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The Stuff of Life
In her gorgeous new book, sought-after interiors stylist Hilary Robertson reveals a multitude of different ways to style and display the ‘stuff of life’ – the flotsam and jetsam of possessions, from pictures and ornaments to hats and bicycles, that we all gradually accumulate during the course of time.
In her gorgeous new book, sought-after interiors stylist Hilary Robertson reveals a multitude of different ways to style and display the “stuff of life”—the flotsam and jetsam of possessions that we all slowly acquire. In the first chapter, How to Arrange your Stuff, Hilary identifies and illustrates four different approaches to arrangements and shows how each one can be achieved. She also considers the variety of display locations available within the home – blank walls, mantelpieces, windowsills, chests of drawers, tabletops – and suggests how to make the most of them. Next, in Stories told by Real Homes, Hilary shares inspiration from real-life interiors that fall into five different styles—Neatnik, Bohemian, Naturalist, Sculpture Vulture, and Noble Salvage. Some people are magpies—they love stuff; finding, collecting, and displaying it, while their opposite, the minimalists, are on a mission to contain it or tame it.The ideas in this book are sure to appeal to both magpies and minimalists and everyone in between.
In her gorgeous new book, sought-after interiors stylist Hilary Robertson reveals a multitude of different ways to style and display the “stuff of life”—the flotsam and jetsam of possessions that we all slowly acquire. In the first chapter, How to Arrange your Stuff, Hilary identifies and illustrates four different approaches to arrangements and shows how each one can be achieved. She also considers the variety of display locations available within the home – blank walls, mantelpieces, windowsills, chests of drawers, tabletops – and suggests how to make the most of them. Next, in Stories told by Real Homes, Hilary shares inspiration from real-life interiors that fall into five different styles—Neatnik, Bohemian, Naturalist, Sculpture Vulture, and Noble Salvage. Some people are magpies—they love stuff; finding, collecting, and displaying it, while their opposite, the minimalists, are on a mission to contain it or tame it.The ideas in this book are sure to appeal to both magpies and minimalists and everyone in between.
224 pages, Hardcover
First published April 1, 2014
51 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
January 11, 2018
A muted still life of a bowl of fruit hangs on a blue-gray wall behind a distressed marble table on which are arranged a stack of plates, some driftwood, and an antelope skull, all shades of off-white. In the foreground, a single green pear gives a single dash of strong color.
I always wonder, when I see these arrangements, if the people have to keep buying those pears.
I also wonder, who wants their flat surfaces all cluttered up with decorative arrangements? People who don't cook, when it comes to kitchens. People who have cleaning staff, maybe, who can drop their shopping bags and stacks of books and worn coats on the floor for someone else to pick up while they're out hunting flea markets for art deco furniture or ironic paste jewelry or creepy broken dolls. Maybe just people who aren't home very much and enjoy admiring their dwelling as a total art object for that one hour before bed or in the morning as they wait for their vintage coffee makers to finish percolating. or dripping or steaming.
I probably shouldn't have gotten my hopes up; books like this always promise they are doing something new and different (why else would people buy them, after all) but in fact do the same thing as a slew of other design books.
True, this particular book does focus more on arranging (styling, it is called here) objects together on surfaces rather than, say, choosing paint colors to suit your furniture, but it certainly doesn't do anything revolutionary. In fact, it seems fairly limited in scope. Roberston like a narrow palate: blue-gray, off white, black. She likes driftwood and weathered skulls of ungulates, off-white china and clear glass bottles, heavy old jewelry that isn't brightly colored. She displays old brushes and palettes and other art materials in a manner that makes it look as if she used them, although she admits she doesn't (I'm probably over-reading, but this seemed entirely emblematic of the vacuity of possession-styling as a field).
Most of her clients, based on the selection listed, seem to be in art and design fields themselves, so I don't know why they needed help sorting their possessions. I certainly don't need to be encouraged to load up on decorative junk from antique shops. What I was hoping for, I'm not sure: helpful DIY tips on making displays, or perhaps just inspiration. I certainly didn't need to be repeatedly told to group items of like colors together. Duh?
