I love to go into RH but sometimes they are just way out of line with their pricing. And the prices are going up even in this recession. But I do like that store.
Thanks for the tip Cooperbailey.

....Jane

Not only are their prices on the high end, but their furniture pieces are on such a grand scale, that many of them would look out of place in my 2600 square foot house, and I don't consider my house small. (Not that it's large, either. LOL)

Prediction: hold on to your $29 and pick them up for pennies when this idea does not catch on.

Here is a link that might be useful: book bundles.

There is something very depressing about reducing books to "decor"!

Reminds me of Fahrenheit 451...LOL

I am a coffee table book lover...although they do serve as decor on the table...they are amazing inside and my guests love to look at them.

Thanks for the crafty idea cooper!!!

Restoration Hardware is expensive but their outlet is amazing. I just picked up 2 wall sconces orignally priced (still in the catalogue) $154/ each for $54.00 each. One was missing a screw hole in the mount which was easy to fix and for a saving of $200.00 well worth the effort.

oh my that is just wrong.
But regarding their other stuff, I do agree it's quite attractive - but overpriced -
where are their outlets?
:)

"Rich with texture and intrigue"

Yes, I'm intrigued as to why you'd rip the covers off your books so that you can't tell what the title is and then tie them together just to sit on a shelf so you can't pick one up to read it. And even more intrigued that you'd spend about $30 to have someone else do this for you.

Okay, that was snarky. I have to admit I like the look, but just couldn't do that to a book.

And further confession--when we were cleaning out my grandfather's house, I came upon a small stack of little books that had been tied together with red cloth tape (literally red tape!). No one else wanted them, so I took them home and put them in a bookcase as decoration, not reading material. But I came by them honestly!

And now that I think of it, I have a complete, multi-volume set of Dickens that was Grandpa's. They'd be perfect books to do the cover-etomy on and sell for lots of money!

It can be a nice thing to do if that book has a damaged cover and is sitting so lonely in that dark corner of the thrift shop, or sitting on the ground left for trash after an auction! and I have some old books of no value with wonderful art on their covers that I treasure.I guess I just like to give some old stuff new life. Heck I cant bring any more dogs home!

Speaking of books - here's a recent post from Joni at the Cote De Texas blog.
Book covers were used on walls and the insides on shelves.

In the next 3 pics - old documents were used on walls.

Gary and Elaine already know about the book bundles, lol.... see link below.

I'm not a big fan of coverless book bundles such as these as decor items, whether they cost you 25 cents or 29$, maybe that's just me though :
I have the same feelings versus balls of twine, they belong in a drawer with the scissors and the scotch tape.

An attractive antique well worn book , yes.....

Here is a link that might be useful: Gary/Elaine Book bundles as aphrodisiac

Hard times. Imagine how cheap it is for them to do the bundled book thing. I guess they've had to get creative ....people buy this stuff, so there's incentive to keep marketing it, right?

Speaking of high prices, I've been looking at bathroom vanities online and am stunned by the prices. It's just a cabinet, sink and faucet, people! Absolutely amazing. Who is paying close to two thousand dollars for a 30" or slightly bigger vanity?

Last evening I was leafing through the latest RH catalog, thinking "this stuff is all one dull tone and pretty ugly", and came to the picture of the twin metal beds in that cell-like room, saw the book bundles and thought "Gary and Elaine!".

So Mitchdesi - thanks for posting it, lol!

If you destroyed your books for the sake of decorating, as Cote de Texas did, what would you then say to your children, having lovingly taught them to take good care of books? When I look at that hutch filled with unreadable books, what I mainly think of are silverfish.

OTOH, the little bedroom is delightful.

Only for those who don't read books( have gone all Kindle, perhaps), or have such an abundance of places to keep books they can well afford one special place for this particular design effect. Perhaps I could in a bedroom, but nah. It just rubs me wrong, even though it's pretty. I have floor to ceiling book shelves in office as well as same in a large family room/library in a larger-than average home, and I have no shelves I could/would give up for this fad. I need them for real books!
As for the RH sized furniture? I truly do not get it. It would take a large loft for the gigantic coffee table, the full-sized bed deep sofas and monster deep/huge armed leather chairs. All furniture began super-sizing( and I dislike it) about 15 years ago. It's there in the outdoor market, too, when all the while land for patios has been getting smaller and smaller. I repeat: I do not get it? Is the industry alert to America's obesity trend and following suit to match it's clients? Nah, it's just stupidity of fads. I've read down-sizing will be coming into fashion soon. Not too soon for me!

