ed. note:  tomorrow, we’ll be kicking off our july giveaway.  stay tuned…you’re going to love it!

welcome back, everyone!  i hope all of my US readers had an amazing holiday, filled with barbecue, sun and beer!  mine definitely had its fair share, and i have learned a new appreciation…no, a love, really, for laura mercier’s night nutrition renewal cream for dehydrated skin.  after a day (or three) in the sun, my skin was predictably parched, and showing every fine line and mark it could possibly come up with.  but the laura mercier cream saved me: my skin is now plumped, bright, and happy.  can’t say enough good things!  if you’re a dry skin victim like me, you’re going to want to roll around in a giant tub of this cream.  it’s that awesome.

aside from three lovely days with the hubs, the highlight of my weekend arrived at my door friday afternoon.  after months and months of anxiously waiting, my review copy of vogue living: houses gardens people arrived on my doorstep.  and i can tell you, as someone who has been suffering serious shelter mag withdrawal (having lost blueprint, domino and even the vogue living magazine in the past year), this book made me way more happy than a design book ever should.  i spent most of my weekend curled up in a chair, oohing and aahing at every page.

(pardon the photos…iphone meets beautifully-illustrated book, inevitably goes awry.)

the book is essentially a compilation of the very best photos and articles from editor hamish bowles’ years at the magazine, as well as a few spreads that never made it into print.  the end result is a gorgeously gluttonous look at some of the most fabulous homes you’ll ever see.  christian louboutin’s retreat on the nile, a huge retrospective on karl lagerfeld’s various residences, and countless homes of socialites and other VIPs.  the end result is serious eye candy, with just enough potential for inspiring your own home design to keep it in the realm of reality.

my favorite thing about vogue living is that it showcases more than empty rooms. it shows real people actually living in their home.  dogs jumping up on tables to steal food, the incredibly disorganized office of sofia coppola, and so many other “real” living spaces.  it’s an incredibly welcome change from the stark, over-styled images i’m forced to suffer through with mags like architectural digest.

vogue living is definitely my new front-and-center coffee table book, if only so that i can continue cuddling with it on the sofa for a few more weekends.  if you’re as design-obsessed as i am, this is a must for your shelf…trust me.