Manolo for the Home

When The Beard and I were sharing a home office way back in the day, we decided that we each needed a little privacy. The answer came in the form of a traditional folding screen. It was not a perfect solution, but it worked in the home office we had and gave us back a little of our personal space in a small apartment. Were I to design that space over again, I would replace the folding screen with an open bookcase. It would have afforded us less privacy, but it would have done something in addition to dividing up the space.

By this I mean it would have held books, which would have been extra nice because we are people with a whole lot of books. Now with a whole house to ourselves, there’s nothing to divvy up in terms of space or rooms. Nonetheless, I wouldn’t mind finding a place for this bookcase or this bookcase or even this bookcase (stacked). Even if you’re not a book person, consider using a bookcase if you’re looking to section off a bit of space for yourself. Own your spaces! You can always fill the shelves with craft supplies or knick-knacks that make you happy.

As for the bookcase in the above photograph, I have no idea why it’s listing so dangerously to the left. Perhaps it is in one of those houses on islands being eaten away by the tides?

Does this look right to you? Did I assemble my new bookshelves correctly? I kid, I kid. These crazy creations are products of the twisted minds at Studio Proxy.

The Prince of Siam is crafted from plywood, oil, and semi-transparent white varnish. As much as it looks like one, it is not an Ikea hack.

This one, however, is.

Low Waist — the brainchild of Roman LindeBaum and Rüdiger Otte — speaks to “functional and aesthetic stereotypes of modern mass production.” Or so I’m told.

I do believe that as fun as these pieces would be to have around the house, they would begin to drive me seriously crazy once I got sick of the wasted bits of space.

While actually buying a home is exciting, the whole looking-researching-looking-financing-looking-offering cycle can be a real drag. Add to that the document gathering and the meetings with people like mortgage financiers, and there’s nothing LESS exciting than buying a home. I can’t say that reading up to acquaint yourself with the ins and outs of the home buying process will make it less of a drag, but does make the whole to-do a lot less stressful! Here are the five books The Beard and I found truly helpful:

I used to hate the ‘Dummies’ book because of the implication, but Home Buying For Dummies turned out to be really useful. The fact is that the world of real estate can be overwhelming, and this book breaks it all down into easy-to-swallow chunks.

The Beard preferred the Home Buyer’s Checklist, which was fine by me. One of us had to have a list of questions to ask sellers and their reps, after all, and I was more concerned with the financial end of things.

Ditto on 100 Questions Every First-Time Home Buyer Should Ask. There’s also a corresponding book for sellers by the same author…tricky!

At my very core, I’m lazy, which is why I love any complicated how-to manual that comes with simple fill-in-the-blanks worksheets. 10 Steps to Home Ownership is more of a pre-buying book, but knowing if you’re ready to buy is an important part of buying.

I didn’t agree with everything in The 106 Common Mistakes Homebuyers Make, but I liked the commonsense, easy-to-understand way the author describes what worked for him. Fair warning: He’s a house flipper, so his advice doesn’t always apply to people who are buying a home in which to live.

If you bought or built a house and had a favorite book you relied on for guidance, tell us about it in the comments!