wsg 16
Lynda Murray
WSG 16
Aug 22
Anyone interested in cooking lately? I’m not. I used to love cooking until last year. Now, I’m getting my creative yayas out writing this and painting more. I know I don’t want to grill. I don’t really want to order more sushi, or pizza or some restaurant meal that really should be eaten in the restaurant and not put in a box for an hour before I eat it. Nope. It’s hot out too so I am not really hungry, more peckish. But peckish for things I don’t have to actually make. Like cookies from the Whole Foods lucite cookie center. Or, the healthy version of Slim Jims from Vermont. Snyder’s mustard and onion pretzel bits? I’m going to get rickets and die of malnutrition at the rate I’m going. My poor family. Thank goodness they have a direct line to Uber Eats, as my Amex bill shows. I will pull out of my cooking tailspin as soon as school starts. Then it’s fresh veggies and unprocessed proteins all the way to next Summer!
It’s been eight months of WSG newsletters and I am still enjoying the process. Are you enjoying the read? I know you all have opinions on just about everything, and that’s not a bad thing. Hee hee. Seriously, though. Drop me a note with any interview ideas, feedback, advice, please.
Below, meet Lynda Murray. She is remarkable! In doing these interviews I notice parallels between Mavens. Many of them found their passion as kids and figured out a way to make it their life and livelihood. Inspiring! For those of us who are late bloomers, our passions still count. And no pressure on the whole “passion” thing, too. We don’t all have to be over the moon for one thing. We might be “polymaths” great word: A person of wide-ranging knowledge or learning. Introducing Word of the Week!
Maven of the Week: Lynda Murray!
Lynda Murray is an interior designer to the stars based in Los Angeles. (link to article). Growing up in LA, she discovered her passion for design early. She remembers at a young age looking out the car window as her parents drove through the city wondering what was inside the houses they passed. How did they live? When she was about 10 years old her mother let her redecorate her room. She painted it red. Soon she realized why red isn’t a color for bedrooms when she started getting headaches from the color. She was allowed to repaint, this time French blue.
At 16 she undertook a more elaborate re-do of her room with a French country theme. Some of you may remember French country was “in” in the 1980s (Pierre Deux and Laura Ashley-not french, but country). The process of going to show rooms and getting fabrics (and working with a decorator) for her room introduced her to professional decorating. Her path to the future was found. Lynda attended UCLA’s Interior Design program for college and twenty five years later she's still at it. However, she didn’t hang a shingle for her business officially for another ten years after graduating.
Her first job out of college was at a well known furniture store in LA called, Kreiss. No sooner did she get the job, she was laid off within the year. The stock market had tanked and as many of us did after the ‘87 crash, she started temping. Lynda ended up in the movie industry working for John Landau, Head of Production at Twentieth Century Fox. Born with the ability to complete complicated tasks for highly demanding people, her career took off. Eventually, she became a senior VP for Production at The Shooting Gallery in the LA office. Meanwhile, Lynda was still in love with design, despite her rising star in Hollywood.
All along, Lynda had taken decorating jobs for friends on the side. She landed her first celebrity client when she got to know Minnie Driver’s sister, Kate, through her job at The Shooting Gallery. Minnie had bought a small home with earnings from her breakthrough role in Good Will Hunting and needed help decorating. She charged little for her work and word spread of her talent. Lynda started thinking more seriously about leaving her lucrative job in the movies. Her parents thought she was nuts to trade “The Industry” for interior design, but that’s what she did.
At Sundance she asked her boss Larry Meistrich, head of The Shooting Gallery to get out of her contract to start her design business. He said “ok and if my wife likes you, you can design our home in Upper Saddle River (NJ).” Amazing. Michael Bay, director-producer of the Transformer series and more,met her and 20 years later she’s still designing for him. Small-ish at first (his master bathroom in LA) to huge this home in Architectural Digest and more (planes, boats). A star was born.
Please see below for my interview with Lynda Murray: polo playing (did I forget to mention that?), licensed pilot and interior designer to the stars!
What did you want to be when you grew up?
