Brazil Finds Slower Living in a Soulful California Home
Lily Riesenfeld’s home in Larkspur, California, is designed to feel deeply connected to its surroundings. The 1921 house, with its black shingles and mahogany doors, sits among redwood trees. Hiking trails meet the backyard, and the location offers views of San Francisco Bay inlets to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west.
Riesenfeld grew up in Berkeley, California. When she was eight, her family bought a ranch in Healdsburg. Over the years, they planted hundreds of trees, built a ranch home, restored a redwood barn from the 1850s, and planted one hundred acres of French varietal grapes. The ranch was developed so that animals, the vineyard, and natural habitats could coexist. Riesenfeld said her favorite part of the ranch is sharing it with visitors.
As a child, her family also spent two weeks every summer in Maine at a home belonging to her great-grandparents. The porch furniture there was painted in a celadon green the family called “Gamby green,” after her great-grandmother. Many design choices in Riesenfeld’s current home were inspired by her grandmother’s home in Maine, the family home in Berkeley, and the ranch in Healdsburg.
In her early adult years, Riesenfeld focused on personal wellness. She launched The Lily Pad in Malibu, and later cofounded The Pad Studios, a Pilates and yoga studio, after moving back to the San Francisco Bay area. She also created the Kinship Experience, a brand focused on purpose-driven events to help communities connect. She later launched a summit called Futurewell.
Today, Riesenfeld works as an advocate for regenerative agriculture and healthy, equitable food systems. She is fundraising for a regeneratively built Center for Food and Agriculture near the Marin Civic Center, which would include a permanent farmers’ market. She says the planned building will draw down more carbon and energy than it uses.
Riesenfeld designed her home with guidance from Caitlin Flemming. The colors inside the house are drawn from the surrounding landscape: deep greens, wheat tones, and light blues. These match the golden hills, redwood trees, and the water nearby. The entry and dining room walls are covered in a large-scale William Morris pattern. Curtains and pillows use smaller prints and wood-toned plaid. Two vintage French chairs are covered in a hand-printed leaf pattern. The plates combine vintage transferware in shades of green with pieces from her great-grandmother’s green Wedgwood china.
The kitchen is a central part of the home. Homemade tortillas sit wrapped in a linen towel by the stove, and slow-simmering pinto beans are ready for anyone who is hungry.
Riesenfeld shared several reflections on what home means to her. She said she was drawn to her location because of Mount Tamalpais and the hiking trails. The colors of nature where she lives inform her home’s aesthetic. She described her idea of home as a place for people to gather and feel comfortable. Her favorite season is late summer, when the light changes and takes on a golden cast.
She collects wicker baskets, hats, and kitchen pottery. On weekends, her family hikes, cooks, and goes to their children’s sporting events. In the winter, they visit a cabin in Sugar Bowl, near Tahoe, that was built in the 1930s to look like a Swiss village. She said she cannot live without a morning latte, her morning hike, and her family.
She said her home feels like her own because of a strong element of nostalgia and layers of textures and textiles. She fuels her creativity by styling meals and bringing people together at the table. Every Sunday, her mother-in-law comes to dinner, and Riesenfeld makes an effort to prepare a nice meal. She said she has learned from Alice Waters, and is inspired by local creatives such as Paul Hawken, Jack Kornfield, Dr. Daniel Siegel, and Jennifer Siebel Newsom.