By Tamara Moscowitz

Simmering, hot, summer days tend to linger, so what better way to chill out then getting fresh décor ideas from two of the world’s top tier international interior designers. Their recently published books inspire by demonstrating how influences can come from many sources to create an individual style.

© Marcel Wanders: Interiors, Marcel Wanders, Rizzoli, NY 2011

Heavenly Spaces

Marcel Wanders is a man for all seasons. His prodigious output as an industrial product designer has reached iconic status to which Wanders added the title of interior designer. Paying homage to his originality and extraordinary gift is the first large-format monograph Marcel Wanders: Interiors (Rizzoli) that showcases a distinctive flair for the theatrical and romantic (with a touch of humor) in creating fairy-tale environments. Primarily using black and white motifs and a dash of color (red and gold appear to be favored) Wanders’s diversity ranges from five star hotels (Mondrian South Beach/Miami) to high-end retailers (Mandarina Duck/London) and restaurants (the Thor/ New York’s Hotel Rivington) to palatial residencies in Amsterdam, Jakarta, and Mallorca redefining interior design along the way. $60.00, available from Amazon.

Perfect/Imperfect

Legendary Belgium antiquarian and art collector Axel Vervoordt’s interiors represent some of the most coveted rooms from layered and luxurious to monastic and minimal, reflecting the influence he derived from the Buddhist principle of “contradiction.” In Wabi Inspirations (Flammarion) Vervoordt, a student of Zen, gives his personal take on an ascetic developed in the twelfth century that advocates simplicity, authenticity, and imperfection. Vervoordt, working with Japanese architect Tatsuro Miki, uses natural materials to maximum effect as brilliantly seen in 350 dazzling color illustrations. $65.00, available from Amazon.