Best Design Books

10 OF THE BEST BOOKS FOR FASHIONISTAS

January 28, 2016

There is a luxury world of inaccessible to many of us, however the books have the power to transport us and make feel like we’re living these stories, sharing moments and sensations. It’s true that many of us do not have the luxury of acquiring a seat at Mercedes Benz Fashion Week or private previews at the atelier designer, but a good and descriptive book can lead us to unique experiences. For those fashionistas who devour books here are 10 books that indulge curiosities.This booklist includes a autobiography by legendary Harper ‘s Bazaar fashion editor Diane Vreeland, the Plum Sykes ‘ tongue-in-cheek caricature of the New York fashion world, and the compilation of Karl Lagerfeld ‘s choice words, every title on this list is both informative and deliciously detailed. This list could not leave out the classic Edith Wharton and Truman Capote which capture the essence of New York society. THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA BY LAUREN WEISBERGER We can also refer to this particular novel as Infinite Reasons Not to Work for Anna Wintour — but really, the book delves into the meandering career and personal life of a twentysomething who certainly learns her (style) lesson by working at a top fashion publication. D.V. BY…

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THE WORLD’S MOST BEAUTIFUL BOOKSTORES

November 24, 2015

THE WORLD’S MOST BEAUTIFUL BOOKSTORES – Best Design Books takes you on a tour through the world’s most beautiful bookstores. Places full of history that inspire and fill our dreams with other lives and times. To complete the inspiration, we have also made a selection of 10 luxury and design books recently released. Let’s dream together. Librería El Ateneo Grand Splendid – Buenos Aires, Argentina In Buenos Aires resides a spectacular building born in the 1920s which receives over one million visitors every year, while still maintaining the glamour of its first days as a movie theater. El Ateneo Grand Splendid is a breathtaking renovated movie theater now home to thousands of books. Sit down in one of the theatre boxes and discover your favorite books before purchasing them, enjoy a café on the back of the stage, and admire the auditorium lighting, the ornate ceiling, and the many architectural details that remain. Polare – Maastricht, Holland Renovated by the Amsterdam based architecture firm Merkx+Girod this 700 year old Catholic Church was once a warehouse, then an archive, and at one point even served as a bicycle shed. An unexpected combination of influences and moods transform this bookstore into a singular…

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Book Review: The Rise of David Bowie 1972–1973

November 9, 2015

In 1972, David Bowie released his groundbreaking album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars. With it landed Bowie’s Stardust alter-ego: A glitter-clad, mascara-eyed, sexually-ambiguous persona who kicked down the boundaries between male and female, straight and gay, fact and fiction into one shifting and sparkling phenomenon of ’70s self-expression. Together, Ziggy the album and Ziggy the stage spectacular propelled the softly spoken Londoner into one of the world’s biggest stars. A key passenger on this glam trip into the stratosphere was fellow Londoner and photographer Mick Rock. Rock bonded with Bowie artistically and personally, immersed himself in the singer’s inner circle, and, between 1972–1973, worked as Bowie’s official photographer. This limited and numbered edition brings together the best of Rock’s Bowie portfolio with spectacular stage shots as well as intimate backstage portraits. Pictures for press, album jackets, and stills from promo movies sit alongside around 50 percent previously unseen images, offering unprecedented access to the many facets of Bowie’s personality and his fame. With a hologram cover of different head-shots, the book rejoices in Bowie’s experimentation and unpredictability. Through the aloof and approachable, the playful and serious, the candid and contrived, this tribute bursts…

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TOP 10 INTERIOR DESIGN BOOKS

