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My Favorite Room: Jenni Kayne keeps it simple to make room for thought and inspiration

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The living spaces in Jenni Kayne’s Brentwood home are inspired by the same urban edge that helped the Los Angeles designer establish her place in the world of women’s fashion at 19.

Kayne opened her first retail store in 2003 and quickly branched out from clothes to shoes, handbags, jewelry and home furnishings and accessories.

Today, the 34-year-old mother of two has five stores in California and a pop-up in the Hamptons.

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When she’s not overseeing work on the custom home she and her husband, real estate agent Richard Ehrlich, are building in Mandeville Canyon or working on her latest collection, Kayne relaxes in her favorite room with her children and the family’s Labradoodles, Chachi and the Dude.

Why is the living room your favorite?

It’s the center of the home. Because of the way the house is situated, the living room has this amazing light. It feels almost like you’re in a treehouse. The room has beautiful windows, and you look out and see all the foliage and trees. It’s such a serene place.

How do you use the space?

We’re always either sitting in it with family or running through it. Whenever we’re entertaining, this is where everyone congregates.

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Can you share your home-design theory?

I like my home to be very quiet and clean, not too visually stimulating or overwhelming. A clean, simple, organic palette calms my senses and leaves room for inspiration.

We live in a throwaway society, but I like to buy things that are not disposable. I believe in investing in key pieces that will carry you through when you go from one house to another. This also allows me to keep things and love things for a very long time.

Favorite pieces of art?

We have a Rodney Graham black and white photograph of an upside-down oak tree. We bought that piece after we purchased the Mandeville Canyon lot, which has 30 or 40 oak trees on it. We also have a Robert Graham statue of a woman. He is one of my favorite sculptors.

Biggest splurge?

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A beautiful leather chair by Mogens Voltelen that I bought for Richard’s birthday. I don’t remember how much it costs, but it is a special piece.

You have some stunning ceramics, throw pillows and home accessories.

Accessories are kind of like the jewelry of a room and can make a room feel lived-in and unique. So mixing ceramics and coffee table books is super important.

Your children are 5 and 8. How does a busy working mom transform a space into something that is fabulous and functional?

I think there’s a myth that once you have children, your life is over in terms of the ability to have beautiful things. You can make your space reflect how you live with your family, but that doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice style. We have a beautiful white sofa, but if I have to get it cleaned every couple of months, that’s OK. Ironically, the people who end up messing up my house the most are my parents, not my kids. My dad always manages to spill red wine on the wall or coffee on the sofa.

hotproperty@latimes.com

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