Shelf Life: The 21 Super-Inspiring Books That You Don’t Own But Should
Need some new source material? Well, then let some way-talented, hyper-creative designers guide you toward the best ways to fill your bookshelves. And your coffee table, too. —erica
From Art Forms from the Ocean. Those colors!
Art Forms from the Ocean: The Radiolarian Prints of Ernst Haeckel by Olaf Breidbach
Recommended by: Sophie Monet Okulick of Sophie Monet
“His abstract and delicate watercolors of plant meets animal like structures are jaw dropping…to the point you you’ll have to stop yourself from ripping out the pages to frame them.”
The Big Fat Duck Cookbook by Heston Blumenthal
Recommended by: Rawaan Alkhatib
“The recipes are only there for the extremely ambitious, but the photography, artwork, and thinking are hugely inspirational for other work, both written and visual.”
Islamic Geometric Patterns by Eric Broug
Recommended by: Nettie Kent
“My boyfriend just got back from a work trip to Qatar, and he brought me some amazing textiles and this book, filled with amazing geometric patterns from all over the world—and also grown-up paint-by-numbers instructions for making your own!”
From Baskets and Basket Makers. How happy does that woman look with her creation?!
Baskets and Basket Makers in Southern Appalachia by John Rice Irwin
Recommended by: Phoebe Sung and Peter Buer of Cold Picnic
“We thought at first it was a manual, but it turned out to be way better—a lovely portrait of the area, its residents, and traditions. Some of the baskets are pretty amazing, too—there are even wooden, basket-woven baseball caps!”
Unexpected: 30 Years of Patagonia Catalog Photography by Jane Sievert and Jennifer Ridgeway
Recommended by: Ellen van der Laan of Baggu
“These photos embody a brand that lives its message.”
Crackers by Ed Ruscha
Recommended by: Matt Singer
“The book is a photo-illustrated narrative, originally published in 1969, based on Mason Williams’s text ‘How to Derive the Maximum Enjoyment from Crackers.’ The text begins, ‘Speaking man to man, the most important element in deriving the maximum enjoyment from crackers is the choice of a companion to help you enjoy them. She must be someone whom you admire. A beautiful woman, elegant and accustomed to sophistication, a woman whose company is a challenge to enlist, a woman that’s hard to get.’”
From Good Morning Music. Also: This photo-book-as-wall-art idea is pretty genius!
Good Morning Music by Debbie Carlos
Recommended by: Sarah Fox of Cursive Design
“She has such a beautiful way of capturing everyday moments.”
Cradle to Cradle by Michael Braungart and William McDonough
Recommended by: Annie Williams
“It makes me want to re-think the entire structure of my business to make it more sustainable in practical ways. You can even boil the book down after you read it so it becomes a blank journal for you to use.”
Wayne Thiebaud: A Paintings Retrospective by Steven A. Nash and Adam Gopnik
Recommended by: Kathryn Fortunato of Lizzie Fortunato
“I sleep below a Wayne Thiebaud painting of cakes and love his work.”
From Cabinet of Natural Curiosities. Can we get this printed on postcards?
Cabinet of Natural Curiosities by Albertus Seba
Recommended by: Rachel Albright of Academy Jewelry
“An old friend had this years ago—an illustrator and tattoo artist who used it for reference. I picked out an octopus drawing in it that I’ll one day get tattooed!”
Elegantissima: The Design and Typography of Louise Fili by Louise Fili
Recommended by: Natalie Davis of Canoe
“Louise Fili’s work is rich with history and such attention to detail. She’s built her life around her passions—food, type, Italy, design—and it’s a great reminder to follow your bliss.”
Romantic America by E.O. Hoppe
Recommended by: Susan Domelsmith of Dirty Librarian Chains
“The antique photos from the twenties have a luster to them that creates quite a compelling romantic mystery.”
From Things I Have Learned In My Life So Far—the cover art of eight of the 15 booklets.
Things I Have Learned In My Life So Far by Stephan Sagmeister
Recommended by: Elena Howell of TOMTOM
“It’s different than your average coffee table book. It’s composed of a series of very personal and creatively designed booklets with inspirational musings. It’s almost like self-help book for us design obsessives with short attention spans.”
Art Deco Textiles by Charlotte Samuels
Recommended by: Rachel Rose
“I found it in a used bookstore and can’t stop looking at all the inspirational textiles it documents from as far back as 1910.”
Charlotte Perriand: A Life of Creation by Charlotte Perriand
Recommended by: Lizz Wasserman of Popomomo
“She’s so fascinating— she was an industrial designer primarily and is the main mind behind LeCourbusier’s metal chairs. She negotiated a primarily male world in (at least according to her) a very calm and confident way. She writes as eloquently about her design theories as she does on her thoughts on life and growing old.”
