“I like to say that Malibu is more of a state of mind than a destination,” says photographer Lyndie Benson, a Point Dume resident for the past 17 years. If you were looking for the real Malibu, you’d be well advised to turn to the native Angeleno for clues: She raised two boys here, sent…

Jewelry designer Liv Ballard is a woman of considerable charms. And even though the fiftysomething Mississippi native and mother of two left her home state decades ago, she is still every bit the Southern belle, entertaining guests at her “Hispano-Moorish” home, she says, “whenever possible.” Known as the “Chimorro House” by Tichenor & Thorp, the…

Three Golden State interior designers rely on their former fashion careers to develop awe-inducing room decor. Here, they share some of their favorite home accessories and quick tricks for spicing up a stale space. Alison Blumenfeld Before beginning her own design firm Blumenfeld Interiors, the L.A.-based, San Francisco-bred Blumenfeld started a namesake line of silk…