“What a miracle it is that out of these small, flat, rigid squares of paper unfolds world after world after world, worlds that sing to you, comfort and quiet or excite you.” Anne Lamott
Having had a chance to look back at last year’s bestselling design books, it’s time to turn the page and glance into the future. There are some exciting new titles to be released in 2021 that I think many of you will appreciate and enjoy. To explore these books in more detail, just click on a title you’d like to see more about.
You’ll probably notice by scrolling down through my list that I am slightly biased in my choices, with a slight English Country Style bend, but I hope you won’t mind. Ros Byam Shaw, prolific writer for design magazines across the pond and author of several volumes in the Perfect English series – Perfect English, Perfect English Cottage, Perfect English Farmhouse, Perfect English Townhouse – is having a fifth book in the series published this spring – Perfect English Style– and we couldn’t be happier, could we?
There is also a great book coming out on Clove Brook Farm (a book that in my opinion can’t ship fast enough) describing the idyllic lifestyle of celebrated ceramicist Christopher Spitzmiller at his now equally famous country house in Millbrook, NY. Gardening, cooking and tending his flocks of birds and packs of darling pups with a backdrop of stunning interiors, antiques and entertaining friends – it’s all in there and it is going to be beautiful. Martha Stewart wrote the foreword, so we know it’s a good thing.
We’ll also get to visit the most enchanting houses of the National Trust, we’ll get a closer look at the art, architecture and interiors of one of Britain’s great estates, we’ll arrange flowers with Charlotte Moss and peek into the lives and homes of famous artists around the world, see more of architect Steve Giannetti’s projects and travel all over the world to explore the richly-documented designs of California-based architectural design firm Stamps & Stamps. And so much more… Are you ready?
Romantics & Classics: Style in the English Country House, by Jeremy Musson
Robert A.M Stern Architects: Houses
For more than fifty years, Robert A.M. Stern Architects has designed extraordinary houses and residences around the world, each inffused with a rich understanding of traditional architecture and an intuitive sense of how to shape a home to the needs of modern life.
Beata Heuman: Every Room Should Sing
“The highly anticipated debut monograph from one of today’s leading designers championing playful, original interiors infused with Scandinavian flair.
Swedish-born, London-based interior designer Beata Heuman founded her eponymous studio in 2013 after working for Nicky Haslam for nine years. In a short amount of time her lively interiors and custom furnishings have made her one of today’s most in-demand creatives. Heuman’s rooms, colorful spaces enlivened by exuberant elements and poetic inspirations, capture her signature quirkiness and Scandinavian attention to detail while staying rooted in practicality. Lauded for international residential and commercial projects, Heuman has also garnered praise for her growing collection of bespoke fabrics, wallpaper, lighting, homewares, and furniture.
This beautifully crafted volume presents Heuman’s innovative approach in book form for the very first time. Organized according to design principle, each chapter offers fresh ways to think about decorating a home, finding your voice, making ordinary details extraordinary, and forging a truly unique space. Vibrant photographs showcase standout properties–including several London town houses and a Nantucket vacation residence–that are brought to life by cheerful color palettes, unexpected contrasts, and a dégagé use of bold patterns and texture. With original drawings and whimsical graphic details, this new tome is a dynamic look into the ethos and work of one of the most exciting names in interior design today.”
Wilton House: The Art, Architecture and Interiors of One of Britain’s Great Stately Homes
“An unprecedented tour through the rich interiors and magnificent collections of one of the great houses of the English country landscape, and a treasure of British architectural heritage.
Wilton House in Salisbury, England, has been the ancestral home of the Earl of Pembroke for nearly 500 years and boasts one of the most fascinating and varied histories of all Britain’s historic houses.
Shaped over centuries by the most significant names in architecture and interior design, Wilton is known as the finest example of Palladian architecture in England, with interiors by Inigo Jones and John Webb, furniture by William Kent and Thomas Chippendale, and unparalleled collections of both classical sculpture and Old Master paintings–with masterpieces by Raphael, Titian, Rembrandt, and Tintoretto among its rooms.
