La Bella Vita founder Gina Joseph was raised in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, where she experienced a vast array of tastes and styles including Southern Revival, European Chic, Antique, French Country and Art Deco. Having lived on all three coasts over the past 25 years, Gina has honed these styles, as well as adding Urban, Modern Chic and BOHO to her style repertoire. She believes in the beauty of every detail of life from teacup and saucer to armoire and grand piano.
For Gina, creating the perfect room is an intimate process. Before deciding on the first piece, she carefully considers how a space will be used, how to utilize the natural lighting and whom will be living in the space. Once she’s ready to design, she selects colors, textures and pieces as if the room were a living being.
After years of practice, Gina has found that subtle flare with just the right accent pieces yields the most elegant results. On her travels, she has studied various techniques and designs that have helped her cultivate a modern yet classically unique sense of style.
Gina loves the challenge such as incorporating columns, antique silver, marble and other timeless treasures into an urban or modern space for a truly eclectic and original look. Gina values Family above all else and understands that a space can be both Beautiful and Functional. Every room she creates beckons you in with a hint of her warmth and Southern charm.
While still traveling to collect the most special pieces, she spends most of her time in her Virginia Beach studio and still makes time to learn new techniques and exhibits at trade shows all around the world. Call or message today to get started with your beautiful space.
Gina is a Louisiana native, obtaining her Bachelors of the Arts from LSU, and her Masters of Arts from ODU. Her Family, her Dogs and Home Décor are her true passions and she believes that a space should be both Beautiful and Functional for the people who live there.
Growing up, Gina learned from the best teachers during weekend antique hunting with her Mother and Grandmother. After finding their treasures, Gina and her Mother spent hours lovingly restoring the items to their original glory, or putting a new spin on them. Gina visited homes and estates throughout the history rich South from the age of 6 and fell in love with Live Oak lined paths, Greek columns, wood floors and Chandeliers.
Gina grew her Décor repertoire, bringing her Southern inspiration to her home in San Diego where she discovered and fell in love with the European elegance of the Villa and Mission architecture. She relocated to Virginia Beach in the 1990’s, raised three amazing daughters and now spends her time off with Mo, her husband and the love of her life, her three beautiful daughters, two delightful granddaughters and her pups. Here, her design has grown to include the Chic Urban and Seaside designs of the East Coast.
Having a firm belief in giving back to her community, Gina is an active participant and has served on the boards of several local charities. She is proud to support small artisans, especially women, from around the world, by carrying their products in the store and a portion of every sale is donated to charitable organizations.
