When I was a small girl, there were a couple of things I knew I wanted to do when I grew up. Of course, I knew I wanted to become a writer. I also knew I wanted to help people. When I grew up, my life has seemed to involve both of those things throughout college, my career, and now in my marriage. What I did not dare to hope, however, was that I would have a home of my own. Becoming a homeowner was something I considered an impossible dream until one day it actually happened.
Before I owned my own walls and floors, however, I apartment-hopped for several years, and throughout that time, I struggled with finding myself feeling settled and as if I really had a place I belonged. During that time, I sought to find ways to make my living situations more permanent. I read books, watched a lot of YouTubers, and looked to others who had established functioning, happy homes of their own. What I did not have, I tried to emulate, and I found it helped so much with grounding me!
This book list consists of authors who have helped me in establishing all things practical in my life! From homemaking, to cookbooks, to lifestyle, these books have brought me abundant inspiration. And my skills in several areas have increased due to several of these writers who have shared their own expertise within their own fields.
-Homemaking-
Homebody: A Guide to Creating Spaces You Never Want to Leave – Joanna Gaines
This is that gal from “Fixer Upper” who made all of us start decorating in neutrals. I became a fan of Joanna Gaines when I started implementing her minimalistic approach to house organization, and I can’t lie, her methods work! Homebody is an excellent visual guide for anyone who is trying to declutter their living space. Joanna is excellent at providing practical advice while also showing you how to make dark corners brighter, small areas spacious, and challenging rooms relaxing.
Another book from Joanna is The Magnolia Story (co-written by her husband Chip). While it is not a décor-specific book, the Gaines take you take you behind the scenes of how they built their business. Truly, if you are entrepreneurial-minded, this is an inspiring read!
The Backyard Homestead – Carleen Madigan
My parents had this book in their library, and as a kid, I picked it up because I liked looking at the pictures of garden layouts. Little did I know I would find this book to be so helpful as an adult! While my homesteading days are long behind me, The Backyard Homestead has several practical guides, including canning, drying, pickling, beekeeping, and maintaining small gardens.
If you have a green thumb, like I do, this is a read for you! Carleen also has several other books to her credit, my favorites being: Book of Building Projects, Kitchen Know-How, and Seasonal Planner.
Beeswax Alchemy – Petra Ahnert
I used to be a beekeeper! I am still an enthusiast, and my home has many natural bee products. Beeswax Alchemy is one of my favorite guides in how to use beeswax. He has step-by-step instructions for making candles, balms, salves, creams, scrubs, soaps, ornaments, and art. The great news is that you do not even need to be a beekeeper to do this projects! As long as you follow Petra’s advice on purchasing and handling beeswax, you can make just about anything from this book! My personal favorite project is Cocoa Butter Lip Balm.
Also, The Backyard Beekeeper by Kim Flottum is a short, well-written book for beginner beekeepers – and it has an abundance of pictures that serve as a visual guide!
-Cookbooks-
The Pioneer Woman Cooks: The New Frontier – Ree Drummond
Who does not have a book, recipe, or décor piece from Ree’s collection? Her content has exploded everywhere! But, I think there is a good reason for this, which is that she has made homey, country-living cooking and lifestyle accessible.
The New Frontier is my favorite of Ree’s cookbooks (and actually the only one I own because her website The Pioneer Woman has the recipes I like to cook). What I love the most about this book is the many crockpot recipes available. Ree doesn’t realize it, but she has helped me out on MANY hosting events because of these specific recipes.
Sheet Pan – Kate McMillan
Where do I even start on how much I love this specific cookbook? Sheet Pan has A LOT of healthy recipes, many of which I use for my weekly meal planning routine. While the concept is simple, it works great! From this book, I have learned a new way of cooking vegetables, and have started eating things that I did not have regularly in my diet.
