Aside from a mug full of the good stuff and a vase full of flowers, one of my essential accessories for any living area is a good selection of books. I love adding to my library, and love it even more when it doubles as a chic homeware, triples as an expression of my personalty, and serves as the perfect starting point for hours of conversation when I host guests. In general, coffee table books are oversized picture books, intended to catch the eye and collate sources of inspiration. Pages are filled with images and anecdotes, celebrating fashion, art, food, opinion and travel. Yes, most topics are "trivial", but I think this is an essential quality that adds to its purpose and meaning. When we are faced with so much news, contested issues and condensed texts across our media, sometimes its nice to sit down to a book that requires more than just a thumb scroll and less than our full attention. What I love most about coffee table books is that you don't need to approach it with an objective in mind, but more often than not you close it with a sense of accomplishment and feeling inspired to try something new or indulge in life a little bit more. With the rise of 'image culture', ever expanding global wanderlust, celebrations of Earth and all in it, and new forms of art and fashion, coffee table books are losing the triviality they are associated with and becoming a much more meaningful sentiment and addition to the home. When read, books speak to us. When displayed, books tell others about us. Whether you agree or disagree with the purpose, I can guarantee that a coffee table topic is a worthy key to conversation and you'll rarely close one feeling uninspired.
Books for now: Some 'Hot Topics' of 2018.
SNEAKERS, by Rodrigo Corral
Published in 2017, even more relevant in 2018. The book chronicles the designs of fashions current favourite footwear and explores the nature of the sneaker industry.
WOOD, By William Hill
One of my favourite materials is wood as I love the huge number of colours and textures it comes in and the unlimited uses that it has throughout the home, both practical and aesthetically. Hill explores the relationship between wood and architecture by detailing its uses, from bamboo tea rooms in Japan and log cabins in Greece and to Canadian saunas and barbecues on beaches. If you haven't already been exposed to its uses, I warn you, this book will make you want to change your interior storage and flooring entirely.
SHOES, Lucy Johnson.
"Give a girl the right the correct footwear, and she can conquer the world" If you like shoes, you'll like this. Enough said.
TENDER BUTTONS, Gertrude Stein
This is one of the more 'wordy' books that uses mantras associated with every day objects to make you look at life in a different way. Tables, Coffee, Fruit or kitchen ware, you'll never look at a 'dead' product and think that way again.
The SAVOY Cocktail Book, Harry Craddock
One of my worst fears is a bad cocktail. I hate them. I hate how there is an 'anything goes' attitude to cocktails in the present day and believe some should be destroyed before they are even tested. We need to return to when cocktails were an art form and when they were exquisite. If this is on your table, you're halfway there already.
SUNDAYS IN PARIS, Yasmin Zeinab
Maybe it's my obsession with French decor, maybe it's my love for French history. But mainly because there's something about Paris, isn't there?
STRATEGIZE TO WIN, Carla Harris
"Do you love your job?" "Is your job what you dreamed?" If that's not a conversation starter I don't know what is.
EAT BEAUTIFUL, Wendy Rowe
I borrowed this from the library when it first came out and wish I had written more down. Its full of tips and tricks for real-working, healthy and natural ways to give you your glow from the inside out, without having to shop around for a new product and with the added bonus of nutritional advice and new ideas for that ever changing diet!
LOVE LOOKS NOT WITH THE EYES, Anne Deniau
With the recent release of the documentary charting McQueen's turbulent life, Deniau's publication adds another depth. As the only photographer allowed backstage in any of his shows, Deniau captures McQueen at his best and at his worst, but always as an artist. I have always been enticed by the man and the myth, but always believed him to be the legend. The book is both a homage and a memorial, and any coffee table will be completely graced by its presence.
THE HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES, Arthur Conan Doyle
We all need a novel on display - whether you read it or not! Regardless of the artists words, clothbound additions add a little extra to each. For those trend savvy individuals, this cover is VERY Gucci, so don't worry if you don't open it, the outside will pack enough punch.
GREEN ESCAPES
This is an urban travel guide that walks through garden spaces and public places that appear in built-up and unexpected locations around the world. For those living in a city, you may find a secret escape just around the corner. For those who cannot access them, it provides a key into a world that contrasts the busy lifestyles the modern era can bring. I also used it as a source of inspiration for bringing greenery into the home as this is one of my designer principles for any interior I work on. (This will be more clear in a future post to be published)
MILK AND HONEY, Rupi Kaur
It is 2018, and feminism is a thing. This book, however, is an eye-opener. Rather than being vicious or charged, it touches on many of the pains women can feel in their lifetime and how to go forwards from them. It celebrates womenhood and the strength sometimes necessary to overcome boundaries. Rather than attacking gender-related issues, it channels the mindful, wholesome nature of a woman and encourages you to really understand how resilient women can be.
UNSEEN LONDON, Dazeley & Daly
Another 'city guide' exploring the interiors of public and private places in the city, ranging from changing rooms in our sports venues to the royal palaces of Hampton Court and workshops of our favourite stores. Each describes how the rooms were created, how they are used and what they bring to the infrastructure of working London.
AT HOME WITH DOGS AND THEIR DESIGNERS, Susanna Salk
They are an asset to all homes, the completion of all families. 22 interior designers let us peek into their homes and how they share them with their canines, offering advice and care for looking after both and making the best of each.
THE ART OF THE EROTIC
Don't be put off by its name, it isn't the Karma Sutra! This is a gorgeous book publishing some of the best artists and their exploration of human sexuality throughout the ages. It is rich, it is sensual, and its a celebration
SO WHAT'S ON MY TABLE?
1. The Novel - Jane Austin, Persuasion
2. The Recipe Book - Ottolenghi, NOPI
3. The Icon - VOGUE on Alexander McQueen
4. The Art - Paintings of The Louvre
5. The Career - Abigail Ahern, Decorating with Style
6. The Magazine - Harpers, Vogue, House&Garden, a Russian edition of ELLE
7. The iPad - containing 100 books, 1000 magazines, papers, notes and catalogues!
THE LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS, Mandy Kirkby
I also have this on my side table as flowers are one of my weaknesses. This contains gorgeous illustrations and paragraphs of poetry and anecdotes about the symbolism behind a few well known species. It adds even more depth to one of my design philosophies - that plants have a meaning and purpose in every home.
A few from my Wishlist:
Endless in number, endless in entertainment. To inspire or not to inspire, that is the question.