Search Results: Interior Design from Rare Illustrated Books

Nottingham: Courtaulds Ltd, 1925. First Edition. Enchanting catalogue of 1920's women's fashion and textiles for home furnishings and interiors. "Beautiful frocks, like pictures, need an appropriate frame to set off their loveliness, and Courtaulds, whose marvellous development of Artificial Silk has resulted in the existence of the beautiful materials I hve endeavoured to describe to you in this little book, have also brought their years of experience in the manufacture and perfecting of this achievement, to bear upon the heavier forms of fabric necessary for furnishing processes. Surely, Alladin, when first his gaze alighted on those glistening treasures within the magic cave, felt much as I did when I viewed the modern storehouse of wonder, where are so artistically displayed, Courtauld's fabrics for the home. The room was ablaze with colour, rich Brocade and slim Taffeta Hangings, Damask and Tapestry - and what seemed, if possible, more exquisite than all the others, a reproduction of red… Read More

Sydney, 1915. [Scarce study of the waratah in decorative arts. This beautiful work contains illustrated examples of the use of the waratah in many fields of the applied arts, such as architecture (brackets, capitals, columns, ceilings, etc.), bookbinding, ceramics, electric fittings, glassware, ironwork, lace, wallpaper, dado, frieze, windows and woodcarving. Covers the history of the use of the waratah in the decorative arts, at a time when the surge to Federation and nationhood led to greater appreciation of and call for the utilisation of native flora and fauna as well as indigenous materials - wood in particular - instead of those imposed and imported from the Old World. From its first discovery the waratah quickly became popular as a symbol of all that was different and exotic in the new colonies - "the land of the Waratah", particularly in New South Wales althought it is a native of three states. Perhaps one reason for its popularity is the ease with which it can be stylised into an infinite… Read More

Stuttgart, Germany: Julius Hoffmann, 1923. First Edition. Exciting collection of architectural paintings, photographs, and decorative sketches in watercolour picturing modern interiors in Berlin, Nuremburg, Cologne, Stuttgart, London, Munich, Karlsruhe, Thun-Berne, Mayence, Bremen, Essen (Ruhr) and Darmstadt. Quarto, spine darkened, front board sunned, two-page introduction some foxing, mild edge toning to pages, previous owner's inscription, clean title page, all plates clear and bright, a very good copy.

Paris: Les Publications de France, 1953. Stylish vintage photography book depicting many grand French estates. A magnificent choice for any desert island reading list. Quarto, with photographic illustrations in colour & black & white; bound in decorated cloth boards, 250 pages, a very good copy.

England: Pearson-Page Company, 1929. A meticulously illustrated catalogue of electrical fittings divided into three parts. Section "A": electroliers, ceiling fixtures, wall brackets, and sconces; Section "B": lanterns and brackets; and Section "C": table lamps, floor lamps, candelabra, bridge lamps and shades. Quarto, bound in embossed decorated wrappers, 51 pages, two inch tear at top of spine, a very good copy.

Birmingham, 1900. First Edition. An interesting catalogue of art nouveau metalwork. R. Normansell, manufacturer of all kinds of hearth suites, ash pans, fire brasses, trunks, melting and cooks' ladels, specialty antique pierced curbs and fenders. Oblong octavo, bound in original paper wrappers, 16 pages, some marking to covers, clear and bright internally, a very good copy.

Paris: Charles Moreau, 1920. A series of illustrations of provincial interiors. Folio, loose plates in the original portfolio.

5, Avenue de la République, Paris: Camis, 1896. First Edition. Rare Parisian heating catalogue, displaying many designs in the shape of lighthouses. Includes late nineteenth century French and American stoves. Oblong quarto bound in illustrated paper wrappers, 235 mm x 320 mm, 20 pages, a near fine copy.

