The ante has definitely been upped for writing a design book: No longer is it enough to have a stunning body of work and a strong following—apparently you might need to enlist an A-list celebrity client to write your foreword, too! From Lena Dunham (for Ariel Okin) to Zooey Deschanel (Young Huh) to Mandy Moore (Sarah Sherman Samuel), this spring’s design books read like a Hollywood call sheet. More important, though, is the inspiration within: beautiful rooms, creative ideas well-expressed, and fresh points of view.
From the visionary talents of French interior designers surveyed in Arbiters of Style to the delightfully quirky, maximally layered homes uncovered by Benjamin Reynaert, and from the enchanting homespun watercolors of Bunny Mellon’s homes to soulful Montana retreats by William Peace, there’s truly something for everyone here—no celebrity pedigree required!
Arbiters of Style: The New Wave of French Interior Design
by Eugenia Santiesteban Soto
Some of the freshest, most creative design these days can be found in France, and Soto, FREDERIC’s style director, charts the trailblazers of the country’s aesthetic reawakening in this lushly photographed volume. From rising stars like Claves and Ebur to legends like Jacques Grange, Fabrizio Casiraghi, and Jean-Louis Deniot, this wide-ranging survey of 21 designers will kickstart your imagination.
$75, Monacelli
The Layered Home: Inspiration for Crafting Cozy, Collected Rooms
by Benjamin Reynaert
Stylist and design editor Benjamin Reynaert’s first book falls in the “more is more” camp in the most warmly intoxicating way. In visits to 18 homes of maximalist (even obsessive) collectors, designers, and shop owners, Reynaert unearths philosophies, ideas, and “lessons for a layered home.” These interiors are not only overflowing with objects and details, but also inspiration and joy. As Reynaert says, “Layers plus personalization create absolute spatial magic. Nothing else comes close.”
$38, Clarkson Potter
The Happy Home: Layered Interiors for Joyful Living
by Ariel Okin
Ariel Okin’s eagerly awaited first book is a lesson in channeling joy through an abundance of color, pattern, wallpaper, and collections, in a way that’s welcoming, not overwhelming. From charming beach houses to The Six Bells founder’s upstate escape to Okin’s own home in the New York suburbs, these are real-life spaces that welcome children and pets while layering in ample style—in other words, happy homes you might love to call your own.
$50, Rizzoli
This Must Be the Place: Homes with Atmosphere
by Chloe Redmond Warner
Chloe Redmond Warner is a proselytizer for the importance of AQ, or a high “aesthetic quotient”—which she herself demonstrates throughout her first book, not only in its wildly imaginative interiors, but also in her lively prose, trippy project briefs (“Twin Peaks on Prozac” and “Every Skittle in the Bag”), and curated playlists for each house. She shares “how we use curious and sometimes weird sources of inspiration … to design homes that are personal and beautiful.”
$50, Abrams
A Mood, A Thought, A Feeling: Interiors
by Young Huh
Acclaimed designer Young Huh’s first book is rooted in the emotions that our homes can tap into—a key, she believes, to creating interiors that truly resonate. She illustrates seven different moods as jumping-off points, from conviviality to peacefulness to verve, then shares in satisfying detail how she drew on those feelings to create three projects, ending with a personal masterpiece—her own enchanting house in upstate New York.
$55, Rizzoli
Notes from a Decorator’s Life
by Libby Cameron
In this engaging memoir-slash-design book, Libby Cameron looks back fondly on her time working for Sister Parish and Albert Hadley and then on her own, interspersing her book with wonderful sketches by Hadley, and tracing the evolution of her own homes, from old Soho lofts to warm, rambling houses in New York, Connecticut, and Maine. Hers is a charming tale of bygone days when you could fall into a decorating job at a storied firm and learn at the hands of such gifted masters.
$50, Gibbs Smith
Kit Kemp: Design Stories
by Kit Kemp
The title of designer and hotelier Kit Kemp’s fifth book is apt, because her remarkable rooms unfold like a richly told, intricately layered tale you want to read further. This book shares the imaginative art, craftwork, custom furnishings, and immense creativity that go into projects ranging from residential homes to hotels to showhouses, Kemp’s own home in Barbados, and even a caravan. It’s an exuberantly colorful, sophisticatedly whimsical, almost dreamlike journey.
$60, Rizzoli
Summer by the Sea: Cottages from Watch Hill to Little Compton
by Thomas A. Kligerman
As anyone who’s fallen in love with a summer house can attest, this affair of the heart is about more than simply architecture—sensory impressions seep into every shiplap seam and cedar shingle. Acclaimed architect Thomas Kligerman takes us inside 16 special houses along his beloved Rhode Island coast, from grand 19th-century “cottages” to modest farmhouses to modern A-frames to Kligerman’s own house in Weekapaug, in this salt-tinged love letter to the architecture of memory.
$65, Monacelli
In the House: Celebrating America’s Leading Black Interior Designers
by Alton LaDay
LaDay has orchestrated a much-overdue but vibrant celebration of Black designers that focuses on the stories and work of 33 visionary talents, from the well-known—Brigette Romanek, Rayman Boozer, Justina Blakeney—to the up-and-coming. LaDay also examines the woeful lack of attention for Black interior designers until relatively recently. As Patti Carpenter notes in the foreword, “What this book ultimately reveals is not simply beautiful rooms, but powerful narratives—spaces shaped by memory, innovation, and vision.”
$60, Monacelli (June 24)
The Enchanting Interiors of Bunny Mellon: Paintings by Snowy Campbell
Bunny Mellon discovered the art of Alison “Snowy” Campbell on the office walls of her orthopedic surgeon after breaking her ankle—Alison was his daughter. From that serendipitous moment unfolded a six-year alliance as Campbell painted the Mellon residences in New York City, Washington, D.C., and Oak Spring, in Virginia. The goal was “not to provide a full inventory or literal record of the Mellon homes, but to capture their spirit”—which she did charmingly, as this sweet book of her watercolors reveals.
$60, Rizzoli
Sarah Sherman Samuel: The Intersection of Art and Design
by Sarah Sherman Samuel
“I believe that as you create your home, your home has a hand in creating you,” writes Sarah Sherman Samuel. In this, her first book, the multifaceted designer reveals how she’s been shaped by homes, but also, the foundational influence of nature. She shares seven residential projects that underscore her belief in home as “living autobiography,” interwoven with her original designs for furniture, textiles, and art that inform her interiors.
$60, Abrams
Peace in the West: The Rustic Luxury Interiors of William Peace
by William Peace
If you yearn for wide-open spaces, majestic mountain views, and hand-hewn, rustic log homes, this soulful book is for you. William Peace’s work is concentrated in Montana and the West. Here, “the landscape and the light are always the driving forces,” he notes, and accordingly, the ten projects in this book are organized by the time of day and slant of the light. With natural scenery this dramatic, no architecture and design can really compete, but his work certainly complements its stunning environs. Peaceful, indeed.
$65, Gibbs Smith
Nathan Turner’s I Love Decorating: Creating Stylish, Thoughtful, and Personal Spaces
by Nathan Turner
Nathan Turner may be a fourth-generation Californian, but in his third book, he takes us to 11 wide-ranging projects, from a grand Tudor in Denver to a classic six in Greenwich Village to a Jakarta pied à terre, to his own homes in Brentwood and Ojai. He shares his favorite spots in every city, along with tips for layering maximalist patterns and adding unexpected, delightful details.
$50, Abrams
Everything on our website was hand-picked by a FREDERIC editor. We may earn commission on items you purchase.