I have always known I wanted to design homes for as long as I can remember, like I was really young. I was fascinated with looking at people’s homes and how they lived. I didn’t know what the job was called or that it was even a job until I turned 16. My mom allowed me to work with a designer to do my bedroom. I was 100% hooked from that moment on. I sought the best college for interiors at that time which was the Interior and Environmental Design Program at UCLA.
What are you excited about now?
I have several projects that I am excited about but one in particular is on a giant lot in Malibu with sweeping ocean views and the clients are really special.
What has been your toughest job as a designer so far? why?
Well the most complicated job I did was designing the film studio for Lightstorm Entertainment where Jim Cameron is filming all of the Avatar sequels. It was difficult in the sense that its completely eco friendly which is not easy to pull off. Here is a quote from Jim for Architectural Digest; “Cameron explains that his goal for the space was to create “the greenest set in Hollywood.” That meant improvements to the preexisting building with sustainable materials and fabrics, including bamboo and porcelain tiles; a water filtration system complete with reusable “Avatar” water bottles for all employees; 100-percent vegan food in the dining room for 150 cast and crew members; and outfitting the soundstage roofs—where new Avatar film scenes are shot—with a solar panel system, “the largest we know of in the entertainment business,” he says. This means the company has operated for four years at net-negative power.”
I'd love to ask who your toughest or worst client has been, but obviously I can't. Anonymous worst client story?
worst client will go unnamed but it was a really big job in Laguna Beach. the clients were abusive and vile but we finished the job strong and got out alive so there’s that!
If you could live anywhere, where, and why?
I would live in Trousdale. I love it up there. the homes have amazing views and a lot of mid century modern properties that still stand the test of time.
You are getting married in October in an airplane hanger that you designed the interior of. Please describe the look you will undoubtedly achieve? types of flowers? What will be the main color theme and where will you get your dress?
I am getting married in a really large airplane hangar at the Van Nuys airport and the theme is Ralph Lauren Americana. I am born and raised in LA and live a pretty casual life. So while it will feel sort of casual it will for sure be elegant. I love organic colors and fabrics so I went with a soft French Blue accent with distressed wood tables and chairs and wild flower vibes. My dress was made by Monique Lhuillier.
Photos of your favorite job you've done and why it's your favorite project?
All my projects hold a special place in my heart. Like you shouldn’t choose your favorite child but I think people secretly do. I would say my favorite so far is the home I designed for Michael Bay in Bel Air. Its pretty special and we pulled out all the stops. I have worked with him for 2 decades but this was the first build from the ground up. We got 15 pages in AD so that was also the icing on the cake.
What books are on your bedside table?
The Seat of the Soul by Gary Zukav never leaves the table and I just re-read Kane and Abel by Jeffery Archer which is a page turner.
What do you do to relax?
I like to fly my plane which doesn’t sound relaxing but it actually is very freeing and the best feeling in the world and I get views that are incredible.
What category/subject would you add to the Guide?
I am all about empowering women. My entire office is female and I am really proud of that. I think it would be great to open a discussion on female run small businesses and the challenges we face.
A Recipe You Wont Hate: Zucchini
For those of you with a vegetable garden and have planted zucchini this summer it’s almost crazy-zucchini-time. It’s pretty hard to mess up that crop. Generally, people feel overwhelmed by their zucchinis. Here is one SUPER simple way to eat them hot or as left overs.
Slice up zucchini thin and round.
Toss with olive oil and salt (kosher for the taste and granular size).
Heat up large frying pan with a bit of olive oil on medium high and place zucchini discs flat not overlapping. leave for a few minutes and shake pan to flip discs. Let brown on opposite side and remove to serving dish. Repeat with next batch. You can also use a grill.
Super yum. Can add any herb but dried thyme or oregano seems good.
A question for 4 women: How do you feel about cooking?
I like baking, which is different from cooking. More specific and less nutritious:)
I like cooking, grilling in the summer a lot and do fish and veg.
I don’t cook. My husband does. But I do the grocery shopping and I hate that.
I love to cook for my family but not for just me so I may starve when all my kids go to college.
That’s all for now! It’s almost Fall. That’s a good time for cooking. You can still grill comfortably and make soup. Until next time, but first…
Rest In Peace, Aunt Madeline. With love, Kim
Instagram: @womenssurvivalguide, @kimdstockwellstudio
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Boston, MA