Paris: G. Claesen, 1860. Covering the periods of Louis XVI, Louis XV, Louis XIV, Louis XIII, Renaissance, Neo-Grec, and Moderne, here we find patterns and colour schemes for the painting of modern apartments in the mid-19th century. Ornate and decorative painted ceiling designs for living rooms, dining rooms, studies, vestibules, paintwork for paneling, corner pieces, examples of running wall friezes with leafage ornament, and fittings. Folio, bound in quarter morocco with marbled boards, 49.5 cm x 35.5 cm, chromolithograph title page + 60 chromolithograph and tinted plates, some wear to marbled boards. (Additional postage.

Greenwich (Conn.): Literary Collector Press, 1905. The standard work on papiers peints, illustrated with real examples from the grand old homes and estates of New England. The value of this book lies in the images of rare papers photographed in private homes, providing a record of some designs now impossibly rare: a superlative resource for the study of eighteenth and early nineteenth-century design and interior decoration. Limited edition, quarto, 83 plates, some colour tipped-in, rebound in attractive grey quarter cloth with gilt spine label, endpapers renewed, near fine copy.

London: T. Fisher Unwin, 1884. First Edition. First English book on Oriental rugs. Octavo, 11 lithographic plates including frontispiece, one in colour, folding map, four pages of publishers' advertisements; bound in olive green cloth, gilt-decorated pictorial boards with black lettering, an excellent copy of the first edition.

Toledo, Ohio, U.S.A.: The De Vilbiss Company, 1928. A stylish catalog of art deco perfume bottles in gift boxes so compelling as to put most twentieth century modernist architecture to shame: "excellent value, as your price list will corfirm". Quarto, bound in gilt-embossed decorated wrappers with yapp edges, 20 pp, 304 mm x 230 mm, colour illustrations, edgewear to wrappers otherwise a fine copy.

Budapest: PICTURA, 1930. First Edition. Hand-printed pattern book published by Pictura, Sebestyén László's award-winning Hungarian design studio in Budapest. Oblong quarto, 30 leaves, staple-bound paper wrappers decorated with 10 embossed golden medals, a very good copy.

Oxford, 1853. The second volume of a series begun by renowned antiquary Hudson Turner. Author, John Henry Parker, also edited 'The Glossary of Architecture'. Covers medieval towns, colleges, and everything from gate houses to chambers. "The colleges of Oxford and Cambridge have very few buildings so early as the fourteenth century; but the treasury of Merton college, Oxford, belongs to the time of Edward the First, and is a very valuable example of a perculiar class of buildings, being built entirely of stone, with vaults to the lower rooms and passages, and a stone roof to the upper chamber; there is no wood employed in any part of the structure, and it is consequently fire proof..." Octavo, navy cloth, rebacked, page-edges browned and some foxing of the prelims, illustrated with 122 engravings, occasional underlining in red pencil, a good sound copy of a rather wonderful book nonetheless.

London: Cassell, Petter and Galpin, 1878. Pattern book for interior designers: arresting album of plates depicting floral designs drawn from many sources, showcasing traditional patterns inspired by various sources such as medieval tapestry and Islamic mosque tiles alongside novel creations of the later nineteenth century. Frederick Hulme (1841-1909) was an artist and graphic designer who studied under Christopher Dresser and continued the tradition of producing pattern books for ornament and interior design. Also a keen naturalist, Hulme illustrated several books on the trees, flowers and butterflies of Great Britain. His contributions to scientific botanical illustration won him membership in the Linnean Society, and he later taught design at the London Architectural Association. Although published in London, the 52 fine plates in this book were lithographed in Paris by Dupuy. Folio, with a total of 52 chromolithographic plates (including the frontispiece, decorative title-page, and tailpiece)… Read More

Washington DC: Olney's Wallcoverings, 1950. Retro wallpaper sample book designed to attract attention from the commercial client, filled with highly engaging, decorative hand-screened prints suited to shops, restaurants, bars, hotels and other popular establishments. Pattern books for the interior design of commercial spaces offer a great depth of cultural history and are rare on the market. Leading American designers presented in the portfolio include Constance Depler Coleman. Elephant folio, bound in red boards with gold lettering, 57 cm x 35 cm, 95 hand screened prints, boards mildly scuffed, occassional price annotations throughout, vibrant original condition within.