In The New Bohemians Handbook, Justina Blakeney Is Your Decorating Soul Sister
If plant packed boho spaces are your thing, then you probably already follow in the footsteps of Justina Blakeney, The Jungalow founder whose first book, The New Bohemians, is a staple on design lovers’ coffee tables everywhere. Now, her latest tome, published this week, teaches you how to not just decorate your home, but how to make it feel good.
You know how some spaces just feel right? “One of the most frequent comments I get from people who come into my home or into spaces that I’ve designed is ‘this place has a great vibe,'” she writes in the intro to The New Bohemians Handbook (Abrams). “To me that’s the highest compliment.”
What’s a vibe? Justina describes it as “the totality of sensations and associations one encounters in a given space. It is the sights, the smells, and the sounds, but it is also the thoughts, the feelings, and the memories the space elicits, as well as the activities it facilitates.”
And that’s what she wants to help readers cultivate with the new book. The process that she details in Part I of the book—with steps related to clarity, flow, spirit, growth, and harmony—are not dissimilar to the tenets that Apartment Therapy is based on, with our founder Maxwell’s own past work with clients on changing the energy of one’s home (he lays out his take on the process in the Eight-Step Home Cure, which lives on in part through our annual January Cure). So clearly, we’re already on board with the message!
The steps are illustrated by colorful, plant packed, good vibes only spaces that you’d expect from Justina and her crew, with stunning photos by Dabito (whose own space is featured in the pages). And there are Jungalow twists at every step, like choosing your spirit plant, and a fun quiz that will reveal whether you’re more aligned with the beach, the desert, the jungle, or other environments. She does this all while sprinkling tried and true decorating advice throughout (whether you follow or break the “rules” is up to you—because really, there are no mistakes).
Part II gets a little woo-woo (but if you’re reading this, you’re probably into that). Justina consults experts on feng shui, astrology, crystals and flowers on how to work their magic into your space. There are even color suggestions based on your sun sign from the Astrotwins, and I am now personally on the hunt for something hot pink for my work area (Scorpio’s creativity color).
And if you’re obsessed with Justina’s bold pattern mixing, she has a visual feast of a “textile treasury” section that’ll help you find just the style you’re looking for.
If you’re ready to get those good vibes flowing, The New Bohemians Handbook is out now.