Howdy, hudee, here’s a great gift idea: A reissue of the 1961 classic, Better Homes and Gardens Decorating Book: How to Plan Colors and Furnishings That Reflect the Personality of Your Family. At 432 pages, it delivers a lotta bang for your buck, too. Thanks to Heather for this tip! She found her copy at Costco, and also spotted it >> on Amazon here. << Note, I earn a small commission if you click through and buy anything from Amazon links. More info on this hours-of-fun reading:
From the Amazon description:
Take a walk down memory lane with this 1950s decorating classic, re-released for a whole new generation
The year is 1956….And during this boom period, grateful young families thrilled to find themselves homeowners after the uncertainty of the Great Depression followed by a second Great War. Those empty rooms needed filling in order to make the house a home, and homeowners turned to the iconic Better Homes and Gardens brand.
Better Homes and Gardens Decorating Book, the first edition of a title that would spawn ten editions over the years, became the new home bible for injecting class, style (and the occasional misguided cowboy wallpaper) into American homes. While exploring numerous styles, the main theme of the book is the on-trend mid-century modern sensibility, a style as appropriate today as it was six decades ago when the book was initially released.
Filled with hundreds of full-color period photos, dozens of adorable illustrations, and decorating tips and tricks that are both helpful and nostalgic, the book remains a fun classic. With this welcome hardcover release, reproduced exactly as it looked and read in the 1950s, everything old is new again.
Again, ya can nab it >> on Amazon here or via the widget below << or like Heather, maybe a store locally.
Child’s polio braces … and how they relate to spotless midcentury kitchens 
Erica Wilson needlework — from her private collection <3 
Lady Bird Johnson postage stamps from 1966 and 1969 
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Rick G says
I’ll be getting this for sure !!! – Thanks for the tip Pam
kris says
Decorating anything that will sit still long enough to be decorated, tbh
Scott says
I’m super impressed/shocked this is being reissued but own an original and can heartily recommended it. Its chocked with so many ideas its almost hard to process. Sadly, some rely heavily on materials that are hard to find or non-existent but the majority can be as easily executed today as in 1961. The 1960 edition is also a must-have.
Karen says
I actually own an original copy of it that I found in a vintage store. It is seriously cool and well worth perusing. Lots of traditional/colonial stuff in the original version, if that helps anyone. Interesting to see what people were actually doing versus what we might think that they were doing design-wise at the time.