The book explores the development of the house and its collections, from the Van Dyck paintings in Jones’s remarkable Single and Double Cube state rooms to the Arundel marbles housed in James Wyatt’s Gothic-revival cloisters. With a foreword by the Earl of Pembroke, a revelatory text by the historian John Martin Robinson, and imagery drawn both from Wilton’s private archives and from eminent architectural and interiors photographers, this book lifts the veil on Wilton House and its remarkable history.”
Perfect English Style, by Ros Byam- Shaw
“Some styles of decorating have a longer shelf life than others. One of the most durable is what has come to be known as English Country Style, which works just as well in a city apartment or suburban home as it does in a rectory or manor house.
We may recognize an interior as archetypally English, but putting a finger on exactly what makes it so can be tricky. One of the strengths of English style is that it isn’t prescriptive. In fact, quite the opposite. It is relaxed, laissez-faire, and endlessly adaptable—all reasons, no doubt, why it has enjoyed such longevity. You may know it when you see it, but what are its essential ingredients? In Perfect English Style, Ros Byam Shaw looks at a range of rooms with a strong English feel to them. As it happens, almost all are in England, although this is a look that travels the world, from the Americas to the Antipodes, still predominantly English in flavor even when spiced with foreign ingredients. She explores the main rooms of a house, their characteristics and furnishings, and how they achieve that mix of comfort, informality, and visual charm that is the hallmark of English style. Ros also homes in on specifics: the qualities of patina, the important role of fabrics, how to buy and include antique and vintage furnishings, and how a collection, whether of pebbles or 18th-century glass, adds individuality and character.”
Artists in Residence: Seventeen Artists and Their Living Spaces, from Giverny to Casa Azul, by MelissaWyse, Illustrated by Kate Lewis
his charmingly illustrated book invites readers to peer behind the closed doors of 17 legendary and contemporary artists’ homes.
Peek inside Georgia O’Keeffe’s adobe courtyards.
Stroll through Henri Matisse’s vibrant aviary.
Peruse Jean-Michel Basquiat’s collection of over 1,000 videotapes.
This book invites you inside some of the most creative and inspiring homes of all time. For the 17 artists profiled here, a house or an apartment is not simply a place to eat and sleep; they transform everyday spaces into dynamic reflections of their individual artistic passions. You will gain a deeper appreciation of your favorite artists’ work and may just discover a new favorite. Richly illustrated throughout, this petite jacketed hardcover offers a fascinating and inspiring blend of art history, interior design, and armchair travel.
Houses of the National Trust: Homes with History, Lydia Greeves
“A fully revised and updated visual guide to some of the greatest architectural treasures of Britain, encompassing both interior and exterior design
Enjoy the splendor of the most spectacular mansions of Britain such as Petworth House and Waddesdon Manor, and more lowly dwellings such as the Birmingham Back to Backs and estate villages like Blaise Hamlet, near Bristol. Other fascinating buildings featured range from churches, windmills, dovecotes, and castles to follies, barns, and pubs. The book also offers an overview of the country’s architectural history, with every period covered, from the medieval stronghold of Bodiam Castle to the clean-lined Modernism of The Homewood.
This handsome book is filled with stories of the people who lived and worked in these buildings: wealthy collectors (Charles Wade at Snowshill), captains of industry (William Armstrong at Cragside), prime ministers (Winston Churchill at Chartwell), and pop stars (John Lennon at Mendips). Written in evocative, imaginative prose and illustrated with glorious images from the National Trust’s photographic library, this book is an essential guide to the built heritage of England, Wales, and Northern Ireland.”
“A glimpse inside a magical Tuscan villa–rustic yet urbane, old-world elegant yet bohemian, accessible yet personal–that nurtures the world’s finest literary talents.
In the hills above Florence, Santa Maddalena is like a secret garden where writers hone their craft and meet like-minded people. Paired with evocative images, these essays by 27 acclaimed authors invite readers to understand how the spirit of this restored villa, its owners and resident pets have inspired creative writing and creativity among so many.
Monti della Corte and her late husband, Gregor von Rezzori, transformed a ruin into the ultimate retreat where they would write, garden, and entertain friends and fellow artists–Pedro Almodóvar, Bernardo Bertolucci, David Hockney, Isabella Rossellini. This gracious weaving together of hospitality and creativity became the Santa Maddalena Foundation and writers’ fellowship program in 2000.”
