Home decor tips for the long haul

Design experts say a surprising number of them have stood the test of time.

This article is part of our special Design section on new interpretations of ancient design styles.

In 1868, designer Charles Eastlake published " Hints on Household Taste,” a popular guide to home furnishing. the tasteful home, from the street to the crockery cupboard and all the rooms in between.

In its introduction, rather than adopting a supportive tone, he berates the reader. “When did people first embrace the monstrous notion that the 'latest model' had to be the best? Does good taste evolve so rapidly that each cup that emerges from the hands of the potter surpasses in form the last he molded?

"He blames the housewife," Jennifer said. Kaufmann-Buhler, author of "Open Plan: A Design History of the American Office" and associate professor at Purdue University. The message is: "Women have terrible taste and we need to correct them," Professor Kaufmann-Buhler said, adding that she makes a "very vivid reading" of the passage for her students, "annotating it in real time in a specific format. exaggerated British accent.

Despite Mr. Eastlake's apparent disdain for the mess-crazed housewives of the Victorian era, his "Advice" provided a model for 150 years of house books. Every season brings up more how-to books on home tastes, from glossy inspiration books suitable for a coffee table to graphic-heavy how-to guides with immaculate closet diagrams and DIY formulas. . cleaning products.

But which ones do design experts say have stood the test of time? Mr. Eastlake may have had the wrong attitude, but his streamlined furniture, with its incised details, still looks punchy to the contemporary eye. And his fundamental question: is the latest always the best? - could apply just as well to books on home design as it does to the way we furnish these spaces.

Among the classics, Professor Kaufmann-Buhler singled out the work of Mary and Russel Wright. "Guide to Easier Living" (1950) as "a historical book".

"It attempts to invite the American family to rethink what home is supposed to be , to ditch the idea of ​​Emily Post's house and find something more relaxed, more comfortable and more appropriate,” she said.

Russel Wright was a famous post-war industrial designer, and many of his products reflect this relaxation of standards; its American Modern dinnerware line is chunky and colorful, with plenty of serving pieces that can go from kitchen to table. Mr. Wright's home, Dragon Rock (1958), in Garrison, New York, was designed to blend the interior and exterior, natural materials and new plastics. There was an open kitchen and a Saarinen tulip table perched on a flagstone floor. The book's illustrations reflect this new style, while also offering space planning tips and Home Edit-worthy closet diagrams.

Another resource beloved, “The House Book” by Terence Conran. (1974), offers an update to the Wrights' guide, with more photographs and more 1970s bluster. recipe for your home. The vibe is very "do what you feel like" — because, says Conran, that's how you develop your taste. The images are endlessly attractive, with lots of plants and people, and sometimes bare buttocks. »

In "The House Book", readers will find a section on choosing furniture. for dining, whether they want a high table or a Roman-style recliner. The discussion of the bedroom includes the "software", i.e. the bedding. There's even a chapter about living in one room, which is rare for a genre that tends to take on both big budgets and families with kids.