Reference Books: What are your favorites?

Inspired by Meredith’s post about Great Books to Read Aloud With Your Kids, I started thinking which print books are must-haves around my office. Yes, I know, with the Internet, I can always find the information I need without cracking open a book, but I think reference books are important for two reasons–one, the internet doesn’t always work and two, it’s often faster to just go straight to the “source” instead of figuring out which of 80.000,000 results you’re going to rely on for your answer.

Besides that, I often like to work with the router unplugged to avoid the distractions of Twitter and Facebook completely, and when I go online to do research, it’s much more tempting to follow a rabbit hole than it is when I simply open up a book and look up the answer. So, those are my reasons for having a print reference library (I’d love to hear yours!), but what five books are on my most-turned-to list?

1. The AP Stylebook. I’ve mentioned my magazine  background, and it was my very first  internship where I learned the importance of a really good stylebook. They used AP, and I’ve stuck with it ever since. If you do any writing during the day, a book like this can help keep your writing style consistent so you’re not referring to Website in one paragraph and web site in another. (Though, I’ll admit, online, there are reasons to write it both ways, and I use email instead of the AP prescribed e-mail… So, in other words, use a stylebook, but don’t wed yourself to it.)
2. The Oxford American Dictionary (full set). I have all 20 volumes on my bookshelf, but really, any good dictionary will do. When I was a kid, I used to read the dictionary when I ran out of books, so I splurged. (Weird, I know. But, it was illustrated, if that makes this revelation any better.)
3. The Oxford American Writer’s Thesaurus. I seldom use this one, but every so often, I absolutely must have a good synonym for a word, and I’m always glad I can turn to a print thesaurus instead of a web search.
4. Flip Dictionary. Billed as the book, “For when you know what you want to say, but can’t think of the word,” I find this resource to be far more useful than my thesaurus. I think it’s in the way the words and concepts are linked, so you’ll want to find the resource that suits your thinking style best (though, really, I don’t think you can go wrong by having both a reverse dictionary and a thesaurus on your shelf). This is the style of resource that I find is most lacking online.
5. The Elements of Style. The fifty-year-old classic continues to be a must-have writing resource. Jim Lehrer said, “Only something to actually write about trumps the list of what is required to put words together in some kind of coherent way.” Assuming you have something to write about , this book will help you assemble your thoughts coherently.

So, those are my five top favorites. What are yours? Or are you an internet-only kind of researcher?

***Links in this post are Amazon affiliate links which means you’re supporting GirlyPC when you use them to buy one of these books. We appreciate that!***

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Latest finds: Double-duty home offices, drawer knobs, and fabric storage cubes

I wanted to share a great article and two awesome tutorials with you today.

First up, Real Simple published a lovely collection of 21 home office spaces that are carved out of other rooms–from bedrooms to kitchens to entry ways. I do wonder about their suggestion to tuck an office into a nursery, though! But the photos are full of great ideas and hints for making the most of the space you have. And I love the idea to use acrylic furnishings for a “disappearing” office!

Yesterday, when I was looking for knobs for Ana’s secretary plans, I came upon a set that fell into the “cute idea; ho-hum execution” category for me. I loved the idea that they were monogramed, but didn’t love the typeface. So, when I ran across this charming tutorial for making your own drawer knobs, I had to share both with you. I have a tall chest here in my office with five drawers and I think it’d look really cute alternating letters and clip art for the knobs to help me remember what’s inside.

And, finally, who couldn’t use more storage? These fabric cubes are easy to make and I love how customizable they are–from size to fabric, you can make them exactly the way you need them. I save cereal boxes for the cardboard, too, so I had some stashed and could get started right away.

Any links, articles or tutorials that have caught your attention so far this week?

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Build Your Own Wood Home Office Furniture

In junior high, my very favorite class was wood shop, second only to metal shop (where we made cooler things, but the machines were louder). So, when I came upon Ana’s blog, Knock Off Wood, I was thrilled. A chance to dust off all those long-forgotten skills and save a bunch of money making pretty furniture? Sign me up.

But, there’s another benefit to building your own wood home office furniture that goes way beyond saving money or getting to use the saw… You can customize it. I don’t know about you, but when I spend a pretty penny on a new piece of furniture, I’m always afraid to change it (the same is definitely not true of the pieces I pick up from the thrift store–stay tuned for a tutorial on faux gold leafing a chair to see just how irreverent I am when a piece isn’t brand new and pricey). Plus, often times the size is just off enough to be annoying–like, when you have 32″ for an entry bench, but can only find a bench that’s 18″.

So, being able to choose all your own colors, modify the size to fit your space, and getting solid wood furniture for the cost of materials? Sign me up!

What’s more, Ana regularly features projects her readers have made which means you get to see just how doable those projects are (especially since many of her readers are first-time furniture builders).

And she has a wide variety of plans perfect for your office space. Here are my favorites. (All images from Pottery Barn or West Elm.)

Secretary

A secretary desk is the perfect solution for small offices (or offices that are on display, like those in living rooms or bedrooms), and this one is no exception. Though I love it in PBs white, I think it’d also look smashing in navy or eggplant, with a brighter color on the inside. Though the PB hardware is lovely, it would also look sweet with something a little fancier.

Get Ana’s plans and materials list here.

Project Table

In Ana’s plan, she adds a drawer to the desktop so that you can easily store pens and other desk stuff, which is such a smart idea. See, building it yourself lets you make sure that your home office furniture suits your needs perfectly instead of having to compromise.

Get Ana’s plans, including materials list, here.

Apex Bookshelf

This bookshelf is lovely with its sleek, modern lines, but what I especially like is the way it’s so airy looking–it won’t overwhelm a small space the way a more solid bookcase might. Plus, I priced the supplies at my local Home Depot and it’s really inexpensive to build–well under $50. (Though that’ll vary by market.)

Check out Ana’s plans here.

What’s your favorite?

Beware: you’ll spend quite a long time on Ana’s site if you have any interest in building home office furniture. So, now that I’ve warned you, why not visit Knock Off Wood and choose your favorites?

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