The bold black, white, orange and gold palette plays out in the artwork hanging to the right of the fireplace, which Book found during a trip to Amsterdam. To the left of the fireplace sits a bronze sculpture made by jd Hansen, whose figurative work is featured around downtown Des Moines. The room is tied together with the couch’s orange throw pillows and 1960s footstools from vintage retailer 1stDibs, which Book upholstered with new fabric. The mirror doubles as a secret door that opens up to a bar.
Writer: Bryce Jones
Photographer: Duane Tinkey
Former Food Bank of Iowa CEO Michelle Book turned a historic 1970s house into a home for hosting, filled with pieces by artisans from Iowa and all over the world. While she may not consider herself a maximalist, she’s not a minimalist — and she certainly loves orange.
Throughout the years and homes, Book has always proudly displayed a 1980s deer skull, a reminder of how she grew up. “That’s how Dad fed us, with a lot of venison and a lot of fish,” she said. “Sometimes it hangs over my fireplace and sometimes it sits on a shelf, but it’s been with me my entire adult life. I just keep taking it wherever I go.”
The skull embodies Book’s design philosophy: “Everything in your home should be something that has a story, that is personal in some way.” Point to any item in any room, and it’s evident she lives by this. Each piece is part of a curated collection from different time periods and parts of the world. There’s bright orange artwork bought in Amsterdam, vintage footstools from the ’60s, a grandfather clock passed down by her own grandfather.
The home itself is a piece of history. Built in 1978, it was designed by the prominent Des Moines architect Jack Bloodgood, who incorporated now-ubiquitous concepts like family rooms and outdoor living spaces. Book closed on the house on Valentine’s Day in 2019 and transformed it over the following seven months. While she’s not a professional designer, she calls herself a “serial house renovator.”
An elevator was added to make things more accessible. The roof, windows and flooring were replaced. One of the biggest changes was building a deck on the back side, along with a patio and an elaborate meadow, courtesy of Kelly Norris. All of this was done with hospitality in mind.
“I’ve always felt the need to make a home my own … to create a home that’s livable for me and my family and my friends,” Book said. “We knew when we bought it that it was going to be a great house for artwork and for entertaining.”
Since college, Book has developed a passion for feeding her loved ones. (When she answered the phone for this interview, she was in the process of making chicken broth.) If you’re invited over for a dinner party, you can expect to move from one outdoor area of her home to another with each course, enjoying cocktails in the garden and dessert by the firepit, so as to admire the scenery of the acre the house sits on.
Growing up on a farm, Book was very connected to nature, which explains the home’s ample outdoor space and its biophilic design. The deck is built around a decades-old white oak. “I feel like I live in a tree house because I look out my kitchen window and I’m pretty much right in the middle of that oak,” she said.
Bloodgood, the architect, believed that a home isn’t just a shelter, and it’s clear that Book feels the same. “As I look around, I see a small sculpture that a dinner guest made for me, a side table that I bought for my husband for his birthday, a vase that was an anniversary gift,” she said. “All of these things have a special memory attached.”
Book spends most of her time in the kitchen, and her kids sit at the island counter during their weekly Sunday night dinners. The mix of wooden and clear cabinetry displays her glassware collection. Book sourced the contemporary glass-top and steel dining table, “The Big Table” by modern Italian furnisher Bonaldo, through Projects Contemporary Furniture. The red-lacquered, Asian-inspired chairs are vintage, from 1stDibs. An authentic Delft tulipiere vase from Amsterdam adds more colorful flair. On the back kitchen counter are paintings by Jeff Rider, an artist at Mainframe Studios; they’re part of his “phobia” series.
Book says she’ll hide behind the mirror in the living room if the zombies ever come. It conceals a secret bar filled with eclectic glassware she’s collected over the years. The oilon-wood painting is the work of local artist Chris Vance, and the movable wall was custom-built to accommodate its dimensions, 4 feet square and almost 3 inches deep. The mechanism to support the wall came from a Swedish engineering firm.
The deck is 64 feet long and covers the entire front of the house. It’s Book’s favorite spot to host guests and have her morning coffee. She discovered the mesh chairs during a trip to Maine and loved how they matched the vibrant colors of the fall foliage. They’re made from the same material used for livestock gates, which allows air to flow through them. Book says they’re comfortable and have freed her from outdoor cushion duty.
Through a wooded area to the west of the house, a shaded space has a fire pit, eight classic cedar Adirondack chairs and a stone pathway. This is one of the spots where Book likes to end an evening get-together, serving guests dessert. The fence encircles the property, so Charlie can run freely. (Meet Charlie below.)
Designed by award-winning local horticulturist Kelly Norris, the meadow Book describes as a “small arboretum” is covered in trees, shrubs and flowers — mostly neutrals, greens and whites in different textures. The Milano Cone Planters are high-fired ceramic, produced in Vietnam. Across the property, there are 60 trees, about 100 shrubs and a diverse cast of characters, including great-horned owls, foxes, deer and raccoons.
Charlie was left on Book’s doorstep on Mother’s Day in 2020, when he was just a puppy. “Although I didn’t think I needed a dog, Charlie has become one of the best parts of my life and maximizes the enjoyment of my home and gardens,” she said. “He’s a wonderful host for all the other canines that visit with their people.” The papier-mâché bird sculpture to the left of the bed is a Judith Whipple and features real feathers. The print is by Ray Parker, an influential Abstract Expressionist painter. A door opens up to the deck that runs along the house.
The impressive Christmas cactus was a gift from Book’s grandmother 35 years ago, and it’s gone with her everywhere since. Hubbardton Forge, a historic blacksmith company in Vermont, crafted the dahlia-inspired chandelier, and the whitewashed stump by local woodworker Clay Aronson brings a touch of nature indoors. The soaking tub and marble flooring and walls make the space feel like a spa, with a view outside to the patio and fire pit.
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