Fresh Take on Tradition

We put up our tree last weekend.  It's a little earlier for me; I tend to wait another week.  But, the oldest was home from college and we wanted to decorate all together.  

We brought the boxes up from the basement and each boy pulled out his ornaments and hung them on the still-soft branches of the fir.  (Forgive me if I was wistful that they were not all gathered about the bottom, but evenly spaced all the way to the tip.)

There's comfort in these rituals, just as there is comfort in reviewing the work of a favorite decorator.

I've long admired Michael Smith, and his third book, The Curated House, which features four of his personal residences, does not disappoint.

I never fail to find inspiration in his color palettes, his combination of traditional and modern and - most helpful to me - the logic of his furniture arrangements.  As you're filling out your Christmas list, this would be a good book to have upon it.  (Better yet, buy it for yourself.  I'm quite sure you deserve it.)

 All images Michael S. Smith; The Curated House; Rizzoli New York, 2015 used with permission from the publisher.