Holly Madison’s ‘40s-style kitchen worthy of a centerfold

Former Playboy bunny Holly Madison doesn’t miss much about living in the storied mansion.

Sure, she used to be Hugh Hefner’s main girlfriend. She was a star on the E! network’s “Girls Next Door.” And, yes, she wrote a daring tell-all book last year that shot to the top of the New York Times best-seller list.

“It seems like a whole other life I lived so long ago,” says Madison, 36. “It really doesn’t even reflect my life now.”

These days, Madison lives with her husband, Pasquale Rotella, and their daughter, Rainbow Aurora, sometimes in Los Angeles and sometimes in Las Vegas.

This month she’s releasing a new memoir called “The Vegas Diaries: Romance, Rolling the Dice, and the Road to Reinvention.”

What’s your home in Las Vegas like?

We live in Rancho Circle, which is one of the oldest housing developments in Vegas. It is close to downtown and the Strip.

The house is Spanish style, and we really had a lot of fun remodeling it. Every room is different and reflects our personalities so much.

We love our L.A. house, too, but it looks a lot more “basic.”

How long have you lived in the Vegas home?

Three years now.

What is your favorite room and why?

The kitchen is my favorite. Guests love to hang out in there when we have parties because it feels so welcoming.

It is definitely my dream kitchen; I always wanted a red-and-white spin on a 1940s-style kitchen.

Did you have a hand in designing this room?

I worked very closely with the designer to get every tiny little detail just the way I wanted it. I think I had a different inspiration photo for every little detail.

What do you like most about this room?

There is a set of painted tiles behind the stove. The room’s designer, Kim Irvine, is an Imagineer at Disney, and she painted those for me as a wedding gift.

What were some of your design inspirations for the room?

I searched for “1940s kitchen” and pulled bits and pieces from different photos I liked. I also used an illustration from an American Girl book from my childhood. I was inspired by [American Girl doll] Molly McIntire’s kitchen!

What do you use the room for?

I use the room for cooking and socializing. I love the space — a large kitchen with a big island in the middle that everybody can kind of congregate around. ... It’s separate enough from the rest of house to have its own theme and look.

Your memoir “Down the Rabbit Hole” about the Playboy mansion was pretty revealing. Is the new book written in a similar vein?

“The Vegas Diaries” is definitely revealing. I get stage fright as a writer at the last minute. I’m like, ‘Why am I even putting all this stuff out there?’”

hotproperty@latimes.com