My favorite recipes from this cookbook are those involving squash–butternut, spaghetti, zucchini, and more. And, I love how easy it is to prep dinner from this book and leave it in the refrigerator until it is time to cook. When your schedule is busy, this cookbook is like a simple hack maintaining a nutritionally-balanced diet while also not having to make an elaborate, time-consuming meal.
Eat Your Way Through the USA – Loree Pettit
My mom wanted my siblings and I to learn more about geography in the U.S., and this cookbook was one of her ways! I remember the year we cooked through this ENTIRE cookbook as being an eye-opening experience to the different cultures of each state. My favorite recipes from this book are Four Layer Delight (North Carolina) and Pecan Pie (Texas).
There is also Eat Your Way Around the World, which is on my bucket list to purchase and cook from in the future.
The Whole30: The 30-Day Guide – Melissa Urban and Dallas Hartwig
While I own several Whole30 cookbooks, this is the current one I am working through. This cookbook always manages to challenge me to learn different cooking methods, try different dishes, and work with unfamiliar ingredients. I owe my love of squash to Whole30, and I am currently exploring the art of cooking seafood.
If you are looking to change your diet to include more nutrition, this book is an excellent place to start. Choosing to cook at least one new recipe a week could change your life! It has definitely changed much of my own meal planning and eating habits.
Good Eats (Volumes 1, 2, 3, and 4) – Alton Brown
Can you believe it that I did not know who this Food Network star was? Yeah, that all changed this past year when my husband treated me to a live Alton Brown cooking show for Valentine’s Day, and needless to say it was of the most fun, hilarious performances I have ever seen. Not only do we own all four of the Good Eats books, but we are also avid watchers of Alton’s YouTube channel. It is not uncommon for Alton to be blabbing away on-screen while we are cooking dinner, and his combination of cooking science and jokes always deliver!
-Lifestyle-
Collecting Confidence – Kim Gravel
I almost included this book on my Inspiring Stories list, but decided to include it here instead because this book is just packed with so much great practical advice! I learned about Kim back when I was in college and working on a project that required research into pageantry (Kim won Miss Georgia in 1991), and I soon became an avid fan of Kim’s podcast “The Kim Gravel Show“. A Christian, and as southern as you can possibly get, I found Kim’s Collecting Confidence to be such a helpful read in my career and learning how to stand up for my own ideas. To this day, there are times when I think back on advice I read from this specific book and remember not to short-sell myself on the things I am capable of accomplishing.
How to Dress Your Best – Ellie-Jean Royden
This guide feels like a long awaited update to Color Me Beautiful! When people ask me, “What color season am I?” or “What style aesthetic does my wardrobe fit best into?” I try to refer them to this book. Ellie-Jean breakdowns a lot of complicated concepts that I once struggled to understand about colors, clothing, and putting together a wardrobe for yourself.
Sometimes I really struggle with knowing how to dress myself, and this book, as well as Ellie-Jean’s channel Body & Style has helped improve. She also has a gorgeous blog where you can take quizzes to learn more about your own style preferences. This book is also a beautiful tabletop book to display, and it could be a fantastic gift for a girlfriend – I gifted it to my younger (fashionista) sister for Christmas, and she loved it!
Everyday Celebrations From Scratch – Maria Provenzano
This book is a bit of everything: lifestyle, family celebrations, hosting, and recipes. I had no clue this book existed until my sister recently gave me Everyday Celebrations as a birthday gift. When I try to create a home based in healthy rhythms and routines, this book is a great starting point.
Maria offers recipes that are easy and require minimum time and effort, which is something I love! She also has a good deal of craft tutorials and inspirational ideas for helping you event plan for your family. This book emphasizes the importance of creating an atmosphere that make wonderful memories for you and your family.
Want More?
There are books that have served a key part in helping me move throughout the different seasons of my life, and much of what I have read has helped me throughout specific times of my life. For more of my favorite books, visit Homemaker’s Bookshelf | Inspiring Stories. Not only do I have a list of more nonfiction reads, I also have my favorite fictional books listed.
My Goodreads has 200+ books, and is growing