The holidays are always the perfect time to catch up on one’s reading – it’s nice to have the time to really savour all the books and magazines which have been piling up throughout the year.

This holiday, I’m spending a couple of weeks in the sun with my family & I’m absolutely dying to devour some of the amazing books I’ve got lined up…. Starting with my Gloria Vanderbilt book on the plane, and a whole stack of others to read by the pool!

What will you be reading this holiday?

Never one to need much of an excuse for a good cocktail, I love to see people’s homes with a nicely set up bar tray or table in the social rooms of a home. The old school glamour of a good cocktail shaker, some smart glasses, fresh ice in an ice bucket and a good selection of drinks is a cheerful and comforting sight!

Bunny Williams provides inspiration for being a winning hostess with the perfect bar set up, as she describes in her book Scrapbook for Living.

Cheers!

Last night’s book launch was truly a fabulous celebration of this beautiful big book. The book marks Thomas’ 20^th anniversary in Australia, it offers a breathtaking view of magnificent homes from a harbour-front villa and bayside Italianate residence in Melbourne, to a stylish retreat in Florida and a French farmhouse in Luberon. Each chapter is accompanied by a description of the design process for each transformation.

Thank you for having us a long Thomas, your book is sitting on the coffee table in our showroom for all our visitors to enjoy.

Me and Thomas

 

My must have design books list continued….

The Great American Decorator, by Billy Baldwin
We love Billy, he is truly amazing. They called him the “Dean of American Decorating.” Billy Baldwin famously conceived Cole Porter’s dark brown library and the vibrant red cotton chintz that defined fashion editor Diana Vreeland’s apartment. His famous clients included Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis and Baby and Bill Paley. 

Billy was once quoted something that rings true to me, “be faithful to your own taste because nothing you really like is ever out of style.” I couldn’t agree more.

The Allure of Style, by Mary McDonald
Award-winning interior designer Mary McDonald inspires readers to combine old-fashioned elegance with the joy of fearless, exuberant decorating.  Mary is consistently ranked one of House Beautiful’s top 100 designers.

 She is so chic and a fabulous designer and seeing all her spaces in one book will be a certainly be a treat.

In fact, over the coming months we are going to spoilt with some of America’s greatest interior designers releasing their own books.  It is such an amazing time for so many designers, congratulations to Thomas and each of the below designers on their success. I cannot wait to look over your beautiful creations.

My must have design book list:

Thomas Hamel Residence…..tick!

AT HOME: A Style for Today with Things from the Past, by Suzanne Rheinstein.

 The book features six distinctive homes that express Suzanne’s relaxed yet elegant style, including her own homes in Los Angeles and New York. If you have ever had the pleasure of dropping into Hollyhock, Suzanne’s magnificent antique filled store you will know what a treat you are in for (and if you haven’t, you must).

The world of Madeline Castaing, by Emily Evans Eerdmans
Emily has not only one book, not two, but three and a legendary shop on rue Jacob in Paris……where does she find the time! Her previous books include Classic English Design and Antiques and Regency Redux.

Emily offers something unique, she is renowned for French blend of neoclassicism, Proustian romanticism, and pure wit.

Interior Portraits, by Victoria Hagan
One of today’s most influential designers, Victoria Hagan exploded onto the scene in 1988 when New York magazine devoted the cover of its design issue to one of her rooms. Since then she has become renowned for her intelligent integration of architectural and interior design. Absolutely adore her fresh very clean look.

more to come……..

I’ve gone through quite a few diaries, and I’m getting a pretty good idea of what to look for.

For the upcoming year, I was looking at three different diaries:

Kate Spade – While the illustrations are gorgeous, I’ve had a diaries with spiral binders before, and they didn’t really work for me. They were a bit too large for my bag, and the pages often fell out.

Smythson – The leather is beautiful, and of course, monogramming is always a plus for me, but this diary was out of my price range.

Debrett’s – I was attracted to the leather cover, and all the goodies included: A shopping directory, travel info and guides to fitness, music, and websites. I ordered it two weeks ago, and it arrived today (all the way from London!). It turned out to be even better than I expected.

I also bought the Debrett’s Etiquette for Girls, and I’m looking forward to flipping through it tonight.

Here are a few of my favourite bits from her book, or should I say bible.

I am an Interior Designer from New York, presently living in Melbourne Australia.
I have been seriously obsessed with design blogs for some time now.

The decision to blog or not to blog was made at last!
I hope you enjoy my musings on all things chic and glamorous.
Interiors, travel, books, shoes, art, and design just to name a few.

Best,
Diane B

Here is a photo of my inspiration board I’m using on the front page of my new and improved website