This article is part of our Design special section about new interpretations of antique design styles. In 1868, the designer Charles Eastlake published “Hints on Household Taste,” a popular guide to outfitting the home in good taste, from the street front to the china cupboard and all the rooms in between. In his introduction, rather than taking a supportive tone, he chastises the reader. “When did people first adopt the monstrous notion that the ‘last pattern out’ must be the best? Every season brings out more manuals of household taste, from glossy-page inspirational books suitable for coffee-table display to chart-heavy how-to guides, with diagrams of immaculate closets and formulas for D.I.Y.

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Persons: Charles Eastlake, ”, Jennifer Kaufmann, Buhler, Kaufmann, “ Organizations: American Office, Purdue University