I LOL when I saw those book bundles w/ a price tag of $29.99! I thought 'Man - have they finally run out of ideas to get my money? I could do that myself but I wouldn't becuase who would do that to a book? And unless you found books like that in someone's trash who would pay money to buy books to do that?'.

Although I love the look of the greyed and weathered wood I'd never buy it. Too pricey to have to put a finish or protectant on it myself.

When DH was cleaning up my $2 coffee table I went to the shop to see it. There it stood in all of it's greyed beauty. "IT'S PERFECT!" I shouted and threw my arms around him.

"It's not done" he said. "It still has to have a stain or protectant put on it if you ever want it around the kids."

We settled on oiling it.

When I turned I saw a gorgeous DR table that had the exact same finish as the RH stuff. I said 'Oh wow! That table is like the new RH look!' He said "That one's raw too."

I said (and I really am not making fun or light of those folks who love and can afford the stuff - I wish I could!) "Are you telling me that people are paying $5K for a table that's not finished?" "Yep."

And the thing is that the stuff really isn't exclusive to RH. They buy a lot from BoBo (something or other) and I see stuff on other sites.

But again - if I could afford it - I'd buy it. Just not the book bundles though :0)!

Now I recall that RH was originally started by a guy who was having a hard time locating stuff to renovate his San Franciso Victorian. I wonder what he thinks now of the size of the RH furniture. Would it have fit into HIS SF Victorian? I haven't been in many SF Victorians but each SF Victorian home that my dad lived in weren't so big.

Oh and yes, RH outlet is the place to go! I recently picked up 2 boudoir shams for $4.99 each, originally $49.99 each and 2 Euro's for $9.99 each, originally $69.99 each. Still can't afford the linen bedding though even at the outlet.

Maybe once the porch is done and the kitchen is renovated I'll open an RH account strictly for that.

The RH Garden stuiff is TDF this year as were the Garden catalogs!

I have one of the RH salvaged wood tables and really want the matching sideboard but it's too much $$. Maybe I'll end up ordering it if it comes down in price. I agree their prices are extremely high but I did get the table at 25% off during a sale. It ended up costing less than a pine table that I was going to have custom made to duplicate the RH table.

ttodd - I also love the tone of the unfinished table but had to apply a protectant finish to prevent stains. I initially decided to use clear Briwax hoping that it would preserve the original color of the wood.

I ended up using clear Monocoat oil instead. It deepened the color to a beautiful medium brown and really highlighted all the knots, cracks and divets in the wood. Just one coat (which took an hour or so to apply) did the job and the quart cost approximately $100. So far, it has completely repelled water and stains so it was worth it.

I love RH things but I agree about those trumped up book thingie's. I don't like make believe things, but that's me.
Does your DH make furniture ttodd?

Juddgirl I think you did the right thing by buying that table, I really do. Sometimes you have to do what you have to do, and you did.

Newdawn - No DH doesn't make furniture. Yet. But I have plans for him! He refinishes and repairs, and both of cane if needed. Usually that gets sent out though. DH wants to learn to build furniture though. His great grand-daddy did.

Both my dad and brother build furniture. My brother builds great shaker 4 poster beds. I want to build one too w/ my dad.

My dad and another man built this wine glass pulpit and staircase for this historical church:

I remember going to the church w/ him on weekends for a very long time. Great times for me!

Ttodd it that your wedding photo?? beautiful pulpit.
Juddgirl you have the perfect dining table for the perfect space.

Cooperbaily - that is our wedding picture.

I was so immersed watching the pulpit going from drawing to wood to installation. The only part I wasn't privy to was the painting of it.

I was probably 9yrs. old then.

I was fascinated by the church overall. 1 sunlit filled room, massive oil chandelier (no electricity), pipe organ and monotone shades of white and grey. It's perfect simplicity and symmetry were always a thing of beauty to me. The wide sweeping views of the farmland below were breathtaking and I asked the photographer to take a shot of the fields from inside the church. It sets high on a hill and you see a tapestry of fields for miles. There is grafiti in the balcony corners written by bored children on Sundays that dates back to the late 1700's. I'd spend hours either in the balconies or reading tombstones in the tiny cemetary outside. I was always a little sad when my dad called to tell me it was time to go home.

I was thrilled when the society gave us permission to marry in it.

I could go on and on and on for ages about that special slice of heaven that brought me a summer of quiet adventure and peacefulness in a chaotic life but I won't bore you all any longer.