There are a few semi-practical suggestions here and there:
-Use shelving to make a patio or garden area into a room that is furnished like an interior. I like this as an idea, but it is only nice until the first wet day, or until the wind blows dust and dead insects all over your things.
-Use a ladder propped against a wall to hang coats and umbrellas.
-Use a suspended ladder in place of an overhead rack for hanging pots and pans. I guess if you already had an extra ladder this would save buying a rack, although I doubt money is a major consideration for most of her clients.
Sometimes I arrange items like this. If I like how they look, I take a photo. Then I put them away again because they are in the way. (Some of the clients mention having children; maybe they have nurseries as well, and nannies to keep them from messing about the house.) I would certainly never put all my books spine-in to create the off-white palate she seems to love.
I found the photographs slightly more interesting than the average home-design book, but overall to same-same and too dim and dark. Homes are for doing things in -- reading, cooking, playing board games, whatever -- they are not oil paintings or set pieces of for modernist stage productions. You have live in them, as well as with.
I always wonder, when I see these arrangements, if the people have to keep buying those pears.
I also wonder, who wants their flat surfaces all cluttered up with decorative arrangements? People who don't cook, when it comes to kitchens. People who have cleaning staff, maybe, who can drop their shopping bags and stacks of books and worn coats on the floor for someone else to pick up while they're out hunting flea markets for art deco furniture or ironic paste jewelry or creepy broken dolls. Maybe just people who aren't home very much and enjoy admiring their dwelling as a total art object for that one hour before bed or in the morning as they wait for their vintage coffee makers to finish percolating. or dripping or steaming.
I probably shouldn't have gotten my hopes up; books like this always promise they are doing something new and different (why else would people buy them, after all) but in fact do the same thing as a slew of other design books.
True, this particular book does focus more on arranging (styling, it is called here) objects together on surfaces rather than, say, choosing paint colors to suit your furniture, but it certainly doesn't do anything revolutionary. In fact, it seems fairly limited in scope. Roberston like a narrow palate: blue-gray, off white, black. She likes driftwood and weathered skulls of ungulates, off-white china and clear glass bottles, heavy old jewelry that isn't brightly colored. She displays old brushes and palettes and other art materials in a manner that makes it look as if she used them, although she admits she doesn't (I'm probably over-reading, but this seemed entirely emblematic of the vacuity of possession-styling as a field).
Most of her clients, based on the selection listed, seem to be in art and design fields themselves, so I don't know why they needed help sorting their possessions. I certainly don't need to be encouraged to load up on decorative junk from antique shops. What I was hoping for, I'm not sure: helpful DIY tips on making displays, or perhaps just inspiration. I certainly didn't need to be repeatedly told to group items of like colors together. Duh?
There are a few semi-practical suggestions here and there:
-Use shelving to make a patio or garden area into a room that is furnished like an interior. I like this as an idea, but it is only nice until the first wet day, or until the wind blows dust and dead insects all over your things.
-Use a ladder propped against a wall to hang coats and umbrellas.
-Use a suspended ladder in place of an overhead rack for hanging pots and pans. I guess if you already had an extra ladder this would save buying a rack, although I doubt money is a major consideration for most of her clients.
Sometimes I arrange items like this. If I like how they look, I take a photo. Then I put them away again because they are in the way. (Some of the clients mention having children; maybe they have nurseries as well, and nannies to keep them from messing about the house.) I would certainly never put all my books spine-in to create the off-white palate she seems to love.
I found the photographs slightly more interesting than the average home-design book, but overall to same-same and too dim and dark. Homes are for doing things in -- reading, cooking, playing board games, whatever -- they are not oil paintings or set pieces of for modernist stage productions. You have live in them, as well as with.
December 22, 2017
Wandering between 3.5 and 4 stars...
