10 Great Coffee Table Books
E-Readers have nothing on these tomes that double as inspiring accessories
Well, unfortunately, Cosmo Kramer never really published his coffee table book about coffee tables that turned into a coffee table, but lucky for us, there are other options. I am a design-book hoarder, so I keep a few in rotation for inspiration at all times. Here are just a smattering of those with the most inspiring images inside, funniest writing, or most important, the best covers to judge them by. They are presented in no particular order, and obviously, cannot begin to cover all the wonderful books out there.
What's your favorite coffee table book? Please share it with us in the Comments section.
What's your favorite coffee table book? Please share it with us in the Comments section.
"Painting Abstraction: New Dimensions in Abstract Painting"
I have to agree with Caitlin Creer about this book. The cover looks great on a coffee table. Yup, that's perhaps a little superficial, but it's true.
Tom Ford
I think this must be the number-one stylist's prop book. It's everywhere. It's simple black and white. It's oversized. It's all about Tom Ford in his Gucci days, and the pictures are sexy as all get-out. Actually, it's a little risque, so if you have young kids around, you may want to keep this one out of view.
My Prescription for Anti-Depressive Living by Jonathan Adler
This book literally makes me laugh out loud every time I read it. It encourages you to be yourself, to be inappropriate, and do ask yourself "What would Mrs. Goldstein do?" You'll have to read it to find out what that means (it's my favorite page of the book).
Surfing Photographs from the Seventies Taken by Jeff Divine
The perfect book for that California-Cool beach shack. It's also the perfect book to help give you that vibe, even if the ocean is far away and you've never surfed in your life.
Reference Volumes - Personalized
Dictionary.com has nothing on Merriam-Webster. Let's make sure that the next generation still knows how to look up a word in the dictionary the old-fashioned way. These gorgeous colors make it easy to leave the dictionary within reach in a prime spot.
Details by Lili Diallo
Lili Diallo is one of those stylists bloggers have been embracing since first discovering her work, and now we have an inspiring glossy tome full of her projects for reference.
Hue (Limited Edition) by Kelly Wearstler
Interior designer Kelly Wearstler is always a few steps ahead in her designs. So much so, that the first time you see her latest project you might think "what the heck is going on here?" This book captures the inspiration she gets from color, Bravura Modern, geology and, I would hazard, Miami Vice.
The Selby Is in Your Place by Todd Selby, Lesley Arfin
Photographer Todd Selby has put his own stamp on photo styling that has often been imitated and never equaled. He shoots the abodes of artistic people in states of carefully created disarray, which is fresh and keeps these spaces from looking like the same old, same old.
Andy Goldsworthy: Wall
There are a lot of different Andy Goldsworthy books to choose from, but this one —which takes a vernacular and ubiquitous New England built element, the stone wall, and re-imagines it — always inspires me to look at things in a new way.
Cabinet of Natural Curiosities
I can't decide if I'd rather have a nickel for every Tom Ford book I see in a magazine spread or a nickel for every copy of Cabinet of Natural Curiosities. Perhaps we'd earn the most money for every time we see So I Married Adventure on a blog. I wonder if anyone has ever actually read that one? I digress. As for The Cabinet, I like to leave it out and open to a different page each day, so that I can admire all of the beautiful drawings inside.
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More:
Book Tour: Decorate
Book Tour: Salvage Style
Book Tour: Patina Style
Hot Off the Press: Design Sponge at Home