Design Mom's Book Tour Party

Gabrielle Blair of Design Mom fame is one of the most amazing women I know. She is brilliant, kind, funny and so creative. And she has six awesome kids! She may or may not have figured out how to get 32 hours into a day - I don't know how she does it all. She is a huge inspiration for me.

Gabrielle's brand new book shares her best tips for living with kids. It has become a fast favorite. (That cover!! Major heart eyes.) And check out page 224 for a space that might look familiar to you. :)

Gabby's book tour is headed to Phoenix this week and I'm helping her host a little party Wednesday, April 29 at Changing Hands bookstore in Tempe. Party starts at 7:00 pm! Please come!

Book Club: My Favorite Design Books in 2014

My favorite thing to ask for at Christmas time is art and design books. I love to have them stacked all around the house, but I keep most of them on the base shelf of our library bookshelves. Since browsing Pinterest doesn't always feel that relaxing to me, I like to steal a few minutes of every day to lounge on the daybed and flip through an inspiring design book. Nothing helps me more to get those creative juices flowing! It's fun to catch my kids thumbing through them too.

I've found some great additions this year that I think would make amazing last-minute gift ideas! I snapped some photos of a few inside pages, just to give you a taste of what these are all about.

1) I think one of my favorite interior design book purchases this year was Designers at Home by Ronda Rice Carman.  The title tells it all - page after page after page of amazing rooms in the most famous designers' homes. 

I loved seeing different angles and styling of some familiar rooms, but most of these spaces were new to me. My only teeny tiny complaint is that I wish this book was a bit bigger so I could soak up the details even better.

2) I think Heather Clawson and I share an obsession over creatives' workspaces. Her book shares wide and vignette shots of the coolest artists and designer's offices.

It was fun to see more details of Jenna Lyons' beautiful office.

And find a few new favorite spaces to obsess over.

3) This book is seriously inspiring, even for the fair weather Wes Anderson fan. It's a beautifully designed behind-the-scenes book packed with inspiration images, interviews and sketches. I love it.

4) My friend, Samantha Hahn, is a truly talented artist. You've seen her work in all sorts of cool ad campaigns and in the most beautiful magazine layouts. Her book, called Well-Read Women, is still one of my favorites to flip through.

She pairs her gorgeous portraits of famous women in literature with beautiful lines from their stories. This is a great book for gifting.

5) We all know and love Erin's blog and her new book doesn't disappoint!

Not only are the images beautiful, the text is as informational, hilarious and genuine as the Elements of Style blog. Well done, Erin!

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(PS Recognize the gallery wall here on the right?) :)

6) The Remodelista book is stunning. Many of the images, especially at the front of the book, are pretty modern and sparsely styled, but the foundational design choices are SO good and super inspiring to me. I would be tempted to add a layer or two of color and accessories, but I still really connected with the rooms in this book.

My favorite spreads are toward the back, where some of the editor's homes are featured. Makes me miss New York like crazy.

They also have a section that lists 100 of their favorite housewares. I LOVED this part - it's like getting a peek at your most stylish friend's wedding registry list. 

What books have you bought and loved this year? Here are a few that are on my Christmas list:

Kate Spade Things We Love  //  A Year in the Life of Downton Abbey  //  

The Furniture Bible  //  Sunday Suppers

Summer Reading List

I have two big trips coming up and I always like to have a couple of new books on hand before heading to the airport (which is exactly how you get an unruly book collection that looks like this). I will always end up buying my favorites, but I've started e-reading lately and I'm so happy with how convenient it is!

Have you heard of Oyster? It's like Netflix for eBooks! For $9.95 a month you have access to unlimited books from their library of over 500,000 titles! Which means you can give up or put aside a book that's not quite right for you or for your mood and easily move on to another book. You can read on your iPad, iPhone, Android, Kindle Fire, Nook HD and computer.

They are offering a free 30-day trial subscription here and I started mine last week. I LOVE it. I'm totally hooked!

Also, it's so silly how much I care about this sort of thing, but I really love that they give you a ton of different page and font options. I like the Penguin-style page above for day reading and the black background for easy-on-the-eyes night reading.

One of my upcoming trips is to New York for work. I'll be staying in Brooklyn for most of the trip, which means some long subway rides. The great thing about Oyster is they let me keep TEN FULL BOOKS in my reader library at once - so no wifi, no problem! Can you tell I'm geeking out? 

We're all a bunch of book nerds over here, so I asked Kate and Heather to give me their summer reading lists to share too. Most of these are books we haven't read yet and we'd love your feedback if you have! 

Here's my list:

Beautiful Ruins - This one looks like a fun, light read. One complaint I've heard is there are too many characters and setting shifts, but I think that might make it an easy book to pop in and out of, in between sessions with my historical floor plans and Eggers (see below).

The Alchemist - Supposedly a very quick, sweet and simple read that leaves you thinking and inspired. I can get behind a book like that.

A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius - I read, and loved, Dave Eggers' What is the What, but held off on this one because I've heard mixed reviews from friends - they either loved it or hated it. I think I'm ready to tackle it now though. Have you read this book?

Paris Mansions and Apartments, 1893 - I had heard this book was a good one and I flipped through it once in a book store and it looked amazing. Seems like a must for any one who gets a kick out of architecture, history and Paris. 

The Midwife of Venice - I was sick last winter and watched an episode of Call the Midwife on Netflix, desperate for distraction. I ended up watching two season's worth of episodes! Ha! I have no idea what this book is about, but it has good reviews and it's a period piece about a midwife, so I think my chances are good.

