Beautiful chaos
WORK • Wednesday Routine
CAROLINE LIZARRAGA • decorative painter • Caroline Lizarraga
Neighborhood you work in: Potrero Hill
Neighborhood you live in: Piedmont
It’s Wednesday morning. What’s the scene at your workplace?
My Potrero Hill studio is usually a pit stop since most of our projects require us on-site, but I still come in every morning. Stan Getz is probably playing in the background while one of our ladies is painting beautiful project samples. I’m grabbing gold leaf, crushed brass, and different plasters. We’re all chatting about concepts for current and future projects as we throw ladders and scaffolding into my truck. I call it beautiful chaos.
What’s on the agenda for today?
We’re working on the new space for Kim Alter, chef behind the acclaimed restaurant Nightbird in Hayes Valley. Because I’ve worked with Kim for so long, she said, "Do whatever you want, I love everything you do." It’s my job to translate the beautiful stories she tells with food to the walls of the restaurant. We wanted to create mood, layers, and a handcrafted feel. Since Kim is so drawn to nature, we decided to do a layered, drippy landscape that can be read as an abstract painting. At the top, we’ll have gold leaf and bronze plaster to give it a glam sheen.
Now that we’ve launched the wallpaper collection with Parete, we’re getting ready for SF’s Decorator Showcase and wrapping up projects with designers Drew McGukin (highlighting inlaid metallic plaster in modern shapes and a plaster, curry-colored dining room) and Noz Nozawa (a gorgeous over-scaled botanical photo-realist powder room on a black background). Next week we head to Montana for a large project, and my Italian Curiosare painting classes in Puglia are in April and May. It’s a busy year for us!
Any restaurant plans today, tonight, this weekend?
The perfect weekend night: Walking Filoli’s private gardens followed by dinner at the new Robin restaurant in Menlo Park, which I was lucky to work on. It’s omakase and absolutely spectacular. They’re like family to us, so while my husband and I eat their gorgeous sushi, one of the staff brings our daughter into the back to help with dessert.
How about a little leisure or culture?
I bring my family with me when I travel for work, and we always try to immerse ourselves in the place. We stayed at Moose Creek Ranch when I worked in Jackson, Wyoming, and rode horses and hiked the Tetons.
Any weekend getaways?
Since we have a 3-year-old, we combine fun stuff for families with a sophisticated night for adults. Indian Springs in Calistoga is casual and great for families. Their hot springs are magic, especially in the winter months. My daughter is obsessed with camping. We’re terrible campers but love glamping, and Costanoa in Half Moon Bay is a happy medium. She gets the tent experience — with marshmallows by the campfire that someone else made — and we get heat, electricity, and cappuccinos. We also love to drive down to Monterey and Carmel. We take our daughter to the Monterey Bay Aquarium, walk on the beach, and spend time shopping and eating in downtown Carmel.
What was your last great vacation?
I married an Italian, so we go to Italy a lot. We recently spent a few weeks in Puglia (above), where I hosted my Curiosare classes. We stayed in a beautiful palazzo in Lecce, (aka "The Florence of the South"). It has the most stunning Baroque architecture. All the buildings are limestone, so the city has this beautiful light. I recommend La Fiermontina for a chic, fancy stay at Palazzo Sant'Anna. Just get lost in the city, and take day trips to the sea or other lovely towns, like Otranto or the Valle d'Itria.