From Whitewash. Black and white and completely amazing.
Whitewash by Nicholas Alan Cope
Recommended by: Erin Wahed of Bande des Quatres
“I recently discovered Nicholas’s work and am heavily inspired by his method of taking three-dimensionality and dissecting it into two-dimensional forms.”
Thomas Ruff: Surfaces, Depths by Catherine Hug
Recommended by: Albert Chu of Otaat
“Aside from the substance of the content, the book as an object is incredible and subversive: the hardcover is library-style and serious while the inside pages are printed on newsprint with rough edges.”
Phyllis Galembo: Maske by Phyllis Galembo
Recommended by: Hillary Taymour of Collina Strada
“The colors and masks are amazing, and it’s shot so beautifully!”
From Future Beauty, playing with proportions.
Future Beauty: 30 Years of Japanese Fashion by Akiko Fukai
Recommended by: Tara St James of Study
“I love it because while it’s an overview of fashion from past collections, it could very well be from present-day or even future collections. The pieces represented are so timeless.”
Gabriel Orozco by Gabriel Orozco
Recommended by: Yuka Izutsu of Atelier Delphine
“This is one of the artists I respect the most. His ideas for his artworks are everyday objects, like the sticks that he finds during his walk, or vintage cars, or soccer balls.”
The Life of a Bowerbird: Creating Beautiful Interiors with the Things You Collect by Sibella Court
Recommended by: Nicole Sutton of Workhorse Jewelry
“I actually found her on Instagram. It was right around the time that this book launched, and I fell in love with her aesthetic and immediately ordered online. She’s all about collected curiosities and ways to creatively display these beloved treasures— and doing it in a seamless way that is stylish, cozy, and chic, not hippie-dippie or museum-esque.”
Need to carry a stack of inspiring books? Might we recommend our Domino Tote by Collina Strada?
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Four Classic Books the La Matera Guys Think You Should Read NOW
There’s some Fitzgerald—but not the one you’re thinking.
La Matera’s founders—Brook and Alex Stroud—were both still in college when they embarked on the South American adventure that sparked their label’s founding. Which means that the belts they make are woven with both traditional Argentine fabrics and intellectual charm (duh). Here, Brook Stroud shares the books that really speak to them. —mattie kahn
The Sun Also Rises
“Out of all the Hemingway books I’ve read, this continues to be my favorite. Hemingway’s crisp and powerful descriptions of the people, places, and revelry that his narrator Jake Barnes experiences makes you feel as if you’re right there with him. From bull fighting in Pamplona, to fly-fishing in the Spanish countryside, to dancing and getting ‘a bit too tight in Parisian cafés, this novel is anything but slow.”
The Killer Angels
“You don’t have to be a Civil War buff to enjoy this novel, but if you are, that’s even cooler. What I like most about this book is how well author Michael Shaara brings to life and humanizes the various leaders of the Union and Confederate armies during the battle of Gettysburg.”
Tender is the Night
“This novel is not as potent and lean as Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, but it presents a powerfully complex and desolate relationship between psychiatrist Dick Diver and his wife-slash-patient Nicole. Fitzgerald’s poetic descriptions and the details of his writing make you want to stop and reread many paragraphs.”
Into Thin Air
“When long-time mountaineering journalist Jon Krakauer’s joined an expedition to Everest in 1996, he had no idea what horrible disaster would take place on the final push for the summit. This is a thoughtful and riveting story about the physical and mental perils of high-altitude climbing, the power of nature, and human will.”
See the belt the La Matera guys made for us—an updated classic.
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Of a Kind
This getup from the Tucker fall collection deserves a page in the Gypset Style book. —erica
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The Insider: Ruth Baron
Ruth Baron has not one but two romantic-comedy-worthy jobs: Oprah.com editor and young-adult author. Her YA thriller Defriended drops next week—pre-order it now for $9, a.k.a., the cost of a latte in 2015. She’s also one of those girls who just knows everything cool (and, ok, weird!) a good six months before you do—if that doesn’t make you want to read on, we don’t know what will. —carlye wisel
Q: What’s the scariest or most bizarre thing that’s ever happened to you on the internet?
A: I am currently getting several Snapchats a week from these three teenage girls I don’t know. They have usernames with words like luv and lol in them, and I have no idea whether they know each other or if they think they’re Snapchatting one of their friends when they send me stuff. The ones I’ve viewed have all been totally G-rated. But there are 27 unopened photos on my phone, and I live in fear that I am going to wind up in jail because of them.
