Having spent nearly a decade at Am Law 100 firms, it wasn't easy for Sabahat Chaudhary to completely change directions with her career.

In January, Chaudhary, who is in her late 30s, left her role as a commercial litigation and international trade counsel at Perkins Coie in Washington, D.C., to focus on Magpie Cookshop, a company she co-founded in 2013 with Louisa Shafia, a chef and cookbook author. Together the two women create practical and eco-friendly kitchen items, such as aprons, produce bags and tea towels.

Before joining Perkins Coie in 2010, Chaudhary graduated from the Georgetown University Law Center and took a job at Howrey, a now-defunct Am Law 100 firm, where she mainly handled antitrust and insurance coverage cases. However, as her career continued, Chaudhary couldn't shake the feeling that she had another calling.