11 Interiors Books Worth A Place On Your Coffee Table

Founded in 1935, Pierre Frey is a family business famous for the variety and boldness of its inspired designs. Over the decades it has asserted itself in the luxury market as the uncontested global leader in soft furnishing textiles and wallpapers. Known for enchanting brocades and damasks, luminous hand-woven silken velvets, traditional woodblock printed fabrics, striking contemporary patterns made into works of art, Pierre Frey has worked with the Louvre and the Château de Versailles, decorated castle interiors, and provided the fabrics and wallpapers of elegant private homes around the world – from Paris to Hong Kong to New York. Drawing from archives of more than 25,000 documents dating from the 16th century to the present, this handsome volume offers contemporary inspiration to professional and amateur designers alike.

Available at Amazon.co.uk

Interior designer Paloma Contreras focuses her expertise on one of the most common yet difficult tasks in decorating: how to design a space that successfully mixes traditional and modern elements. By walking readers through her four main techniques – colour, texture and pattern, scale and proportion, and tension – Contreras shows how to successfully mix pieces from different eras and styles to create timeless and balanced interiors. With striking colour photography and personalised design tips, Contreras’s book demonstrates how to create layered, interesting spaces that always include an element of modern surprise with a touch of elegant antiquity.

Available at Amazon.co.uk

Dubbed the ‘bible of interior design’, this heavyweight tome has become an annual tradition, celebrating the 100 greatest interior designers on the international stage. As ever, its 27th edition showcases the latest design trends and the hottest interior styles – from minimalist Scandinavian and charming Boho to decadent, bright and colourful. In this lavish illustrated book, Martin Waller presents not only houses and flats but also restaurants, cafés and office spaces designed by the world’s top designers.

Available at Amazon.co.uk

In The Flower Hunter, florist Lucy Hunter shows how we can all draw inspiration from the natural world and use it when creating floral arrangements or drying and pressing flowers. More than just a guide to flower arranging, Lucy’s beautiful book encourages us to pause and observe detail in our surroundings, and open our minds to the beauty of nature, allowing it to spark creativity when bringing flowers into the home. 

Available at Amazon.co.uk

Featuring more than 100 previously unpublished images, this is one of the most comprehensive collections of Slim Aarons photography ever released. This luxe edition provides a deep and comprehensive look at the ground-breaking career of Slim Aarons. Spanning five decades, the book begins with his work in the field as an army photographer and continues through his early days in Hollywood, opening the LIFE bureau in Rome, fashion and travel shoots for Holiday, and finally travelling the world for Harper’s Bazaar. With a definitive new biographical essay spotlighting some key moments, Slim Aarons: The Essential Collection gives readers an unprecedented look into Slim’s private world.

Available at Amazon.co.uk

Inspired by the concept of a One Day Box – a place, real or imaginary, where we store fragments of our past that spark a feeling of connection – Soames presents her reflections on the concept of home. In this beautifully presented hardback, she explores the sentiments evoked by certain objects during seminal moments in her life, from personalities and places to beloved objects, Soames shows how our patchwork of memories can energise the process of creating and living in a home. Stunning photographs of her projects, including her refurbished countryside cottage in Dorset, an architecturally prominent house in the Cotswolds, and her family’s home in north Norfolk, alongside images of her colourful fabric and wallpaper collections, bring her designs and notable style to life.

Available at Amazon.co.uk

Written by the creators of French ceramics workshop Astier de Villatte, the English translation of Ma Vie à Paris has been updated. It gives pride of place to creation, family craftsmanship and all that is exceptional in Paris. Take the jewellers who have been selling antique rings for four generations and will repair jewellery on site. Or the plumber who is also an antiques dealer. Or the Potager du Roi garden, which sells delicious produce three times a week at unbeatable prices. Or cobblers who can magically restore your shoes in a workshop that has remained unchanged for a quarter of a century…

Available at AstierDeVillatte.com

There is, no question, a skill to styling rooms to reflect a considered approach. Luckily, we have the mastery of New York-based stylist Colin King to help us elevate our homes into spaces of personal creativity. In Arranging Things, Colin shares his wisdom on cultivating beauty in our everyday surroundings, composing objects into simple vignettes that enrich our homes and our lives. Page after page, readers will discover how Colin works his magic when arranging objects on coffee tables, shelves, bedside tables, windowsills and more. This is not necessarily about buying new things to look good, but rather about dusting off old favourites and seeing them with fresh eyes.

Available at Amazon.co.uk

Organised by location, this book takes an overview of the interiors Kathryn Ireland has designed over the past 30 years, including her own homes in Los Angeles, London and the south of France. She shares her story of a life in design, from the early days in LA, where she started her career by decorating a home for Steve Martin, to designing houses all over the world, from California to the Cotswolds. This illustrated deep dive into Kathryn’s work is paired with a wealth of informal and invaluable advice on creating comfort, adding colour, finding and hanging art, designing great spaces for entertaining and the design rules she lives by.

Available at Amazon.co.uk

Think beige, grey and white are the only neutrals? Think again. As a lifelong fan of rich jewel tones, fashion designer turned interiors expert Matthew Williamson makes the case for living cocooned in colour. For example, did you know pink can be subtle, warming and very liveable? Or that, used sparingly, fiery red can get you going? Let Matthew help you find your style DNA and you’ll soon be getting out the paint brush and treating boring corners of your home to a technicolour palette. Packed with inspirational images of interior decorating projects, including his own homes in London and Mallorca, as well as visual references that will transport you to the places that are close to his heart, Living Bright is the hardworking handbook to take on your journey to colourful living.

Available at Amazon.co.uk

Joie de vivre – or celebrating the simple things – is a philosophy that tastemaker Ajiri Aki has embraced. In this beautifully photographed volume of everything French, Ajiri shares what she has learned about living in Paris, from hosting the perfect apéro (happy hour) to lingering around town like a flâneur (loafer) to thrifting for antiques at the market. While exploring the prettiest cafes and shops, you’ll be inspired to reclaim your right to leisure as the French have, so you, too, can savour the spontaneous, magical moments that happen every day.

Available at Amazon.co.uk