Domestic Bliss by Rita Konig

Rita Konig has been entertaining readers of Vogue with her column Rita Says since 2000. An expert in home arrangement, Rita has put all her anecdotes to blissful living in book form. Between sassy red PVC covers (first edition only and wipeable, of course), find out how to arrange the perfect dinner party or cheer up your desk at work. Sam Wilson's quirky illustrations set the tone perfectly.

Rita's witty style of writing brings a breath of fresh air to a well-worn subject. How we hate housework so either reward yourself when you've finished with a treat (lunch with a friend, a facial) or Hoover in your underwear (reserved age limit of thirty, probably). Rita says, ‘It's much easier and boys love it; especially if you are in your best high heels.'

Rita is the Doyenne of Luxury. She knows the type of cushions you should have on your sofa to the pillows on your bed (two large square pillows behind with two long pillows in front). She has the answers for finding presents for all your friends and family. Most importantly, she is on hand with advice on how to spoil yourself from turning your bathroom into a home spa or simply a night in, home alone, watching the television. Make it special, she says.

As for more mundane matters to cheer up your home, why not put washing up liquid into a pretty glass bottle, with an olive oil drizzler pushed into the top. Keep cling film and foil in a vase so they are always ready to hand. If you are throwing out worn cotton sheets, tear them up and use as dishcloths. They work brilliantly for drying glass.

We all need a Rita to give our homes the quick once over to make them the temples to inner loving that they should be. Domestic Bliss is full of frivolous information and you might surprise yourself and find that you are doing exactly as Rita Says.

Publication details
286 pp. Illustrations by Sam Wilson. £16
ISBN 0091882125. Published by Ebury Press
2002

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