33 Inspiring Design Books to Add to Your Cart Now

British talent Lee Broom found his way to lighting and furniture design through fashion, first as a 17-year-old intern in the studio of Vivienne Westwood (they met when he won a design competition for which she was the judge) and then as a student at Central Saint Martins. It was a casual proposal to redesign a local bar, during his studies, that shifted Broom onto the design track. Now, 15 years after launching his label of lighting, furniture, and accessories, he is still mining the fashion world for inspiration, as one can see in his first book, Fashioning Design written by journalist Becky Sunshine with texts from fashion-world luminaries: Stephen Jones, Christian Louboutin, Kelly Wearstler, and a note from Westwood herself. The tome examines Broom’s prolific output, perfectionist process (including his own charming doodles and diagrams), and wide-ranging sources of inspiration, proving, as Jones explains, that “what Lee designs is not just a lamp or just a chair, but an object created with a unique character of its own.” —Hannah Martin