Books Every Interior Designer Should Have In 2024
Mar 12, 2024
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Over the past few years I have encountered a whole bunch of interior design books but to be honest there are just a few that are my absolute favorite and that I keep going back to. Keep reading if you want to know which are the books that I always keep on my shelves and which I would recommend to design students and interior designers.
Architectural Graphics
I have the sixth edition but I always recommend you to get the newest edition. I got this book just when I was starting my career in interior design and knew nothing about design, and it really helped me understand some important concepts that you will be using forever as a designer.
This book covers the very basics so it's ideal for beginners who are interested in drafting and drawing techniques for interior design and architecture. This book covers a lot regarding drawing tools and materials such as graphite pencils, technical pens, fountain pens, triangles, protractors, templates, etc. It even has recommendations on how to hold a pencil for a better drawing technique. Something that I also love about this book is that it explains perspective drawing techniques and axonometric drawing techniques in a very straightforward and simple way. Overall I really like the graphics and how the content is organized so it's definitely a book that I recommend to all designers out there.
Fundamentals of Lighting
This book is super complete on lighting for interior design and although it's quite technical, it contains a lot of useful information regarding lighting and illumination for interior spaces. What I love most about this book is that it contains a lot of information that I did not learn in school, but that I realized that I needed to know down the road. Some key topics that this book covers are: the effects of lighting, electrical lighting sources, energy consumption, lighting regulations, lighting design process among many others. Some designers are so passionate about lighting that they decide to specialize in this branch of design, so if you are one of those, this book is definitely worth the investment.
Color + Design transforming interior space
This book is perfect if you want to better understand the effects of color in interior spaces, which can be really hard sometimes. Colour is such a powerful element and once you learn how to work with it, you can literally create magic in interior spaces. I love this book not only because it has an extensive explanation of how color affects interior spaces but it also addresses the historical background of color and how it is used by cultures all around the world. It also talks about the interaction and the correlation between color and other elements of design which I think is super important. This is a great book to consider if you want to learn more about the power of color and how to use it correctly in interior design.
Shaping Interior Space
I was recently introduced to this book, and I was able to read most of it. This book is really helpful if you are wanting to learn more about the design process, it explains how people interact with spaces and it gives you a very good explanation of the reasoning behind many design decisions. I specifically think this book is very unique and I hadn’t encountered any book similar to this, which is why I am really liking it and I would recommend it to you as well.
Interior Design Materials and Specifications
This book is the one that I used the most when I was in interior design school. During this time, I needed to do a bunch of research about all the materials for interior design along with their qualities, uses, applications, and much more… This specific book had a lot of information that was very helpful for my assignments and projects. A good buy for sure.
Building Codes and Guidelines for Interior Design
The reason I love this book is that there aren’t many books like this one. Building codes are such an important aspect of interior design and finding a good book has been pretty hard for me. Of course when we are building we rely on local building codes that pertain to your city, but this book gives you a very good foundation of what are international building codes and it gives some very important key terms and concepts that you should know regarding construction documentation and regulations for interiors. This book has many case studies of both residential and commercial projects so I really think it gives you a good explanation of how to apply the code in specific projects.
Human Dimension & Interior Space
This book is simply gold, I mean it. There hasn’t been a project where I do not rely on this book. This book contains design references and standards for all types of interior spaces. If you ever wonder what should be the height of a kitchen counter or the correct distance between tables at a restaurant, this is the book you need to get. It also gives a very thorough explanation about the human body dimensions and how that is integrated with the spaces that are designed for them.
Residential Interiors - A Guide to Planning Spaces
This is another book that I cannot live without. It’s one of those books that are easy to read, clear to understand but yet have so much useful information that really helps if you want to be a professional interior designer. It contains the basic and also the advanced topics around space planning and layout configurations for residential interior spaces. This book is among the most popular books in our career, and for a good reason, I would not be able to know what I know if it wasn’t for this one. Must get.
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