Bookshelf: Elements of Style

These three new interior design books look so gorgeous and lavish and stylish, they are sure to provide home decor inspiration!

The Four Elements of Design: Interiors Inspired By Earth, Water, Air and Fire

Interior designer Vicente Wolf has very classic taste and in this book he turns to the classic elements of earth, water, air, and fire as a basis for home decor.

For example, Earth inspires interiors featuring natural materials such as wood and stone. Fire revels in dramatic reds and Air creates a light and open atmosphere. I'm guessing the image on the front cover is Air, don't you think? Lots of luminous white and shiny surfaces, accents of transparency and reflection. I don't know how we'd keep this room so pristine bearing in mind our brood of 8 cats and dogs, but it sure is pretty to look at!

Beautiful: All-American Decorating and Timeless Style

Interior designer Mark D. Sikes celebrates American style in all its classic and eclectic glory. Sikes offers suggestions for all kind of looks, from bright and breezy "Blue and White Forever" casual spaces to "Timeless Neutrals" -- semiformal rooms adorned with French chairs, chinoiserie, gilt, glass, mirrors, and banquettes.  It really is America the Beautiful!

Film director Nancy Meyers wrote the book's foreword, saying that Sikes shows "how classic can look fresh, how style and comfort go hand-in-hand." That's what we like!

Around That Time: Horst at Home in Vogue

This book looks so incredibly glamorous, and it's not surprising. Horst P. Horst was a top fashion photographer for Vogue and when he turned his lens on some of the world's most stunning homes, his chic-o-meter was just as strong! From the 1960s through the 1980s,  he created opulent images of the homes of the world's movers and shakers. Essays by Valentine Lawford give further insight into the houses and the people who lived in them.

Horst is famous for saying: "Fashion is an expression of the times. Elegance is something else again." Perfect and timeless!

I feel like I ought to be wearing a cocktail hat and a designer outfit just to open the cover of Horst's book. But shh... it will be a lovely guilty pleasure to read it curled up on the sofa in  my Elvis pajamas!