December 22, 2014

Top 10 Interior Design Books – Most of the interior designers need inspiration, education, and coaching in order to succeed in business—they also need a proper arsenal of books. Here it is a list of ten must-have books that will make your interior pop with pomp and circumstance. And for you last-minute stocking-stuffers, these hardcovers are built to last! 1.The Big Book of Chic by Miles Redd (Assouline). New York-based designer is known for bold color combinations, use of antiques and for possessing a magical flair for the quirky and unexpected. Glean inspiration from the luminous array of glamorous images! 2.Celebrate A Year of Festivities For Families and Friends by Pippa Middleton (Viking Adult). Princess Catherine’s sister has revealed the secrets to throwing a memorable event with recipes and tips that will surely inspire your next party. See also: Interior Design Books: Kaleidoscope, Living in Color and Patterns 3.Simple Pleasures by Cornelia Guest (Weinstein Books). A longtime animal rights activist, philanthropist, businesswoman, and daughter of fashion icon C. Z. Guest and Winston Frederick Churchill Guest, this book reveals the secrets of understated elegance minus the fussy food and pretension. 4.A Visual Life: Scrapbooks, Collages, and Inspirations by Charlotte Moss (Rizzoli). New York designer is an icon of Southern warmth – hospitality, practicality and, of…

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Rhapsody: Kelly Wearstler Book

May 23, 2014

Kelly Wearstler is the ultimate trendsetter in interior design. She’s the founder of the Los Angeles architectural interior design firm KWID (Kelly Wearstler Interior Design). Her designs for the trendsetting Viceroy resorts from California to the Caribbean; such taste-making hotels as Maison 140 and Avalon; unique office, retail, and leisure spaces, including BG restaurant and lounge in Manhattan’s Bergdorf Goodman; and upscale residences such as the Trousdale Estate have been profiled in House and Garden, House Beautiful, Interior Design, Elle Decor, Vogue, and W. Wearstler is also designer of her own kwid line of furnishings and accessories. Rhapsody (published by Rizzoli) is the fourth book of the top interior designer and offers a look into Wearstler’s glamorous world, profiling in detail her latest residential designs and her sumptuous new hotels, as well as her creative process. The book also follows the designer—known for her striking personal style—behind the scenes to watch her at work, creating sculpture at her metal foundry or shopping at auction houses, to reveal the myriad inspirations that fuel Wearstler’s imagination and her dazzling design work. “The projects featured in this book—all previously unpublished—share a refreshing libidinous quality.” Wall Street Journal With beautiful images of many never-before-photographed interiors, Kelly Wearstler: Chromatic Rhapsody is…

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Secret Libraries of New York City

May 7, 2014

Secret Libraries of New York City – The New York Public Library has an incredible branch system around the boroughs, but it’s only a part of New York City’s literary resources. From private clubs, to nonprofit societies, to pop up places right out in the streets, here are some of secret libraries of the city. General Society of Mechanics and Tradesmen 20 West 44th Street, Midtown, Manhattan Started in 1785, the General Society of Mechanics and Tradesmen of the City of New York has over 10,000 volumes that focus on trade and technical material. But even if you aren’t looking to study up on your skills, the reading room in their 1820 home on 44th Street is a stunning space, where shelves of wood and iron climb up to a broad skylight. Be sure not to miss the incredible bank vault lock collection on the second floor. Grolier Club 47 E 60th Street, Upper East Side, Manhattan No bibliophile should spend time in New York City without visiting the Grolier Club. The private club on the Upper East Side started in 1884 and has a research library with tomes on all things book related, including book selling, bookbinding, the history of printing, and book auction catalogs….

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The Coolest Bookstores in the USA

April 24, 2014

If you like to read then you will love this post that talks about the coolest bookstores in the USA. You don’t have to be a compulsive reader to enjoy the variety of books that these bookstores have to offer. You’ll want to start buying all your book-related goods from these shops-or at least plan a road trip to check them. I’d love to spend a day in any of these libraries, and I hope you’ll agree. 1. McNally Jackson Books McNally Jackson Books in New York City seems to have every book and magazine in print! As a fun twist, they arrange their books according to nation! Don’t worry, they have a knowledgable staff to help you if you get lost in the wrong country. In addition to a killer cafe, they also boast an Espresso Book Machine, which prints library-quality paperbacks in minutes! 2. The Last Bookstore The Last Bookstore in Los Angeles started in owner Josh Spencer’s loft, but it was basically just an online store. After several moves, the store is now called a “cathedral of books” and takes up almost 20,000 square feet! 3. The Montague Bookmill The Montague Bookmill in Montague, Massachusetts will pique your interest with its catchphrase alone:…

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The Big Book of Chic by Miles Redd