Q: If you could iChat with anyone from the dead, who would you pick and what would you talk about?
A: I’ve been wanting to write a story that takes place partly in a shtetl, and the research is really intimidating. If I could IM one of my great-great-grandmothers when she was 15, I would ask her about where she gets her cabbage and what her house looks like and who she has a crush on. And she would be like, “Uh, you can look at videos of wild creatures I’ve never even imagined before on this magical box. Are you seriously trying to have a conversation about cabbage right now?? And also what is a video? TTYL.”
Q: What’s the last thing you read that really amazed you?
A: The Orphan Master’s Son knocked my socks off, but I can’t recommend it without also recommending this incredible Catherine Chung essay on why some of the things that I found so imaginative and compelling about it are also kinda racist. I still think the story is brilliant and worth reading, but with some awareness that it’s just as much about American ideology as it is about North Korean oppression.
Q: Do you own any Of a Kind editions?
A: Lots! The ones in heaviest rotation right now are the Mociun black diamond circle earrings, which were a gift from my parents, the Erica Weiner leopard lariat necklace, which was a gift from my brother, and the Cardigan by Lynne Hiriak Charlie sweater, which I bought for myself because I do what I want. My sentimental favorite is the Mandy Coon Ernie bunny bag both because it was their first edition and because I used to bunny-sit for the Ernie it was named after, may he rest in peace.
Q: What’s the most embarrassing thing on your bookshelf?
A: I moved about a year ago and got rid of a lot of junk I didn’t love. The best find was a self-help book called Succulent Wild Woman that had fallen behind a radiator. An old roommate who is still super into self-help had given it to me, and I probably shouldn’t make fun of it because who’s to say that all my problems wouldn’t be solved if only I were more succulent and wild?
Q: You have $200 and two hours off of work. What’s your game plan?
A: Helicopter tour! Getting my pilot’s license is in my five-year plan, but I’ve never flown in a helicopter. It’s crazy-expensive, which I don’t mind in theory, but it’s hard to hand over $150 to fight a tourist for a window seat and then only get 15 minutes in the air. That said, I have no problem spending $150 of *your* money that way. I’d probably blow the other $50 on candy at Duane Reade.
Q: What’s the best thing you’ve ever gotten to write about?
A: Even though the six months I was working on Defriended were really rough due to crazy deadlines and being hilariously inexperienced, it is hands down the most fun I’ve ever had writing. Fiction is cool because you get to decide what you write about, so if Facebook murder mysteries are your thing, then nobody stops you from writing a Facebook murder mystery.
Get to know more of our favorite people on the PLANET here!
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Noah Guy Shares the Best Places to Bike to in All of San Fran
The spots you’ve gotta hit on a pair of wheels.
For Noah Guy, traveling through the streets of San Fransisco on his custom eighties bicycle—American-made, just like his bags for Joshu+Vela—is oh-so-much better than driving his truck. And that’s only partially because of his bike’s rad graphics. For Noah, an ideal trip starts out in the Mission and ends up at the coast—with the stops below on the way. —carrie neill
Adobe Bookshop
“I’d start out at Adobe Books at the corner of 16th and Valencia. It’s an independent bookstore, a sort of San Fran institution, and it’s struggling to stay alive. It shows a more relaxed side of the city—they have punk concerts, poetry readings, and art shows in the back. It’s kind of a relic of the pre-money age.”
(3166 16th St.)
The Wiggle to the Conservatory of Flowers
“Then I’d take the Wiggle—SF’s mile-long, zigzagging bike route—into Golden Gate Park, and check out the Conservatory of Flowers. They’ve recently painted bike lines and bike symbols on the roads. It seems like there are more bikers in San Francisco per capita than anywhere else.”
(Conservatory: 100 John F. Kennedy Dr.; conservatoryofflowers.org)
Happy Bakery to de Young Museum
“At Happy Bakery, just south of the park at 24th and Irving, you can get the best vegetarian steamed rice buns. I’d grab a couple of those and then head to the de Young museum, which is a really interesting building. I saw the Vivienne Westwood exhibit there a few years ago. It was cool to look at the things she was doing right out of art school, when she was just making things with her buddies, and to think that years later, those pieces ended up in a museum.”
(Bakery: 2253 Irving St.; Museum: 50 Hagiwara Tea Garden Dr.; deyoung.famsf.org)
Trouble Coffee Company to Ocean Beach
“After that, I’d head out to Ocean Beach, stopping for some cinnamon toast from Trouble Coffee. The surf at the beach is a bit rough, so the surfers there are really good. It’s a very relaxing place—a real stress-reliever.”