Effortless Style: Casa Lopez, by Pierre Sauvage
“Pierre Sauvage, designer of luxury homewares and interiors, brings the reader inside his French homes—both urban and country—providing inspiration and advice for creating effortlessly elegant interiors and garden spaces.
Against the backdrop of his exceptional homes in France, Pierre Sauvage—owner and art director of Casa Lopez, the legendary Parisian housewares firm whose stylish furnishings feature exceptional handicraft produced in France, Spain, Italy, and Portugal—showcases his very personal and contemporary style of decorating and entertaining. His striking use of color and textures sets the tone for each room and serves as a counterpoint to his playful matchings of materials and patterns, which work equally well in his Parisian apartment, rustic farmhouse in Normandy, and stone summer home in Provence. With discriminating taste, Sauvage pairs modern furniture with singular antiques. From bold interiors to elegant outdoor spaces, each home is infused with his connoisseur’s eye for refined details.
Stunning photography commissioned for this book under Sauvage’s art direction provides inspiration for interiors that exude a charm and elegance that is decidedly contemporary, yet conveys the timeless allure of a home that has been passed down over generations. A dozen recipes for entertaining with style complete the volume.”
A Year at Clove Brook Farm, by Christopher Spitzmiller
“Welcome to a year of sustainable living with renowned ceramicist Christopher Spitzmiller, with advice and inspiration for seasonal entertaining, gardening, tending heritage chickens, and more.
Christopher Spitzmiller is known to his many friends and Instagram fans as the ultimate weekend farmer, who raises his own chicks, grows his own flowers, and puts up his own jam, cider, and honey. In his first book, he treats readers to a full year at his country retreat, Clove Brook Farm. Organized into four sections by season, the book begins with spring: the lilacs and appleblossoms, the dovecote with Indian fantail pigeons, Easter lunch, with daffodils and porcelain, and Spitzmiller’s recipe for rhubarb pie. Summer brings hydrangeas, dahlias, readying the chickens for the Dutchess County Fair, and a garden cocktail party. Fall focuses on collecting, cider making, an orchard luncheon and a Thanksgiving table, honey-gathering, and planting bulbs. Winter closes the book with holiday decorating, gilding allium, a holiday buffet, and homemade gifts.
Filled with tips on creating beautiful seasonal flower arrangements, living with animals, and garden planning, this is a wonderful resource and gift for anyone longing for farmstead living.”
Stamps & Stamps: Style & Sensibility, by Diane Dorrans Saeks
“Be enveloped in the charming and traditional English-inspired aesthetic that interior design duo Stamps & Stamps bring to their cozy interiors.
In their first book, Stamps & Stamps share their passion for historical references and attention to detail, showing you how to create a mood with floral patterns, brimming bookshelves, and overstuffed armchairs. These interiors inspire you to create your own personal sanctuary by layering your favorite objects and vintage treasures into your decor to create lovely and personal rooms. Above all, Stamps & Stamps show you how to make your home comfortable, as they believe houses are for living in, not just for looking at.
With a focus on Southern California, where they live, Stamps & Stamps specialize in designing, decorating, and restoring historic homes and gardens. From an Andalusian riad in Hancock Park restored and deco-rated for Ellen DeGeneres, to a newly built California ranch in Rolling Hills, to their own home and garden in South Pasadena designed around a Greene and Greene carriage house, Stamps & Stamps have built their style on an aesthetic foundation rooted in the past but with a lightness and wit that’s very much of the present.
With its beautiful photography and helpful sourcing–an appendix details where to find fabrics, wallpaper, and lighting–Stamps & Stamps is sure to inspire you to embrace interior design that’s easy to live in.”
Patina Homes, by Steve and Brooke Giannetti
“Steve Giannetti’s architectural designs springboard from his image of ultimate beauty—a place where modern, classical and industrial elements merge to create a unique style with a modern sense of space and emotion drawn from history. His materials palette consists of wood, metal, and stone. His color palette is a chalky patina. Twelve varied homes—ranging from a modern desert glass box and a beachfront contemporary to a historic East Coast farmhouse and a Provencal-style home in California—show how Steve has used these themes to solve unique architectural challenges. Steve has collaborated with his wife, Brooke, as well as other designers on the various interiors.”
