Pearse

Imagine living in the bustling, densely populated inner city suburbs of a cosmopolitan city. Imagine living in a home that sits on a very small piece of land. Overlooked by neighbours. Imagine living in a private oasis with walls that slide away and blur the boundaries between inside and out. Where you can literally reach out and touch the foliage, dip your toes in the pond. Imagine a secret garden in Birchgrove in Sydney. Love this home by Pearse. There is even more to love after the jump including a couple of sexy staircases and books, oh books!.

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A couple of cute books

I was sent a couple of cute books recently to review and I thought I'd share them with you today. First up is "Markets of New England" by blogger and photographer Christine Chitnis, a book that makes me want to hop in my car and drive south to check out all the cool markets featured in the book. Farmers' and craft markets are on the agenda in Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut. 'Markets of New England' leads you to the local delicacies, the most interesting purveyors, the products of community supported farms and fisheries, the standout crafts and artwork, and provides all the details you need to know, including off-season schedules. The food and crafts are filled with local flavor, the settings pure New England, and the itineraries provide enough delights to fill an endless summer. It's an adorable little book with an even more adorable cover, and definitively a handy book if you're interested in doing a tour of the New England market scene. (You can buy the book on Amazon here, and check out Christine's blog here and book details here and here).

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Design*Sponge at Home

If there is one book I've been dying to get my hands on it's Grace Bonney's Design*Sponge at Home. Well the wait is over! It's finally here. This step-by-step guide will help you hone the skills to create your dream home. This is no "let"s admire the pretty pictures" book (although from these sneak peeks Grace has sent Desire to Inspire there is certainly lots of luscious room porn on offer. Just the way we like it).

Sneak peeks to DIY projects and basics, flower workshop to before & afters. It's all here and I'm so excited. You can find it on Booktopia (AUS),  Amazon.ca and Chapters/Indigo (Canada), Amazon.com (US), Amazon.co.uk (UK) or pop over to Design*Sponge. Congratulations to Grace and her team!

Book review - New York Rooftop Gardens

I heard about the book New York Rooftop Gardens and I had to get my hands on a copy. I find New York very intriguing, and I hope to one day finally make a point of visiting (and shopping!!!). I've lived in Ottawa all my life and despite it being the capital city of Canada, it's relatively small (likely a population of close to 1 million). And I am able to afford a house a 25 minute walk from the downtown core, with a yard, driveway and all that good stuff. It's a pretty strange concept to me that there are people who live in the heart of New York City who pay a fortunate to live in VERY small spaces. Some people are fortune enough to have rooftop access and the ability to create outdoor oases as a retreat from the bustle (the hard-edges, lack of greenery) of the city. The juxtaposition of the landscape of these gardens with the views of skyscrapers and rooftops is truly incredible. The book New York Rooftop Gardens takes you on a journey to several magical rooftop gardens, each one more inspiring than the next. This is a fantastic coffee table book and if you are as intrigued as I am I suggest you get yourself a copy. If you're from the US or Canada you can buy it HERE.

© New York Rooftop Gardens - Photographs by Charles de Vaivre, published by teNeues; Photo © 2011 Charles de Vaivre. All rights reserved

I had to snap a couple photos of some of my favourite images...

Totally off topic: Our blogger friend Manvi of Mochatini is having her first ever tablescape design camp. The first event is on June 29 in Washington D.C. at the Mitchell Gold + Bob Williams store on 14th Street in Logan Circle. If you are in the DC/MD/VA area and want to partake hurry because space is limited. You can register HERE.

Book review - The Happy Home Project

I got my hands on a new book the other day called The Happy Home Project by Jean Nayar (from Filipacchi Publishing). It just came out this month and it is along the same lines as Meghan's book that I reviewed last week (here) - it is essentially a guide to decorating your home. With chapters on style, sustainability, spirit, substance, renovation and decorating plus a helpful resource section, it is full of advice on how to achieve the spaces you are after with expert advice from architects, designers, organizing specialists and contractors. With a special emphasis on living harmoniously with nature, The Happy Home Project also explores some of the more subtle ways one can turn a house into a home. I am all about incorporating nature into my home so this book is up my alley (and I need all the guidance I can get to make it through my upcoming home renovations/additions), and has lots of photos of beautiful spaces. Some that I love are below.