William Yeoward's jewel of a shop on Chelsea's King's Road is justly famous amongst design devotees. The bright purple storefront leads to an interiors treasure trove crammed with extraordinary colour and texture, and the most beautiful tableware and interiors accessories you can imagine.
Unfortunately the shop is SO expensive that I've never bought a thing there - just filched multiple copies of Yeoward's dazzling product catalogues for my "just in case I win the lottery" scrapbook.
Well, set of balls number 7, I could really do with that win now.
'William Yeoward At Home' invites even greater lifestyle envy than his shop. It features Yeoward's country house (a Victorian Gothick schoolhouse and attached cottage) and his London mansion flat. Both are highly decorated, and truly gorgeous. Covet his vintage kitchenalia and trademark glass and crystal collections. Admire his zingy polka dot cushions, his Indian embroidered textiles, and his luscious dining chairs (each one upholstered in a different sweetie-coloured velvet, and often in contrasting fabrics front and back). Yeoward's very English Wiltshire garden is fabulous, and beautifully photographed. His guest cottage is the epitome of rural cuteness, but refreshed in a pastel palette that renders Farrow and Ball's many shades of murk instantly depressing. Yeoward's city flat is sleeker and more modern, and showcases his own range of furniture, much of it insanely desirable. Despite my inability to afford any Yeoward products of my own, I'm really delighted with this book.
Don't expect to use this book as a 'how to' guide, however. Sticklers for English etiquette will know that a man is never "at home", and Yeoward certainly lacks a woman's eye for practicality. Page 81, for example, features a guest bathroom both carpeted and wallpapered, so he clearly doesn't have many visitors. His London bedroom's chestnut panelling is oppressive, and already looks dated. The kindest thing you can say about the kitchen in his flat is that you could at least cook in it. The elaborate curtains in Yeoward's drawing room would be spectacular in a Maharaja's palace, but seem rather desperate to impress in a Wiltshire schoolhouse. He has too many rugs, more picture lights than the National Gallery, and a lot of very mumsy nicky-nacky-noos.
These occasional lapses of taste aside, this book is still worthy of a 5-star rating. For fans of very traditional English interiors, it's an inspiring and energising visual feast: you will be re-covering your cushions before you've even finished reading. For fans of William Yeoward, this book is the very best record of his distinctive signature style, and absolutely a must-buy.