An interior-decorating book that includes advice like this is certainly worth browsing through for tips, ideas and inspo on every page. And “Be Your Own Decorator,” (Rizzoli, $45), the latest go-to guide from interior design guru Susanna Salk is an impressive, comprehensive and eye-catching new addition to explore this month.
I’m looking forward to finishing flipping through the coffee table book tonight – having just picked it up this afternoon at Salk’s book signing held at C. Wonder at The Westchester. By now, WAG readers should be familiar with entrepreneur Chris Burch’s bright, pop-py retail “wonder”-land since he made for a stellar February cover boy, but I was eager to check in on new merchandise (Mother’s Day is just around the corner…), get Susanna’s take on the C. Wonder phenom and gauge audience reaction from customers. The store seems to still be making fans everyday like newbie Alicia Morton-Coates, of Yonkers, who loved the store’s sleek (and cheap) eyewear!
At her book signing, Susanna also decorated two model settings – a dinner table and a home office – exclusively using C. Wonder merchandise. She was inspired to mix and match blue-and-white-printed plate-ware and Asian dragon accents at the dinner table and favors a clutter-free look at the home office that shows off personality in a cleaner way (she loves using oversized trays to organize and accent).
Susanna offered fun tips today with suggestions that include:
“Don’t be afraid of wallpaper” (and if you are, try it on just one section of your wall).
“I just painted my bathroom black…. and got a great, glamorous mirror” (think out of the white-bathroom-box).
Seasonal flowers are a must-have.
If you find a set of glasses you love, buy a ton – they serve a double purpose as matching flower-holders at your table.
Sometimes it’s okay to fake it – her client featured antique animal prints against colorful, printed wallpaper but Susanna loves C. Wonder’s faux-vintage framed animal prints ($58) - http://www.cwonder.com/home-decor/shop-by-category/decorative-accents/wall-art/framed-rhino-print-1.html .
Susanna has established her décor expert credentials – she grew up in Essex, Massachusetts, migrated to the Big Apple to help launch Elle Decor, and worked as House and Garden Magazine’s Special Projects Editor until the publication’s closing, and today she can be seen regularly offering style tips on NBC’s “Today Show” and on 1stdibs.com and ivillage.com. You may also know Susanna from her previous works – Assouline’s “A Privileged Life, Celebrating WASP Style” (what a name to add to the shelf!) and Rizzoli’s “Weekend Retreats,” bestseller “Room for Children: Stylish Spaces for Sleep and Play,” and “Home Sweet Home.”
Yet “Be Your Own Decorator” offers a fresh, sophisticated and witty approach to decorating the home and is filled with style advice from fellow tastemakers including Bunny Williams, Kelly Wearstler, John Derian and Amy Lau.
It’s cute, it’s chic and it’s just a little bit cheeky.
“Be Your Own Decorator: Taking Inspiration and Cues from Today’s Top Designers” by Susanna Salk (Rizzoli, $45).
Find your favorites and ‘be your own decorator’ at www.cwonder.com .
Latest Comments