Valletta was born in Phoenix, Arizona to a mother who worked at the post office. She got her start in the fashion industry when her mother enrolled her in modeling school at the age of fifteen at the Linda Layman Agency. Valletta is married to renowned Olympic volleyball player Christian "Chip" McCaw with whom she has a son, Auden. In August 2006, the New York Daily News reported that Valletta completed a stint at The Meadow rehabilitation facility in Wickenburg, Arizona, for stress and non-substance-related issues.