Interior design books are one of my guilty pleasures. I love to look at pictures of gorgeous rooms and imagine how I might use the ideas in my own space. One of my favorite interior design books is Living with What You Love: Decorating with Family Photos, Cherished Heirlooms, and Collectibles by Monica Rich Kosann.
As a proud mom with a ton of family photos and miscellaneous knick knacks, I appreciate Kosann’s belief that we should keep the things we love on display in our home instead of hiding them in dusty albums or shoving them in hallway closets.
The photography in this book is gorgeous, so it’s a lovely title to leave out just as a coffee table book. I kept my copy on my nightstand for a few months while I was brainstorming ways to redecorate my office.
Kosann’s style is very elegant and sophisticated. Some of her tips aren’t really practical if you have toddlers or pets, but everyone should be able to find at least a few good ideas for creating a living space decorated with personally meaningful objects.
For example, she has a section with tips on finding cool vintage frames to use to make a photo collage on a hallway wall and suggestions for how to make the pictures “flow” together into a visually pleasing composition.
Another one of her ideas I loved was to make a family tree wall arrangement using portraits of various generations of family members all taken when they were about the same age.
Have you read Living with What You Love? If so, what did you think?
Photo credit: MRK Style