April 17, 2014

Miles Redd is an internationally acclaimed interior design sensation known for his quirky brand of cozy glamour. His unique aesthetic vision is characterized by a playful mélange of high and low, invigorated with whimsical splashes of color and modern gestures. His trademark approach to design has brought to life rooms infused with boldness, fantasy, and sophistication. “Miles Redd embarked on his interior design career after graduating from NYU, honing his skills with luminary antiques dealer John Rosselli and decorator Bunny Williams. In 1998, he opened his own design firm in New York City’s NoHo neighborhood and he has been the creative director of Oscar de la Renta Home since 2003. The Big Book of Chic gives a glimpse into the inspiration that fuels Redd, and focuses on the pleasures of living life in a beautiful way. It includes a wide range of projects, from Redd’s own townhouse and beach house to projects in Houston, Atlanta, Millbrook, and Locust Valley” Assouline “This is a book about dreams coming true; the curiosities in the rooms I have decorated; and the people, artists, and places that have inspired me. When all is said and done and I am long forgotten, maybe someone will…

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Dixonary by Tom Dixon

April 16, 2014

Tom Dixon was born in 1959 and is one of Britain’s best-known and most highly regarded product designers. Tom Dixon founded his studio in the 1980s following his discovery of the pleasures of welding while repairing damaged motorcycle frames. He is now one of Britain’s leading masters of design, having also produced accessible, high quality objects as Head of Design at Habitat from 1998 to 2008 in addition to his role as Creative Director at Artek, the Finnish furniture company founded by Alvar and Aino Aalto. His current practice, the Tom Dixon brand – lighting and furniture design and manufacturing – was established in 2002. Dixonary (Violette Editions) is the first comprehensive book of the great innovator Tom Dixon and reveals the inspiration behind his work of the last 30 years. In his own words, and with hundreds of comparative illustrations, this self-taught designer illuminates the often surprising ideas behind his finished pieces. Dixon transforms notions of plumpness observed in a painting of an overfed pig into an overstuffed sofa; or a fishpan from a Chinese supermarket literally into the seat of a chair; gigantic concrete sea defences on the coast of Japan become the distinctive shape of his famous stacked Jack Light….

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Thomas Pheasant: Simply Serene

April 11, 2014

Thomas Pheasant is an award-winning interior designer who has been recognized by Architectural Digest as one of the “Deans of American Design,” and in 2005 he was named the Andrew Martin International Designer of the Year. The work of influential, award-winning interior designer Thomas Pheasant is best described as “contemporary classical” and simply serene. Celebrated interior designer Thomas Pheasant is best known for his seamless melding of tradition and the contemporary. His spaces are fresh and of the age yet also enduringly timeless. Balancing classical elements, like recessed paneling, pilasters, crown moldings, and carved plaster garlands, Pheasant introduces modern details, sometimes including such flourishes and surprising complements as a scroll coffee table and a room screen of ribbed, translucent glass. Unafraid of combining pieces from various traditions, he achieves a sense of harmony and balance. This lavish offering of his work gives the reader a sensible, artful approach to interior design, presenting models of great aesthetic subtlety and beauty. Never a strict by-the-book traditionalist, Pheasant responds to and sees in classicism its rational order, its quietude, its serenity. Thomas Pheasant – Simply Serene, was published by Rizzoli Books and is a book that everyone will want to include in their decor library. A special book for a special…

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Veranda: The Art of Outdoor Living by Lisa Newsom

April 11, 2014

Lisa Newsom founded Veranda (a forum for the very best in living well) in 1987 as a showcase for exceptional design, and from the first issue it distinguished itself with lush visual presentations, as well as substance behind the beauty. Respected by the design community, applauded by a discerning readership, and honored with numerous awards. To celebrate the Spring i decided to share with you today Lisa Newsom’s Veranda: The Art of Outdoor Living. This book gives us a look at the outsides of homes. Newsom’s collection of gardens, courtyards, pools and landscapes in many different decor styles is fantastic. In Veranda: The Art of Outdoor Living we can take a private tour of magnificent homes, with their lush gardens, elegant courtyards, and inviting pools set amid breathtaking landscapes. This lavish new book from Veranda magazine offers a wealth of ideas for exceptional outdoor rooms and spaces, all created by the world’s best designers. Get inspired! How to Create a Reading Nook:

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