Suzanne Rheinstein (1945-2023): Elegance endures in new book

Suzan Filipek | March 30, 2023 | 0 Comments

SUZANNE RHEINSTEIN AT a luncheon in her Windsor Square backyard.
Photo by Martha Welborne

Windsor Square’s own Suzanne Rheinstein passed away on March 20, the week following the publication of her third book, “A Welcoming Elegance,” in which the legendary interior designer calls on her decades of experience melding modernity and timeless elegance.

Rheinstein died of cancer just days from her 78th birthday.

The book showcases six residences among the final projects of Rheinstein’s lengthy career.

Each room featured is a welcoming mix of antiques, furnishings, art and textiles.

They include a traditional Georgian library done in an untraditional lacquered green, a San Francisco town house redo that includes a “California” room filled with Moroccan rugs and rattan chairs, and a serene guesthouse evocative of the bohemian 1970s. Rheinstein’s own Montecito retreat also is featured.

The 256-page hardcover book is published by Rizzoli.

Written by Michael Boodro with photography by Pieter Estersohn, the book captures Rheinstein’s career as a style maker and legendary designer.

Longtime locals know her as the owner of the popular Hollyhock shop founded and located on Larchmont Boulevard for 10 years. As reported in the Chronicle in 2019, Rheinstein opened that antique furniture and one-of-a-kind shop at 214 N. Larchmont Blvd. in 1988, later moving to West Hollywood and then to La Cienega Boulevard. (Hollyhock closed in 2018.)

Rheinstein’s first best-selling book, “At Home: A Style for Today with Things from the Past” (Rizzoli, 2010), was followed by “Rooms for Living” (Rizzoli, 2015).

Gardens were a passion of Rheinstein’s, who lived in one of Los Angeles’ oldest neighborhoods in a home built in 1913.

Charities that she supported include the Garden Conservancy and Friends of Robinson Gardens. She was on the National Advisory Committee for The Antiques & Garden Show of Nashville, an annual charity event raising funds to improve the lives of children and families in the greater Nashville area.

Born and raised in New Orleans, Louisiana, the former Suzanne Stamps was an English literature major at Tulane University, and she was managing editor of the school newspaper.

Rheinstein also supported LA Opera 90012, a program initiated by her late husband, Frederic Rheinstein, which every year provides free opera tickets to dozens of high school students (and a parent for each) who have entered an essay contest.

Rheinstein and her work have been featured in numerous lifestyle publications and blogs. She was part of Architectural Digest’s AD100 and the Elle Decor A-List. She received the Legacy Award from the Institute of Classical Architecture, Southern California, and she received the New York School of Interior Design Albert Hadley Lifetime Achievement Award.

She is survived by her and Fred Rheinstein’s daughter Katherine Brodsky, Kate’s husband, Alexander, and their three daughters, Beatriz, Frederica and Delphine, Suzanne’s brother Odom Stamps and his wife Kate and daughter Emma, and Fred Rheinstein’s daughter, Linda C. Rheinstein, and son, David A. Rheinstein. Fred, a pioneer in the postproduction industry, died in 2013.

“Living well everyday is much more important than getting your house together only for special occasions,” she wrote on her website, suzannerheinstein.com.

“Suzanne Rheinstein: A Welcoming Elegance” is available at Chevalier’s Books on Larchmont Boulevard.