This is about one thing that homes have - the creative ways to style and display your collections and possessions (mostly the former). If you ever read the Living Etc. magazine, this is similar to its style, though more shadowy. The book first talks about different ways to arrange, then different ways people go with this (including the author), and then some addresses in the end (UK, US and a few European ones - not a big list).
First thing that came in mind was: how do they keep these things dust-free? *lol* It's also clear that many of the people can easily afford their things, but I'm certain that even us who don't have much money and rely partly on found-objects stuff can find ideas and things to inspire in this book. Even the minimalists can find something here. It's a coffee table book, but I think that's necessary because of darkness of some places needs bigger pages. Not necessarily an essential book, but not bad to have.
This is about one thing that homes have - the creative ways to style and display your collections and possessions (mostly the former). If you ever read the Living Etc. magazine, this is similar to its style, though more shadowy. The book first talks about different ways to arrange, then different ways people go with this (including the author), and then some addresses in the end (UK, US and a few European ones - not a big list).
First thing that came in mind was: how do they keep these things dust-free? *lol* It's also clear that many of the people can easily afford their things, but I'm certain that even us who don't have much money and rely partly on found-objects stuff can find ideas and things to inspire in this book. Even the minimalists can find something here. It's a coffee table book, but I think that's necessary because of darkness of some places needs bigger pages. Not necessarily an essential book, but not bad to have.
December 28, 2020
I love this book. The moody interiors, and all of that stuff. I'm not a minimalist for sure and neither are most of the homeowners in this book. Most of them are collectors as am I. Decorator porn at its finest. As a couple of other reviewers mentioned Hilary Robertson's own home is delightful. I fell in love with her pink linen couch and generally I am not a fan of pink used in home decor. But it is a delicate shell pink and fits in with her collection of shells and corals. Just lovely.
March 11, 2016
Relyn Rating: 3.5 stars
This is a gorgeous, well-done book. No doubt about it. It leans toward the busy and full-of-stuff look. I would call it, well curated clutter. I enjoyed reading about styling from such a reknown stylist, however, I got bogged down in the reading pretty quickly and moved on to skimming and image enjoying. My favorite house by far was Hilary Robertson's. The words and images of her home alone is worth the price of the book.
This is a gorgeous, well-done book. No doubt about it. It leans toward the busy and full-of-stuff look. I would call it, well curated clutter. I enjoyed reading about styling from such a reknown stylist, however, I got bogged down in the reading pretty quickly and moved on to skimming and image enjoying. My favorite house by far was Hilary Robertson's. The words and images of her home alone is worth the price of the book.
July 10, 2024
I purchased this book for ideas on arranging still lifes for photography and it doesn't disappoint. It turns out that I have still life arrangements throughout the house, displaying all my "stuff".
July 11, 2014
A beautiful book, overall. The pictures are visually stunning and interestingly arranged--though I wish they were less "cold." The exaggerated shadows and grey tones gave the whole book an old and almost sad feel.
There were a couple of exceptions: I thought the profiles on Hilary Roberston and Leida Nassir-Pour were lovely, noticeably warmer and more inviting.
Ultimately, I wish the book, as a whole, had more color and a broader range of tones. I think the variety would have added some depth and life to the pictures.
There were a couple of exceptions: I thought the profiles on Hilary Roberston and Leida Nassir-Pour were lovely, noticeably warmer and more inviting.
Ultimately, I wish the book, as a whole, had more color and a broader range of tones. I think the variety would have added some depth and life to the pictures.
September 25, 2017
I love anything that Hilary Robertson produces she has that magical eye of knowing how to put items together without having to spend a fortune or an antique. Like me a flea marketer, it's the thrill of the find and bringing it home adding to a display. Better than following trends of today.
February 1, 2022
A visually stunning book. However the word “ethnic” was used far too much as a blanket descriptor about almost any object of non-European origin. It’s problematic how the descriptions turned many of these cultural objects into a mere aesthetic.
May 31, 2014
Gorgeous #houseporn
December 31, 2014
This book is interesting. The style isn't my style. This has a hipster vibe to it.
August 24, 2016
So. much. stuff.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews