Fine Print: 25 Best Design Books of 2012

The constant stream of books into my home may be the best perk of being a blogger. While I’ve been aiming to pare down my possessions, I still revel in the glossy pages of beautifully photographed rooms. It helps that I have a rather grand set of built in bookshelves in my living room, which looks best when full. Then of course there’s the console table behind the sofa that needs a stack, and the coffee table (a Heywood-Wakefield with a top that turns, inherited from my husband’s grandparents). A couple of these don’t squarely fall in the design category, and I don’t actually own every one, but I did browse and love them all.

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b e s t  d e s i g n  b o o k s  2 0 1 2

STEVEN GAMBREL DESIGN BOOK RIZZOLI 2012

Steven Gambrel Time & Space, Abrams 2012

PLAYFUL HOME KIDS ROOMS ANDREW WEAVING

Playful Home, Rizzoli 2012

KELLY WEARSTLER BOOK RHAPSODY RIZZOLI 2012

Kelly Wearstler Rhapsody, Rizzoli 2012

DIANE KEATON HOUSE DESIGN BOOK

Diane Keaton House, Rizzoli 2012

CLASSICAL CHINESE FURNITURE COFFEE TABLE BOOK

 Classical Chinese Furniture, Vendome Press 2012

BROOKLYN MAKERS CRAFTERS HIPSTERS

Brooklyn Makers, Princeton Architectural Press 2012

SUSANNA SALK DECORATING BOOK 2012

Susanna Salk Be Your Own Decorator, Rizzoli 2012

jennifer-post-architect-pure-space

Jennifer Post Pure Space, Rizzoli 2012

Cupcakes-and-Cashmere-book

Cupcakes and Cashmere, Abrams 2012

HOME NOVOGRATZ COFFEE TABLE BOOK

Home by Novogratz, Artisan 2012

YOUNG HOUSE LOVE BLOG BOOK

Young House Love, Artisan 2012

AMANDA NISBET DAZZLING DESIGN RIZZOLI

Amanda Nisbet Dazzling Design, Stewart, Tabori & Chang 2012

THE ART BOOK NEW EDITION PHAIDON 2012

The Art Book, Phaidon 2012

THIS OLD HOUSE BEST OF BOOK

This Old House The Best Homes, Abrams 2012

alvar-aalto-houses-2012

Alvar Aalto Houses, Princeton Architectural Press 2012

THOM FILICIA AMERICAN BEAUTY BOOK

Thom Filicia American Beauty, Clarkson Potter 2012

Roman-and-Williams-Things-We-Made

Roman and Williams Things We Made, Rizzoli 2012

AM ATELIER INTERIORS DESIGN BOOK

Interiors | Atelier AM, Rizzoli 2012

THE ICONIC INTERIOR

The Iconic Interior, Abrams 2012

200 SMALL APARTMENT IDEAS BOOK

200 Small Apartment Ideas, Firefly Books 2012

ANN GETTY DECORATING STYLE BOOK

Ann Getty Interior Style, Rizzoli 2012

LARS BOLANDER INTERIOR DESIGNER SWEDEN BOOK

 Lars Bolander Interior Design and Inspiration, TeNeues 2012

ERIC COHLER INTERIOR DESIGN COFFEE TABLE BOOK

Eric Cohler Cohler on Design, The Monacelli Press 2012

DARRYL CARTER WASHINGTON DC DECORATOR

Darryl Carter The Collected Home, Clarkson Potter 2012

FRENCH FLAIR MODERN VINTAGE DESIGN BOOK FLAMMARION

French Flair Modern Vintage Interiors, Flammarion 2012

Design Diary: Patricia McDonagh for This Old House

Earlier this year interior designer Tricia McDonagh emailed me about a project she had been working on with “This Old House.” To help celebrate its 30th anniversary season, they wanted to help the community where it got its start. The show’s crew worked alongside affordable housing nonprofit Nuestra Comunidad to to renovate a vacant, foreclosed house  in Roxbury. Tricia furnished the interiors in her flawless, clean and elegant style.

The refinished façade of the 1870s Second Empire house.

It was an absolute wreck. Have a look at the “before“pictures. The two units will be sold separately, at an affordable price. The original shingles were replaced with fiber cement siding, and the dilapidated slate roofing (which was salvaged) was replaced with recycled rubber architectural shingles.

The crew restored the hand-carved wood banister and newel post in the entryway.

These plaster ceiling medallions throughout the house were either be restored or replicated.

The rooms all have Tricia’s spare, sophisticated touches, like muslin covered furnishings.

The artwork over the sofa, which looks like a tie dye scarf, is actually beaded porcelain on rice paper by Dharma Strasser MacColl from Walker Contemporary in Boston.

The crew was able to salvage the original marble fireplace surround. They removed it for cleaning and repairs, then reinstalled  it.

It’s absolutely gorgeous. I love the subtle color from the silver cups and plant.

The dark walls make the room look rich and cozy. Love how the white shapes of the furniture pop against it too.

A gleaming white kitchen. The original kitchens were on the second floor; the new ones are in the center of the units’ first floors.

Love the nailhead detail on the bed and muslin upholstery.

The old millwork of the window casings and panels were replaced with replicas featuring the same dimensions and profiles. There were ugly dropped ceilings that were removed. Now the rooms have an airy, lofty feel.

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All photos by CASEY Photography.

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