Interior design is one of my passions, yes, but my success is so closely tied to other people's happiness, that it's what I call, an indirect passion. There is an art that I practice whose only purpose is to bring joy to me in that very moment. I started dancing Argentine tango when I was 22. I became a fanatic, I traveled to Buenos Aires countless times, I studied under a guru every day for 13 months straight and explored it from every angle I could. I became a dance teacher and it became my lifestyle (even though I had JUST graduated university with an interior design degree.) After touring and living on the road for many years as a tango teacher, I finally settled down in Richmond, Virginia, prepared to make the "grown-up" switch from tango back to interior design. I worked for other interior design firms around town, I started my own company, I hired great people, I was a “Woman in Business” and proud of everything I was building, but there was a huge part of me missing. It was impossible for me to get a satisfying dance locally, so I'd fly to New York, or Los Angeles, and even back to Buenos Aires to get a dose of the dance that brought me immediate joy. I was frustrated that I had built this amazing life as an interior designer and business owner so far away from the dance I loved. Then, one day, I met a handsome guy at a dance in LA. We decided that we wanted to be together forever, and so he moved to Richmond, and we got married. Now, we've rearranged the furniture in our home so that the living room is the tango studio, the master bedroom is my interior design office, and all the other pieces of our lives fit into the smaller rooms. We decided to start our own school called Virginia Tango, and now as I head back to work in my interior design office, I know that I'm not missing out at all. I've designed my life and my home around my passions and I feel full, and I'm particularly good at helping other people do the same.

-Anna León