A FASHIONABLE LIFE: ROSETTA AND BALTHAZAR GETTY

Perhaps it is the bohemian touch of her design style, but ever since I read the interview in Harper's Bazaar about Rosetta and Balthazar Getty, I've been a fan of her casual style (which reminds me a lot of my own). When you have young children, it is a bit of a challenge to combine glamour with practicality, but Rosetta does it effortless.

The Hollywood couple have created an elegant Los Angeles homestead with their four kids. Although many may recall the stir that Balthazar caused by having a brief, well-publicized affair with actress Sienna Miller in 2008, the couple worked through that dark period in their lives. At the time, it led to a separation from Rosetta, but today the family is happily back on track.

"Here's the bottom line: It was a very challenging time for everybody involved," says Balthazar, 35, sitting on a couch next to his wife, "but I loved and missed my family too much not to make it work. Rosetta is understanding enough and spiritual enough to let us try. In a way it — I don't know ... I feel like we're better than we've ever been."

For her part, Rosetta, 40, an earthy, dark-haired beauty, has a very charitable outlook on the whole ordeal. "I'm open to talking about it because I believe we go through things in a public way to help other people get through it. I'd love to talk about it more with people when I'm clearer about it," she says. "I'm going to have to explain this to my daughters one day. I chose not to act from ego because I just felt like it would be too crushing for my children."

Balthazar adds, "You can do two things in life when an obstacle comes your way: You can tackle it, or you can allow it to break you down."

Though their '50s-modern single-level home is modest in size (by Los Angeles' standards at least), the scenery out of each of its windows — a near-360-degree landscape of Los Angeles County — is dazzling. On their deck, they've been known to host some of the chicest dinner parties in town. Regular guests include a mix of musicians, artists, actors, and, yes, often famous friends they've collected since childhood, namely the Arquettes (Patricia is Rosetta's childhood best friend, and her brother David and his wife, Courteney Cox, are also frequent visitors), Cassius's godfather, actor Eric Dane, and fans of Rosetta's three-year-old clothing line, Riser Goodwyn, like Eva Mendes. But what's going on inside the house, a white boxlike structure that's been lovingly transformed into a very cool and comfortable family home, is what makes this place special.

"This is all Rosie," says Balthazar, wearing a black T-shirt and jeans, clearly admiring his wife's efforts as he offers a tour of the property. "The design, the fabrics, the vegetable gardens. It's all her."

The handsome and well-worn modern furniture, mostly elegantly aged and cracking black leather pieces from midcentury designers like Illum Wikkels and Charles and Ray Eames, shares space with handmade textiles and richly detailed carpets chosen with the help of designer and decorator Cliff Fong. On the walls is a growing contemporary-art collection, mostly pieces chosen on gut instinct by Rosetta from primarily California-based artists, such as an abstract sculpture from Anna Sew Hoy and a series of photographs by Karin Apollonia Müller. Meanwhile, the Gettys' daughters have made their own contribution: drawings on walls covered with several coats of chalkboard paint. "It's all very kid friendly," says Rosetta. "The pieces are large, nothing delicate. And all of my furniture is dark, so it won't get destroyed."

I hope you enjoy the photos of their home as much I have:







Copy and photos by Harper's Bazaar.