The Maine House, by Maura McEvoy, Basha Burwell and Kathleen Hackett
“Explore the soul of Maine in some three dozen of its most original, authentic, and evocative houses
For several years, acclaimed photographer Maura McEvoy and art director Basha Burwell traveled the length and breadth of Maine in search of houses that capture the state’s singular character. These are not designer houses; they are homes created by the people who live in them, from artists to writers to fishermen, distinctive for their ingenuity, originality, and fierce individuality. Many are unchanged, inhabited by generations of the same family; some are ingenious conversions. These are homes that have a kind of visual wealth that money can’t buy, homes that define the very spirit of Maine.”
“Renowned interior designer and tastemaker Charlotte Moss celebrates flowers and offers endless inspiration in their use as glorious additions to decorating, entertaining, and everyday living.
Charlotte Moss encourages readers to bring the garden indoors–with ideas for arranging flowers, selecting containers, and placing blossoms around the house. An inviting cluster of blooms on a guest room’s bedside table, lavish floral displays for parties and holidays, single stems adding life to any corner of a room–Moss has been photographing her flower arrangements for over a decade. This book is a celebration of her artistry and a testament to flowers as part of day-to-day life.
From Moss’s grander displays in the city to her more informal and breezy creations at her home in the country, as well as in the refined interiors of her clients, the visual result is a chronicle of the myriad ways flowers provide inspiration–indoors and out. Readers will be further motivated as Moss describes the contributions of past tastemakers: Gloria Vanderbilt for her ingenious use of floral patterns in her licensed products, Pauline de Rothschild for her fantastic tablescapes, Bunny Mellon for her profusive use of topiaries, Constance Spry for the use of inventive containers and for her groundbreaking artistry, and Lady Bird Johnson for her embrace of the simple, exquisite wildflower. With nature as her muse, Moss implores us to create the backdrop for a life well lived, imbuing every day with flair, beauty, and elegance.”
Provence Style: Decorating with French Country Flair, by Shauna Varvel
“An intimate tour of quintessential Provencal style, featuring chic homes and interior details inspired by this picturesque region
Thirty years after the publication of Peter Mayle’s bestselling memoir A Year in Provence, the sun-drenched southern French region continues to excite home decorators with its combination of rustic charm, elegant details, and historical influences. Provence Style showcases the best of the region, with Shauna Varvel’s quintessential 18th-century Rhône valley farmhouse—Le Mas des Poiriers—as its centerpiece. Named for the working pear orchard on the grounds, the property was reimagined by noted local architect Alexandre Lafourcade, who transformed a rough structure into a luxurious expression of the Provençal aesthetic, referencing historical influences, rural traditions, and Parisian taste.
Set amid a garden of allées, arbors, and terraces designed by the architect’s mother, renowned landscape designer Dominique Lafourcade, this exemplar of Provençal style is the starting point for exploring the region’s characteristic interior details and exterior features. The book includes chapters on the public spaces of the home, from entrances to living rooms, the private realm of bedrooms and bathrooms, and outdoor areas including patios and kitchen gardens, transporting the reader on a captivating stylistic journey.”
I hope something caught your eye on this! As always, I am sure I forgot some important titles but as the year progresses, I’ll make sure to update this list along the way. Take care!
Lots of inspiration here! Thanks for presenting these with brief explanations of each. Definitely would like to own many of these.
Author
Thanks so much, Lindy! I am happy you found the list useful! xo, Eva
I want them all – some I knew about and some I’m just learning about through this post. Thank you, Eva, for all the inspiration – some great things to look forward to in 2021.
Author
Thank you, Linda! I am glad you found some interesting titles on the list, it’s going to be a good year for our coffee tables! xo, Eva
Your style choice in books is fabulous. I’ll keep the list and pick up a few of the titles.
Thank you.
Karen
Author
Thank you so much, Karen! Glad you found the list helpful! xo, Eva