living with him all the worse. Once I moved out and started my own family I cut ties with him and my mom finally left him. It was extremely difficult living in a household with him but it taught me to be strong and to not stand down for what was right.

What do you wish you could’ve told yourself when you were a teenager?

It gets easier!

What do you find most challenging about being somebody’s parent?

Patience

What do you want your kids to learn about the world?

That the world is filled hardship and beauty, it is the juxtaposition of mother nature and where ever you can offer to make something better or lessen a hardship you should. Life is about creating balance.

What are 4 things you can’t live without as a parent?

Wine, beer, whiskey, and margaritas! 🙂