Inside stories: turning your home into a book

Holders of hearts, receptacles of dreams and aspirations, memories and milestones – houses are so much more than bricks and mortar. They are storytellers, bearing silent witness to lives and histories, and as such they hold a deep-rooted cultural fascination for those who live in them. Now, a celebratory new form of household narrative is emerging, pioneered by a crop of boutique, resolutely analogue writers and publishers catering to owners keen to hero their homes. Whether they are custodians of historical properties or creators of new design masterpieces, their must-have coffee-table books are exquisitely bound, bespoke commemorations of their host residences.

When London-based architect Christophe Carpente completed the extensive remodelling of a new-build country house in Surrey, the client was so delighted with the collaborative experience and outcome that they commissioned a book from Carpente to record every custom-designed detail.

“It’s a luxurious celebration of the craft at the heart of the renovation,” says its writer, Gavin Lucas. “We live in a world that is so relentless, fast-moving and screen-based that we need the real stories, the connection and craft.”

Carpente and Lucas teamed up with renowned graphic designer Alan Aboud and interiors photographer Antony Crolla to create the embossed, lithographically printed The Home of Joy. Carefully worded to anonymise the homeowners (allowing Carpente to use the book for commercial purposes), The Home of Joy is organised as a series of dialogues, including the conversation between client and architect, but also interviews with the craftspeople, artists and furniture designers involved.

The clothbound book is encased in a leather holder to accommodate the accompanying private art catalogue of the homeowners’ collection, digitally printed to allow for updates. Only 100 copies exist.

You might call it a cottage industry if the homes weren’t quite so grand. Publisher Curzon & Queen aims to create “really lovely, beautiful books” akin to those from Assouline and Rizzoli, but for individuals rather than brands. Established in 2024 by a trio of authors whose combined expertise spans political speechwriting, social commentary, travel, British heritage and architectural journalism, Curzon & Queen is proudly analogue, according to co-founder Clare Foges. “Each book is designed to be a work of art, printed and handbound in the UK,” she says. “They’re about a reverence for the house, particularly if it’s historically significant or architecturally distinct.”

Birch Grove 100 Years ticks all of those boxes. This blue leather-bound beauty focuses on the former home of British prime minister Harold Macmillan, documenting the restoration of the estate by the current owners, Dr James Hay and his wife, Fitriani Hay. “We see ourselves as guardians of its history,” she explains. “We wanted to gather those stories and pull them into a narrative that brings the history of the house to life while recording its modern-day workings, paying tribute to those who are conserving this corner of England.” 

The finished tome includes contributions from British historian Sir Anthony Seldon (an essay on Macmillan) and interior designer Nina Campbell (involved in previous iterations of the house). “The British can be quite reticent about these estates,” says Foges, “but it’s good to celebrate the craftsmanship and people involved in a restoration. It can also be a lovely thank you to the staff, who are all custodians of the property, not to mention a family heirloom.” 

In a digital world, such objects certainly carry weight, as did their forerunners in the 18th and 19th centuries, when books were a relatively new signifier of affluence. British architectural historian Jeremy Musson, who has penned guidebooks to houses open to the public (such as Henbury Hall in Cheshire) and private residences, reminds us of notable examples. “[Horace] Walpole wrote a guidebook to his Strawberry Hill House in the 18th century, and the 6th Duke of Devonshire wrote the Handbook of Chatsworth and Hardwick in the 1840s. 

“He described both the history of the house and his extensive improvements. Dickens wrote a marvellous letter shortly after a visit, and reading the handbook that he had been lent by the duke, he suggested it was just like being shown round the house by him all over again.”

For today’s homeowners, James Hooper calls these mementoes “good housekeeping”. He views their popularity as a natural extension of the current appetite for genealogy. Hooper formed Historic Productions in 2019 to create heritage assets, documentary films and “bibles of the building” as marketing collateral for luxury hospitality brands – Aman Resorts, Corinthia Hotels and Reuben Brothers are among his regular clientele. However, over the past 18 months, his company has increasingly diversified into the private sector, completing books on a 17th-century Inigo Jones masterpiece, a rewilded Somerset estate and a medieval chantry in Dorset.

“Each property is its own brand,” says Hooper. “It’s like weeding your garden, organising those bottles in the cellar or arranging that library – but it can also be surprising. There are treasures to be discovered, whether in the attic or in county archives – that’s why it’s a bit more fun than tidying up.” His team stumbled across a gem while researching Ben Goldsmith’s Cannwood Farm: “It was a poem that had been written by Seamus Heaney from the perspective of a character in A Midsummer Night’s Dream and set in the house. That was special.” 

One thing’s for sure: whether you’re a legacy-maker passing on your home to the next generation, sharing it with the public, or selling it to someone else, at some point this could be a riveting bestseller – or a treasure just for you.

Looking for more interiors inspiration? Stay tuned for the House & Garden x Savills Project of the Year 2026, where we will reveal the wonderful homes that captured our judges’ attention. Winners will be announced later in spring