(Coffee: 4033 Judah St.; troublecoffee.com)
Score Noah’s adventure-ready edition: A sturdy, so-cool denim weekender.
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Inspirationale: Lia Cinquegrano Learns From Brooklyn’s Finest
Lia Cinquegrano of Thomas IV is the kind of gal who solved the problem of finding the perfect bag by developing her own line—so it makes total sense that she’d turn to fellow hustler and Brooklynite Jay-Z to fuel her creative fire. More on that below. —keely thomas-menter 
“Jay-Z has been an inspiration to me since I rented my first studio. I would go there at night to work on my bags and play only Jay-Z. His lyrics motivate me. One of my favorites: “Far from a Harvard student / Just had the balls to do it.” I say that in my head a lot. My most recent moment of Jay-Z inspiration came from reading Empire State of Mind: How Jay-Z Went from Street Corner to Corner Office by Zack O’Malley Greenburg. It links together many people and events that helped Jay-Z become a lifestyle brand—a man who describes himself not as a businessman, but as a business, man!” —lia cinquegrano
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The Insider: Maris Kreizman
Bookworm as a compliment? You betcha. Our girl Maris Kreizman masterfully mashes up your favorite TV habits with literary goodness on her epic Tumblr, Slaughterhouse 90210—if you aren’t following it already, what in god’s name have you been doing?! Here, what she’s contemplating when she’s not pairing The Voice with Philip Roth and Gilmore Girls with P.G. Wodehouse. —carlye wisel
Q: What’s the worst thing you’ve ever worn?
A: There’s a photo of me all dressed up for middle school orientation. I’m wearing Z. Cavaricci-esque jeans rolled up with a denim button-down on top and white socks rolled with scuffed Keds. I have my hair in a side ponytail using my best scrunchie (black-and-white striped), and my mom had helped me tease up my bangs to great heights. It was terrible and glorious—I’m from New Jersey.
Q: What’s the most embarrassing thing on your bookshelf?
A: I love books, all kinds of books, and I don’t embarrass easily. But I will say that Stop Being a Hater and Learn to Love the O.C. is rather preposterous. (But still, Seth & Summer 4eva.) The author of that preposterous book went on to write one of the smartest books about TV I’ve ever read: The Revolution Was Televised.
Q: If you could go on a cross-country road trip with three people, dead or alive, who would you pick?
A: Let’s make it an all-ladies road trip: I want Hillary Clinton driving, Nina Simone DJing, and Dorothy Parker cracking jokes.
Q: What’s one TED talk that doesn’t exist yet that you wish you could watch?
A: “Danson: A Television Journey from Cheers to Damages and Beyond.”
Q: What’s the best thing you’ve ever gotten to write about?
A: I love doing the best books of the year post for Slaughterhouse 90210. It’s where I get to evaluate my year in reading and do a lot of gushing. This past year, I got to gush over some of my friends’ books, some big-buzz books, some quieter ones, and also Ke$ha. I love gushing about Ke$ha.
Q: Favorite Of a Kind edition at the moment?
A: I’m eyeing the Gatsby necklace to wear for Slaughterhouse 90210’s fourth anniversary party at Housing Works.
Q: What website can you absolutely not live without?
A: Vol. 1 Brooklyn is my favorite literary/cultural site around. It manages to be super smart without ever being stuffy, serious without forgetting to have a sense of humor.
Q: What’s the most interesting thing you’ve ever made with your own two hands?
A: I’m pretty proud of my “The Many Ties of Adam Scott” Pinterest board. Does that count?
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Of a Kind
Get a load of this big, bad bandana print jacket, by Laveer. Can’t you just see it with a surfboard (and, ok, maybe a puka-shell necklace)? —erica
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Of a Kind
It probably says something about me that this flannel Mary Meyer dress is reminding me—a lot—of the cover of Marcus Samelsson’s memoir Yes, Chef. —erica
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Gifted Program: Victorian All the Way
What do we think you should gift this season? Something Of a Kind—I mean, OBVIOUSLY. If you’re looking to double-down on the special, we’ve conjured up some stellar present pairings—our “Gifted Program,” if you will—that we’ll be serving up over the next couple weeks. (And ok, fine, if this doesn’t satiate you, we have a slew of ideas up in our Pinterest, too.) —erica
The pairing: The mad-cool Victorian Governess Cuff that Tirana Jewelry made us ($130) + Wuthering Heights, Middlemarch, Great Expectations, or any of the other Victorian-era classics that Penguin packaged up so nicely ($22)
