Design Ideas Books – Happy Thursday! This is not the post I had planned for today, but when my friend suggested I talk about this topic the timing could not have been more perfect. This week of cafeteria work I picked up and unpacked all four of the books I had collected. It started with monogram inspiration, moved to chair inspiration, then moved to sconce placement inspiration, and then last night I was trying to figure out how to place the sconce the way I wanted and went back to the design library. The point is… I have a huge collection of creative books and I use them all the time for inspiration, great inspiration, and blog post ideas. I like the ones I have and use them, that’s the point Nicole. His actual words to me were…write about it. You use your books all the time and I don’t use mine and I can’t be alone.
First…let me share the books I used this week and then share what I believe are the best to add to your collection if you are like me and (a) love sketchbooks, and (b) you want. use them for inspiration.
Design Ideas Books
The first book I used this week was Home Monograms by Kimberly Whitman. This book is not only beautiful but also great for encouraging you to add monograms to places you’ve never had them before…and try new ones. I swear by it.
Daily Inspiration — Book Cover Mockup Ideas.
The second book I consulted for monogram options, looking at monogramming our end table chairs in the dining room, is The Art of The Monogram by Cynthia Brumback. An amazing book about monograms for the whole house.
When I needed inspiration for a sofa cover I grabbed all the Laura Ashley fashion books and flipped through them for a while. I find something I like, take a picture of it, and take it to my roofing shop. I almost got them all, but the picture I got is from Laura Ashley’s Complete Guide to Home Decor.
Finally, when I was looking for ideas for my sconce I turned to my new favorite book, Danielle Rollins’ Home of All Time. What I noticed when I looked at each page in the book was that he put it where he wanted and made it work. I woke up in the morning and decided to do the same. I love where the sconce is placed, and it will last.
Another book I check out every week is the Eddie Ross book Modern Mix. When I try to clear something for sale, I read it. When I want to know how to research something, I read it. I watch it a lot and it’s definitely a must. I actually have two copies, one he gave me and one I bought at an estate sale to give away. I have an upstairs room in our one bedroom office. This shows you how often I use it.
Books Make A Home: Elegant Ideas For Storing And Displaying Books By Damian Thompson (2011)
I’ve added my favorites, and all the ones I talk about here, to my Amazon store … and I think you can use them all in your library if you want to use them to make inspiration and tools. You can never go wrong with Bunny Williams, anything from Carolyne Roehm, James Farmer is good for a collection of inspiration, Phoebe Howard, Martha Stewart should be collected, and of course my friend Eric Ross wrote an amazing book. You can buy them all here… and if you want a nice gift for your home… a book about what they like to collect or do. I would love to have the book!
Also, when buying… don’t avoid the used book. I love buying them for free and any true book lover will appreciate using them as well. 😉