Following my post on International Colour and Furnishings Trends 2017 and the Dulux Colour Forecast 2017, I would like to share a couple of cool interior design and decorating books. They are both published by Callwey, a leading German publisher for architectural, landscape and interior design, and lifestyle books.

Best of Interior

Best of Interior – Wohnideen aus dem wahren Leben is an interior design blogger book showcasing interior design ideas and trends from 15 prominent international bloggers. Unfortunately, Best of Interior is only available in German (EUR 29,95) but, as images say more than a thousand words, it’s worth having a look. You can get a glimpse into the book on Gudy’s blog Eclectic Trends. In the book, home decorators and lovers of beautiful stuff will find a plethora of interior design and decorating ideas – easy to replicate for your own home without breaking the bank. Passion, creativity, and authenticity are the only things required to make your home unique.

Trends from interior blogs and more
There are tips for furniture choices, accessories, wall decoration, and colour schemes categorised under the different rooms: kitchen, bathroom, living and dining, office, and bedrooms. Complementing the trends from interior blogs, you will also find a choice of eight Instagram accounts to watch, one of which is TheHangingPlants.

The judges for this idea book about the digital design scene were the German trend forecaster Gudy Herder (www.eclectictrends.com), design blogger Igor Josifovic (happyinteriorblog.com) and German blogger Ricarda Nieswandt (23qmstil.blogspot.de).

They also chose three winners in the following categories: Best Interior Blog, Best Creative Idea, and Best Individual Style. You might want to check out their blogs:

Best Interior Blog for Jules from Herz&Blut,
Best Creative Idea for Eva from Waldfriedenstate, and
Best Individual Style for Holly’s blog Avenue Lifestyle.

Additionally, the judges added a chapter with an exclusive trend report for the upcoming year including the trend for greenery and vertical gardens in our homes. Read my blog International Colour and Furnishings Trends 2017 for more on the popularity of the colour green and how to incorporate the ‘green trend’ in our homes.

Which leads me to the next book tip:

Urban Jungle

Urban Jungle is a treasure chest of ‘green’ ideas and inspiration for DIY decorators how to introduce plants into our rooms and make our homes greener. The book leads the reader through five European apartments demonstrating how you can creatively and artistically embellish your abode by adding beautiful plants. As apartment living becomes more and more popular in Australia, this might be a good read.

Step-by-step instructions
DIY instructions and tips how to look after your plants complement the apartment showcase. The authors explain step-by-step how to install hanging plants, build a stylish plant stand or recreate a terrarium.

Portraits of popular indoor plants
Additionally, budding indoor gardeners will find an overview with portraits of the ten most popular indoor plants. Overall, the authors not only wanted to inspire plant lovers but also demonstrate to everyone looking to make their home greener how to go about it – even without a green thumb.

If you love plants but are still hesitating to introduce them into your house or apartment because you don’t know where to start, add this book to your ‘Must-Read’ list (hint: Christmas is coming up in three months).

According to the authors, the book is the result of three years of research in the Urban Jungle Bloggers community www.urbanjunglebloggers.com and a comprehensive collection of ‘combined green creativity’. Luckily, Urban Jungle is also available in English (EUR 29,95).