With the crispness in the air comes that back-to-school energy, when we’re excited to delve into new books, take on new projects, or curl up with a great read. This fall offers many enticing options, with new books by some of our favorite designers and captivating volumes on everything from fashion icons’ homes and gardens to intriguing tales of artisans and innkeepers. Here’s what our editors are most looking forward to reading.
Everybody Loves Stripes: Decorating Between the Lines
by Alexandra Flint and Emma Bazilian
As the title avows, who doesn’t love stripes? This book by FREDERIC’s Content Director Emma Bazilian and contributing editor Alexandra Flint is bound to convert any holdouts. Filled with creative ideas for employing this timeless and versatile pattern—from tented ceilings to upholstered stripes on the bias to painted floors—the wide range of rooms by designers shows you why and how to do it well. Get in line to add this chic and cheerful must-have to your design library.
$55, Monacelli (October 29)
Tom Scheerer: Still Decorating
by Tom Scheerer
Tom Scheerer says this is his last volume in a “tidy trilogy” of monographs, celebrating a career we’ve loved following—not just for Scheerer’s talent, but also for his ability to articulate what makes a room work and how he comes to his seemingly effortless but always creative ideas. As he says, “The goal is always something easygoing and livable, even in the grandest houses,” which is what makes his work so approachable yet special.
$75, Vendome
Sims Hilditch: Beautifully British Interiors
by Giles Kime
If you subscribe to the Inigo real estate emails, if you rewatch Downton Abbey for the decor—in other words, if you’re one of the many people who fantasize about owning a British country house, designer Emma Sims-Hilditch is likely already on your radar and you will thoroughly enjoy this, her second book. Leafing through its pages, you contemplate the glories of having a flower arranging room, a pantry, a boot room. Sims-Hilditch specializes in sensitively adapting centuries-old homes for modern-day families, from a Jacobean manor house to a Cornish coastal estate, with an emphasis on function and comfort woven into her beguiling designs.
$60, Rizzoli
Ray Booth: The Expressive Home
by Ray Booth with Judith Nasatir
In his second book, Booth, a partner in McAlpine, shares projects that orchestrate tranquil symphonies in neutrals layered with texture, contrast, and artfully crafted elements that feel deeply luxurious, never boring. His carefully considered, nuanced work, including his own home in Provincetown, is always inspiring.
$60, Rizzoli
My Life in Colors
by Martin Brudnizki
Surprisingly—given his storied 25-year career as the acclaimed designer for such glam, jet-setter spaces as Annabelle’s in London, the Hotel Splendido in Portofino, and the Beekman Hotel in New York—this is Martin Brudnizki’s first book. With more than 40 projects to share, he decided to organize both his work and his thoughts on design around specific hues. Weaving a tapestry of art, history, and design references, Brudnizki delves into the meaning of colors as well as how to use them in interior design. His theatrical projects incorporate “escapism and a large dose of imagination,” qualities this book has in spades.
$65, Rizzoli
Robert Stilin: New Work
by Robert Stilin and Sam Cochran
From his own expansive loft on the Brooklyn waterfront to clients’ homes across the country, Robert Stilin’s second book refines a distinctive voice in American design who juxtaposes the muscular, industrial, and gritty with time-polished midcentury wood and soulful antiques, surprisingly luxurious fabrics, and cutting-edge contemporary art. As writer Sam Cochran notes, his work “defies tidy categorization,” but that element of surprise leads to “the thrill of experiencing the work of Robert Stilin.”
$75, Vendome (October 21)
Nicola Harding: Homing Instinct
by Nicola Harding and Busola Evans
In British designer Nicola Harding’s first book, she shares her fearless yet inviting approach to color, employing it—along with pattern, texture, antiques—to bring a welcoming warmth and engaging beauty to the wide range of homes she’s designed, from a Tuscan retreat to a handsome Georgian townhouse to a new build. This beautifully written book explores what Harding describes as the alchemy of home, and reveals how she deftly devises each element to “unlock the soul of place.” It’s as lovely to read as it is to pore over.
$60, Rizzoli
Jacques Grange: New Projects
by Pierre Passebon
One of the most esteemed interior designers of our time, Jacques Grange is now entering his ninth decade—and seems to show few signs of slowing down. This, his third monograph, showcases 30 projects as impressive in their range—from an iconic Edwin Lutyens house in England to the venerable Mark Hotel in New York to a Cocteau-adorned villa to a luxury yacht—as in their exquisite balance of classicism and modernity. Grange has a special talent for designing interiors in dialogue with remarkable art collections, on dramatic display in this stunning volume.
$85, Flammarion (November 18)
Studio Sofield: Works
by William Sofield and Emma O’Neill
This monograph covering more than three decades of Studio Sofield’s work is itself a work of art, befitting the extraordinary care, scholarship, creativity, and craftsmanship that the Studio has imbued in each of its many noteworthy projects. This 664-page tome covers a broad swath of projects, from private townhouses and homes to hotels, boutiques for Tom Ford, Yves Saint Laurent, and Gucci to an entire residential building on the Upper East Side stunningly detailed with old-world artisanry. The book interweaves gatefolds, sketches, textiles, and more into one beautifully bound volume with slipcase.
$250, Rizzoli (October 14)
Comforts of Home: Tailor-Made, Family-Friendly Interiors That Feel Just Right
by Andrew Howard
No one could ever accuse Andrew Howard of being color- or pattern-shy. In his second book, he shares a dozen projects—many for young families, including his own—proving that children and great design are not mutually exclusive. (Pattern is forgiving! And indoor/outdoor fabrics are key.) And though family-friendly, the projects are brimming with creative custom details that take them to the next level.
$50, Abrams
Distinctly American: Houses and Interiors by Hendricks Churchill
by Heide Hendricks and Rafe Churchill
Partners in life and work, architect Rafe Churchill and interior designer Heide Hendricks’ first book shares two decades’ worth of projects, many rooted in a rural vernacular, where a Shaker-like purity and restraint meets often-exuberant color and pattern. From a new-old farmhouse in Litchfield, Connecticut, to a whimsical Carnegie Hill apartment in Manhattan, their through line is authenticity, natural materials, individuality, and soul.
$75, Rizzoli
A Screaming Blast: Exceptional Entertaining
by Rebecca Gardner
If anyone knows how to throw an imaginative, witty, wonderful party, it’s Rebecca Gardner of Houses & Parties. Gardner’s MO is best summed up in one of her chapter titles: “If it’s worth doing, it’s worth overdoing.” This romp of a book (with a foreword by Sofia Coppola) will get you in the party mood, and inspire you with whimsical, sometimes wacky, always lively ideas to ensure your party is a blast, with engaging themes—from a pink poodle party to a circus caravan to the Napa wine train—carried through from invitations and ice-breakers to elaborate decor and entertainment with aplomb.
$45, Rizzoli
The Inn Crowd: Artistic Getaways and the Modern Innkeepers Who Crafted Them
by Jackie Caradonio
If you love staying at boutique hotels and inns as much for the decor as the locale, you’ll enjoy Jackie Caradonio’s in-depth stories and photographs of 16 one-of-a-kind properties throughout New York and New England. Reading about the often-circuitous paths these passionate proprietors took to becoming innkeepers (often after very successful careers in other fields), you might even be tempted to become one yourself—or at least add some of these special places to your must-visit list.
$60, Monacelli (October 8)
Lives of the Great Makers
edited by Rebecca Knott and James Robinson
This lively compendium from curators at the V&A Museum in London is a fascinating anthology of the most revered craftspeople in the museum’s collection, from the Renaissance and Enlightenment through the Arts & Crafts movement to the present day. It celebrates the remarkable work of such headliners as Thomas Chippendale, William Morris, Eileen Gray, and Dale Chihuly, but also many lesser-known artisans whose work should enjoy equal appreciation, and is filled with beautiful photographs and illustrations throughout.
$50, Thames & Hudson (October 14)
Francois Halard: Art & Flowers
by Francois Halard
Confined to his home in Arles after a shoulder injury in 2024, interiors photographer François Halard made the best of a lousy situation. He started photographing flowers with his Polaroid camera while also altering past “flawed” Polaroids—many depicting ancient statuary and classical art—with paint and wax to create new works of art. The result is a lush, two-volume compilation of these dual artistic explorations—one examining the ephemeral transcendence of flowers, and the other, the mutability of time and artistic fragments.
$175, Rizzoli
Elements of Timeless Style: Creating a Forever Home
by Erin Gates
Well-known for her popular blog, Elements of Style, designer Erin Gates is back with a third book, inspired by the purchase of her own “forever home”—an enchanting Second Empire–style house in Massachusetts. She shares the process and specifics of decorating this and eight other projects in delightful detail, with “project takeaways,” paint colors, and many helpful design lessons along the way.
