I was very happy to receive an early Christmas gift from my grandmother: the book The Perfectly Imperfect Home, by Deborah Needleman, with illustrations by Virginia Johnson. After flipping through it, I’m so taken with this book! The copy is fun and insightful (cue me wanting to redo everything in our house), but what I find especially charming are the illustrations. That’s right, there are NO photographs in this book — only watercolor illustrations by Virginia!
I liked the feel and colors of the work so much that I did a little research to find out what else Virginia has done.
It turns out that though her main claim to fame is that of a textile designer (you can even buy some of the things she’s designed here), she’s dabbled in illustration, even creating a series of books and stationary for Kate Spade in 2008ish. Here are a few of her illustration pieces:
I love the colorful, whimsical feel of her art work. And if you think this is good, wait til you see how she captured photographs of interiors in Deborah’s book!! You can see lots of examples of it on the book preview feature on Amazon, here.
And really, I can’t recommend this book enough. It’s rare that a home decor (and likely coffee table) book is such a joy to read, but it’s given me all kinds of ideas and inspiration for projects I want to tackle around our home! Be sure to check it out.
{Image Credits: Portrait of Deborah Needleman and book cover of The Perfectly Imperfect Home are from Casa Sugar’s interview with Deborah Needleman. Virginia Johnson artwork images from here.}
I can’t wait to get this book! The illustrations are so charming and that just sets it apart from other interior design books. So cool that she illustrated for Kate Spade too!
I’m having a CC Skye necklace giveaway if you want to check it out!
http://york-avenue.blogspot.com/2011/12/gorgeous-giveaway.html
The concept of this book is so cool, such a fun way to look at your home without comparing it to an actual photograph. Makes us each love your homes for what they are!
I’ve been so depressed since Domino stopped being published- I can’t wait to see this book! And what a fun way to illustrate home decor without relying on photos. This may have to be a Christmas gift to myself- is that bad?!
This book has been on my wish list for some time! I can’t wait to get my hands on a copy.
I totally agree…just got the book recently and I’m loving the illustrations and of course, wonderful inspiration. I’m secretly hoping she collaborates on another Domino Book of Decorating (Volume II!!) because I can’t get enough of her work! :)
Your creation is inspirative