So many of our favorite designers are releasing books this spring, including Alabama-based interior designer and tastemaker Caroline Gidiere. Published by Rizzoli, Caroline’s premier book, Interiors for a Life in Good Taste, was so popular it sold out this month in less than 24 hours! Now officially in its second printing, A Life in Good Taste is back in stock, and we cannot get enough!
Caroline’s design aesthetic is a modern take on traditional interiors, using contemporary and antique furniture with backdrops of joyful color and pattern to create spaces that are both new and classical—florals, botanical prints, rush baskets, tailored stripes, well-stocked bars, books, and comfort abound.
Through A Life in Good Taste, Caroline offers a fresh perspective on classic American interior design and practical advice on living well in the modern world. She not only presents her decorating capabilities but also shares her talents as a hostess, giving ideas on how to live and entertain. “Our houses and homes become the havens of our lives. And how we decorate and design them affects how we will live our lives,” she says.
In our fast-paced world distracted by the siren call of media and overwhelmed by choices, Caroline says her clients yearn for a path toward living well today. “To help them navigate this path, I borrow a word from the grande dame of modern decorating, Elsie de Wolfe. I turn to what she described as a ‘compass’: taste.” Caroline explains, “De Wolfe foresaw that the modern house could become a medium for self-expression, a refined but comfortable place for living. To do this well, she stated firmly, one must cultivate taste.”
“What surer guarantee can there be of a person’s character, natural and cultivated, inherent and inherited, than taste? It is a compass that never errs.”
~ Elsie de Wolfe
The House in Good Taste
(published in 1913)
“Like de Wolfe,” Caroline says, “I feel good taste will guide us unerringly through a plethora of modern needs and wishes and choices — and it can be developed.”
In A Life in Good Taste, Caroline describes how she has incorporated de Wolfe’s principles of “suitability, simplicity, and proportion” through the lens of a meaningful modern life and how we actually live within our homes today. The book is organized by the ways in which a house is planned and utilized:
- “Social Life” is centered on entryways, living rooms, and dining rooms—spaces that are designed to receive and welcome others.
- “Family Life” reviews kitchens, breakfast rooms, dens, and playrooms—places that are the heart and soul of the house.
- “Private Life” focuses on bedrooms, libraries, and studies—the sanctuaries of our day-to-day existences.
- “Sweet Life” celebrates how a home can be used for hospitality and entertaining, inside and out.
- “My Life” shows how Caroline interprets the art of living well in her own home.
Each section offers in-depth information on topics that include setting the table, keeping houseplants, stocking the bar, outfitting a guest room, and being party-ready. Caroline’s aesthetic salutes interior design of the past, while interpreting it for our lives today. She also takes cues from such accomplished Southern-born designers as Charlotte Moss, Miles Redd, and Celerie Kemble, providing a comprehensive glimpse on how to create style and taste that is both sophisticated and charming.
In addition to her overwhelmingly successful book release this month, Caroline also broke the Internet with her charming “The Ladies of Palm Beach” sitting room at the 2025 Kips Bay Decorator Show House Palm Beach, inspired by the colorful, traditional decor style made popular by decorators like Frances Elkins and Billy Baldwin. Her theme embraced the time prior to social media when a lady’s sitting room would revolve around her writing desk. The ultra-feminine sitting room exuded innate softness enhanced by a ruffled, printed linen valance and matching drapery panels over and around each window. (sources here)
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We adore Caroline’s timeless, elegant style and her appreciation for the trailblazers and traditions of the past. Interiors for a Life in Good Taste is available for purchase via Amazon. To learn more, please visit Caroline Gidiere and follow @carolinegidieredesign on Instagram for ongoing Inspiration. Click here to tour her beautiful Birmingham home and here to see it decorated for the holidays!
Founded in 2013 by mother of five Celia Muñoz, La Coqueta is often affectionately called her “sixth child.” And like any cherished offspring, it has flourished into a brand adored by mothers around the world. With its impeccable craftsmanship and nostalgic nod to Spanish heritage, La Coqueta strikes the perfect balance between beauty and practicality. Now, with Hill House Home’s signature charm woven into every design, the collection is as enchanting as it is wearable. A match made in style heaven.