$40, Simon Element
The Glamorous House
by Jan Showers
This is the prolific Dallas designer Jan Showers’ fourth book, but it is no less captivating than her others, presenting ten elegant projects in abundant detail, including paint colors, fabrics, and sources. Luxe scenic wallpapers, lacquered walls, chic midcentury furniture, and mirrors abound, all set against very pretty yet sophisticated palettes.
$65, Abrams (October 14)
PowerHouse
by Penny Drue Baird
A powerhouse herself in the design world, in her fifth book, Baird here is referring to the way that the right house, well-designed and decorated, can make us feel grounded. With a Ph.D. in psychology, she is particularly well-equipped to listen to her clients’ wishes and needs, and in a dozen projects across the country in a wide range of settings, she displays her fine-tuned ear—and eye—with luxurious, artful environments that give her clients a place to shine.
$60, Schiffer
A Welcome Home: Inviting Interiors
by Alexandra Kaehler
Like Baird, Chicago-based designer Alexandra Kaehler, the child of a therapist, takes a psychological approach to design, working closely with clients to understand how they live and what they love in order to create a space that suits them to a T. Her book features eight family homes, including her own, that balance traditional architecture with modern-day needs, with lots of pretty patterns and palettes inspired by nature.
$60, Monacelli
AD at Home: Architectural Digest edited by Amy Astley
When Amy Astley arrived at Architectural Digest nearly 10 years ago, she sought to bring fresh life, improvisation and irreverence, and above all, celebrity glamour to the hidebound interior design magazine. This compilation of the past decade under her tenure is a who’s who of actors, musicians, designers, artists and other bold-type names, from Lenny Kravitz to Julianne Moore, Cara Delevingne to Kendall Jenner, in their ultra-luxe private lairs from L.A. to the Cotswolds to Copenhagen.
$100, Rizzoli
La Pausa: The Ideal Mediterranean Villa of Gabrielle Chanel
by Montse Aguer Texidor, Laura Bartolomé, and Philippe Collas
This handsome volume explores all facets of the French Riviera villa that Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel designed and built in 1928, and the life she led there, entertaining a legendary circle of artistic and society friends, including Salvador Dalí, Pablo Picasso, Jean Cocteau, and the Duke of Westminster in the 1930s and ’40s. Almost monastic in its simplicity (influenced by the monastery and orphanage where she spent part of her youth), the villa was very much a reflection of Chanel’s taste, surrounded by naturalistic gardens and the wild coastal landscape.
$160, Flammarion
Dior: Enchanting Gardens
by Jean-Paul Claverie
A confection of fashion, flowers, and fragrance, Dior: Enchanting Gardens examines the couturier’s love of flowers in every form. With its roots in the gardens of his childhood home in Granville, on the Norman seaside, this passion revealed itself in exquisitely embroidered flowers on couture dresses, floral perfumes, and Dior’s homes, and has been reinterpreted by subsequent designers for the label, from Gianfranco Ferré to John Galliano to Maria Grazia Chiuri.
$45, Rizzoli
Country Life’s Book of Dogs
by Agnes Stamp
For the many dog lovers in your life, it’s hard to imagine a more welcome gift. Throughout its 125-year history, the British magazine Country Life has celebrated hunting dogs and working farm dogs, the Queen’s corgis and commoners’ collies alike. This volume features profiles of 70 different breeds, illustrated with winsome photographic portraits, paintings, and images culled from the Country Life archives. Just try to read it without wanting to adopt a dog of your own.
$65, Rizzoli
The London Club: Architecture, Interiors, Art
by Andrew Jones and Laura Hodgson
Come along for a rare sneak peek inside 46 of London’s most illustrious private clubs, from 18th– and 19th-century classics like Boodle’s and the Athenaeum to the recently opened House of KOKO. This richly illustrated volume focuses on the exquisite architecture, design, libraries, art collections and more hiding behind the facades. There’s even a glimpse inside the most noteworthy loos, along with whimsical design details like the propeller light switches at the Royal Air Force Club.
$75, ACC Art Books
Process
by Ralph Pucci
Ralph Pucci may be known for high-style furniture and lighting designs, but the firm actually began as a mannequin business. Pucci, the founders’ son, eventually opened a sculpture studio, working with Vladimir Kagan, Patrick Naggar, Elizabeth Garouste, Lee Mindel, and other design luminaries to craft sculptural lighting, chairs, and tables. This book celebrates the creative process, sharing sketches, notes, maquettes, and models, underscoring the importance of the hand, the medium, and the imagination in a technological world.
$110, Ralph Pucci
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