ON THE L&S BOOKSHELF – THE SHOPKEEPER’S HOME BY CAROLINE ROWLAND

As you may already know, October is book season, and I am back today with beautiful pages from the long awaited first book The Shopkeeper’s Home – by my friend (and recent Munich travel companion) Caroline Rowland. I have been obsessing over interiors and beautiful shops for forever and Caroline’s book is a combination of shop spaces and their owners beautiful homes. First sneak peek above is the calming living space of Maria Mercedes Grosso, owner of the Madrid based Black Oueja.From pared back modest living spaces (this is the home of Lynda Gardener of Empire Vintage, one of my all time styling hero’s above), to aladdin’s caves filled with retail treasure – it is so exciting to peek in to all these wonderful shops all over the globe. Some I may never get to visit, so this book is inspiration, a destination wish list, and fantasy travel guide all rolled up in one!One of my favourite images is not actually from any of the shops, but this relaxed and un-fitted kitchen in the home of Jamie Kidson of Atomic Garden. A better kitchen is top of our ‘to do’ list, so pictures like this get me all inspired to start ripping out cupboards and tearing up the floors to see what’s underneath, and how we can cobble together a ‘New’ from vintage and used – cooking and living space.I love the neat rows and perfectly placed framed art works in Le Rocketship, Paris. We didn’t know about this place earlier in the year when we visited, it’s a shop and cafe in one – so it’s gone straight to the top of the Paris ‘to see’ list.I notice that each of us on the book blog tour so far, have picked out this dining room from the home of Susan Cropper, owner of Loop in London. It is just the most inviting space and so beautifully decorated. A heart warming combination – warm tones in the wood furniture with crisp white and a hint of floral with personal treasures – perfection.I was also very excited to learn about UK places I never knew existed like Home Barn. The homes and shops are all so inspiring in this book, I really wish I had been a stowaway on the photo shoots! Reading Caroline’s book is the next best thing, you will be in heaven exploring the rooms in stores and houses and seeing how the shopkeeper’s style translates from the retail to how they decorate their living spaces.If you found these pages inspiring do take a look at all my other interiors book reviews, my eyes never get tired of seeing beautiful homes and I have been so lucky to share some stunning books here on Lobster and Swan, go check them out!

All images from The Shopkeeper’s Home by Caroline Rowland, published by Jacqui Small.