Finding a Tranquil Place to Slow Down and Relax

In this fast-paced age of faxes, phone calls and endless e-mails, having a special place to slow down and escape from it all becomes not merely a luxury but also a necessity.

In her new book, “Getaways: Carefree Retreats for All Seasons,” author Chris Casson Madden, a home-design expert, taps into the growing need for sanctuary and space by showcasing all kinds of spectacular getaways.

“Many of us are feeling stressed out from our high-tech world,” Madden said. “Everyone needs a retreat, whether it’s a second home or making their own home into a sanctuary.”

Madden, who hosts “Interiors by Design” on the HGTV network and has created interiors for Oprah Winfrey, Katie Couric and Toni Morrison, will discuss great getaways at 10:30 a.m. Thursday in the Barracks Gallery at Mission San Juan Capistrano.

The reception, lecture and slide show, sponsored by the Friends of the Mission, will raise funds for the restoration of the mission’s Great Stone Church monument.

To Madden, a getaway can be a mountain cabin, a spacious seaside villa, a treehouse or simply a room of one’s own in a suburban home--any place that “offers relaxation and comfort.”

“It can literally be in your own backyard,” she said.

Her book is filled with more than 200 photographs of hideaways, including actor Michael Keaton’s century-old homesteader’s cabin on a Western ranch, Morrison’s rebuilt boathouse on the Hudson and Couric’s elegant weekend home in Dutchess County, New York.

In Orange County, Madden visits La Casa Pacifica, the San Clemente hacienda known as the Western White House, which served as a getaway for President Nixon. The current occupants, Gavin and Ninetta Herbert, who own Roger’s Gardens in Corona del Mar, allowed Madden an inside peek into their home.

The author fell in love with its romantic ambience, particularly the collection of old santos (statues of saints) and religious icons and architectural remnants such as the circular library staircase that once was in a 19th century Parisian townhouse.

“I walked into La Casa Pacifica and felt I was in a Venetian palazzo,” Madden said. “It has an incredible warmth that permeates all of the rooms. And it has a wonderful history.”

Not everyone can afford an ocean-view hacienda or a cabin in the woods, but there are ways to turn any space into a sanctuary.

“You need to start with a comfortable place to sit--a sofa or a big, fat overstuffed chair,” Madden said.

A getaway should be filled with elements that appeal to the senses, such as aromatherapy candles, music, fresh flowers or live plants. Lots of pillows and warm throws can add to the room’s comfort.

“I think it’s important to feed the soul,” she said.

She recommends personalizing the space with family mementos, such as photographs, which Madden changes from color to black-and-white for a timeless look.

“It could be objects you found when you traveled or a rock you picked up when walking on the beach.”

So where will Madden go to unwind, once she finishes a 15-city book tour and the launch of her new furniture line by Bassett Furniture?

She finds refuge in her 100-year-old French Normandy-style home in Rye, N.Y., where she lives with her husband and business partner, Kevin Madden, and two teen-age sons.

The home, pictured in the book, is filled with antiques from Venice and France mixed with her flea-market finds. Madden likes to relax under a green canvas awning on the small brick porch that leads to her English garden.

The family also retreats to a secluded modern-style home with a wrap-around deck, set in the middle of an apple orchard on 12 mountainous acres in Vermont.

“I love it there. I told my husband, ‘Maybe we could just live here all the time.’ And he said, ‘Then it wouldn’t be a getaway.’ ”

* Tickets to Madden’s reception at Mission San Juan Capistrano are $70, which includes one copy of “Getaways.” For reservations, which are required, call (949) 248-2030.

* Madden will also give a public book signing (no lecture) at Roger’s Gardens in Corona del Mar from 4 to 6 p.m. Thursday. (949) 640-5800.