I’m frequently asked what my go-to gifts are for housewarming, hosting or the Holidays and my answer is always: a book. Specifically, a coffee table book.
Coffee table books are interesting conversation starters and offer a glimpse into a person’s many areas of interest. Visually, coffee table books are appealing in stacks around the home, or decoratively displayed on book stands in groups, or individually – cracked open to a favorite page. Books are inviting!
Decorating with stacks of coffee table books makes a beautiful statement in any space. Coffee table books can take a long time to accumulate because they can be expensive. There are many hacks to budget-friendly coffee book acquisition en masse – one I’m very fond of is buying them secondhand at the Goodwill, the local thrift or estate sales. But purchasing brand new coffee table books for ourselves can quickly fall pretty low on the shopping list especially if we’ve just moved into a new space.
This is why I always suggest a coffee table book as my favorite gift to give – regardless of the occasion. They are a total treat to receive! Some of my favorite gifts we’ve received are coffee table books. I remember who gave them to me, and the occasion – which in and of itself is a gift to recall a memory and think of someone special.
My top two pro-tips to coffee table book gifting, and purchasing for yourself, are:
1. Be sure to blend in unique, possibly out-of-print books with the new ones. No one wants their spaces to look exactly like everyone else’s and this includes what books cover our coffee tables. We can’t all have the same ones!
2. Think of coffee table books more in the realm conversation starters and interest, rather than selecting all books with a common theme. Our goal should be that a variety of people will find one or more of these books interesting. They should all make sense to you, but the best use of coffee table books is when anyone gathering around it can find something of interest. For example, we have an assortment of historical books, architecture, agriculture, advertising, antiquities and fashion.
I have my favorites that I’ve purchased, but I also have the favorites because I can think of people in my life who will be drawn to some of these books specifically and become inspired and spark conversation while in our home.
Books can bring all kinds of backgrounds and interests together. Give the gift of a coffee table book to help someone develop their own collection for their home!
Here are some of our favorites!
- Architecture in the 20th Century
- Avedon Advertising: A Photographic History
- Ranchland: Wagonhound
- West: The American Cowboy
- American Cowboys
- Architectural Digest at 100: A Century of Style
- Slim Aarons: The Essential Collection
- Slim Aarons: Once Upon A Time
- Vogue on Location: People, Places, Portraits
- All-American Ads of the 90s
- Ralph Lauren A Way of Living: Home, Design, Inspiration
