*Photo above via Veer

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Today’s Miami City Guide update comes from Sarah Lederman, author of the lifestyle blog Chevrons & Stripes and co-owner of the jewelry line Aroc Urtu. A born and bred New Yorker, Sarah spent several winters in Miami before moving to Miami Beach, and she has amassed a collection of great local restaurants, shops and activities. Today she shares some of the best Miami has to offer. Thanks for this wonderful guide update, Sarah! — Stephanie

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Back in 2009, I wrote the Paris City Guide with help from some of the Paris designers I featured in our regional round-up. I don’t think I knew at the time that I’d be moving to Paris later that fall, where I’ve been for 2.5 years now. While I’ve done a lot on my own blog, Prêt à Voyager, to create helpful guides to the city I call home, my D*S guide was my first, and it’s still a valuable resource that I send the never-ending stream of visitors that come through Paris. While this is a tried-and-true guide to the city, it was time for an update. The good news is that lots of great design shops have come to the city, so it was easy to update. Bon voyage et à bientôt! — Anne

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Today’s Northampton, MA, city guide comes from designer Mary Wiseman, who moved to Northampton from Beijing, China, five years ago. Living downtown, Mary keeps a sharp eye on this quaint city and its happenings while she develops instructional materials and online courses. Thank you for this wonderful guide through Northampton, Mary! — Stephanie

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Our Brighton City Guide comes from Michelle Butler, a printmaker and web designer based in Brighton. Her prints are influenced by folk traditions, dark tales, mid-century design and Forteana. Today Michelle shows us around her city’s artistic sites, classic shops and charming cafes. Thanks, Michelle, for this wonderful tour of Brighton! — Stephanie

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I love books. I have a master’s degree in library science, spent eight years at the New York Public Library before joining Design*Sponge and have a relatively large collection of books at home. So each fall, I anxiously await the moment I can begin work on this guide. This year while traveling around the country, Grace would catch me sneaking off in bookstores, writing down titles to share, and I spent many a late night online looking at publisher’s catalogs. The great thing about books as gifts is that they ship quickly (making them the perfect last-minute gift), are easy to wrap and when you find the perfect title for the perfect person, there is nothing more personal. The downside is that it can be difficult to pick a book for someone else, and finding that perfect title can be a challenge. I’ve tried to help matters by only picking books that came out this year (most this fall), so there is a good chance your recipient doesn’t have these titles yet. There are 42 books on this list, so you should be able to match at least one title to a person. And if you can’t, there are now lots of options for your own wish list. Happy reading! — Amy Azzarito

Image above: 1. Nomad: A Global Approach to Interior Style by Sibella Court — One of the treats of this summer was tagging along on a walking tour of SoHo with Sibella Court. She is such a huge talent. 2. Design*Sponge at Home — OK. I have to admit momentary hesitation when it came to including the Design*Sponge book on the list. I didn’t want to play favorites, but then I had an internal discussion and realized that there is no book that I believe in more, and I’m proud to have been a tiny part of it. It is by far my favorite book of the year. 3. Gertrude Jekyll and the Country House Garden — I wrote earlier this year about this book, and it is definitely one of my top picks for any garden enthusiast on your list. 4. Diana Vreeland: The Eye Has to Travel — Diana Vreeland shaped American fashion and American taste; this book chronicles that journey. There were a couple fashion-magazine books this year: 5. Vogue: The Covers, perfect for studying the evolution of American fashion, and 6. Bazaar: Greatest Hits, perfect for a fashion or photography enthusiast. This book provides an insider look at some of the most memorable Bazaar photoshoots from the past 10 years. 7. Exotic Taste: Orientalist Interiors — Every year I keep my eye open for books that I think are must-haves for my design history library. This is one of my favorites this year.

Image above: 1. Cyclepedia: A Century of Iconic Bicycle Design — A sure-win for any cyclist on your gift list. This book is basically a tour through bike collector Michael Embacher’s 100 favorite bicycles. 2. The Pirate Handbook: A Rogue’s Guide to Pillage, Plunder, Chaos & Conquest — ‘Nuff said. 3. Pantone: The 20th Century in Color — From Harvest Gold and Avocado in the 1970s to colors inspired by Martha Stewart and Kurt Cobain, this book is a fascinating look at 20th-century color. 4. Farm Anatomy — I’m pretty much sold on anything to do with animals. A book that lets me fantasize about having a farm from the comfort of my urban sofa has my name all over it. 5. The World of Department Stores traces the history of department store shopping, beginning with 19th-century Paris shopping. 6. Money: Everything You Never Knew about Your Favorite Thing to Find, Save, Spend & Covet; 7. The Ceramics Bible; 8. Walls: The Best of Decorative Treatments — Learn how decorative wall treatment evolved from murals to wood paneling and stencils.

Image above: 1. The Toaster Project or a Heroic Attempt to Build a Simple Electric Appliance from Scratch — Thomas Thwaites sets out to build this kitchen staple by hand. 2. Wildwood by Colin Meloy (author) and Carson Ellis (illustrator) — This was Grace’s favorite fall read, sustaining her through many plane rides. 3. The Wilder Life — For all those Little House on the Prairie fans. Wendy McClure sets out to discover the real world of Laura Ingalls Wilder. 4. Mycophilia: Revelations from the Weird World of Mushrooms; 5. The Swerve: How the World Became Modern — How the discovery of one ancient manuscript changed the course of the world. 6. Catherine the Great: Portrait of a Woman — Last year, my favorite book was Cleopatra. This year, I’m completely engrossed by Catherine the Great, and realizing that I knew so little about her. 7. Marcel the Shell with Shoes On — I LOVE Marcel. It might not take as long to get through as some others on the list, but I was so excited to discover Marcel in this book by Jenny Slate and Dean Fleischer-Camp.

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