Once A Runner - I've heard this one described as the Bible of serious running. I am not a hardcore runner now, but I once was, and I truly loved it. Sometimes I read Marathon training books just for fun, so I think this one could be a winner for me.

Heather's List:

The Cost of Lunch, Etc. - I have a weakness for short stories, and I find myself being pulled to stories about women who are trying to wrestle with their inner demons. These stories look like they're going to deliver.

The Sisters Brothers - Confession, while I have been seeing this book in several bookstores and the reviews seem very positive, the thing that makes me most curious to read it is that the author's last name is DeWitt. We're almost certainly not related, but I'm excited to see if it lives up to the family name ;) 

Telegraph Avenue - Michael Chabon is, without a doubt, in the top tier of my favorite authors. I've read a few of his other books, so I've excited to read this one. I'm pretty confident that I'll like it. 

It Chooses You - Miranda July is one of the most brilliant artists of today! I love her movies, and I've read one or two of her short stories before, so I'm very excited to get more of her.

The Girl with the Golden Eyes - I've heard many great things about Balzac. I'm really looking forward to reading this book! 

Kate's List:

Little Bee - A few years ago it seemed like every book club was reading this, yet somehow I missed it. I started to read reviews and they are surprisingly vague because of a supposed pivotal plot twist and the reviewers "don't want to give too much away". I'm interested!

The Light Between Oceans - I cannot wait to read this book (it's next on my list!) I read a quick excerpt before putting it on my read list and it was so beautifully written that I'm finding myself rushing through my current book so I can start this one! 

The Collected Stories of Heinrich Boll - "These diverse, psychologically rich, and morally profound stories explore the consequences of war on individuals and on an entire culture." This book jumped out at me and immediately went to my reading list, I'm a sucker for powerful short stories. 

The Geography of Thought - I read this book back in a college psych class and it's interesting revelations have stayed with me for years so when I saw it on the list I knew I wanted to read it again. It's essentially a look into the differences between eastern and western culture- perception of time, healing, social interactions, medicine, and relationships.

The House of Mirth - My sister has been telling me to read this book for years, turn of the century in New York and high society life, I'm wondering what took me so long. 

My Antonia - This is the first book I recommend to people. It will forever remain a favorite of mine. Willa Cather writes so beautifully about the simplicity of friendship, and so strikingly about the potential of life. 

Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close - I read this book a few years ago and it's still one I think about often. Set around the heartbreak of 9/11, the narrator, a 9 year old, self-proclaimed pacifist, is a quirky, tambourine playing wise guy. This book is powerful, poignant, and emotional. 

The Man Who Would Be King - A collection on my reading list, short stories written by the winner of the Nobel Prize for literature. So I mean, it's gotta be good. 

_____

Alright friends, dish! What's on your summer reading list? Also, have you tried Oyster? Here's a list of their most popular titles.

This post was brought to you by Oyster Books. Don't forget to sign up for your free 30-day trial!! Thank you for supporting LGN sponsors!

Good Bones, Great Pieces

I am really loving the blog Good Bones, Great Pieces, which is authored by a mother and daughter design team. (hello, dream!)

Together they decorated this beautiful little apartment in Brooklyn Heights, which was recently featured in Traditional Home. You can read the article here. It's a good one, full of great tips.

I am so, so in love with this little settee from Mitchell Gold. I can never get enough of ticking stripes. That mirror is to die for. And the pop of yellow from the lamp is just perfection.

I think what I love the most about this apartment is that it doesn't look overly decorated. There is a sense of purpose and history with each piece and nothing is too matchy.

That gorgeous cream chair with the brown velvet piping above and below was a $25 Craigslist find.

White is such a good choice when painting furniture for small spaces.

I love the black matting in the framed art series above the bed.

And what a beautful vanity! I think it was clever to give the side table double duty as a vanity.

If you're not already reading the Good Bones, Great Pieces blog, you're really missing out.

WINNER: Restoring a House in the City

The winner of a copy of Restoring a House in the City, chosen from random.org, is Annmarie. Congratulations!


Please contact me with your address when you have a minute, Annmarie.

a gorgeous entry from a home on Beacon Hill,
featured in 'Restoring a House in the City'

And, of course, many thanks to Artisan and Ingrid Abramovitch!

GIVE AWAY: Restoring a House in the City

Thanks to author Ingrid Abramovitch and the lovely people at Artisan Publishing, we have a copy of the amazing book, Restoring A House in the City, up for grabs!

Whether you are currently renovating an old home, or plan to someday take on a huge renovation (me!), or even if you just have an appreciation of beautiful old homes (and amazing decor!!), this book is a great read. Pure eye candy from start to finish, and loads of useful information.

To enter to win your own copy of this big, beautiful coffee table book, please leave a comment here about your dream home. A new build with classic details? A centuries-old townhouse in the city? A charming farmhouse in the country?

After finishing Restoring A House in the City, I definitely would chose a grand brownstone in the metropolis. I'm completely in love with the Greek Revival style especially.

Commenting closes Thursday, February 4 at midnight. Good luck!

Renovating a House in the City

I'm coveting this book, found via the awesomely talented and ever-creative Katy Elliott.

Who, incidentally, tweeted about the song that first plays when you click here. Both Evelyn and I love it, even and especially at 3:00 am.

hugs,
jenny