The timeless books that will change the way you think about your house and garden, as recommended by Britain's leading interior and garden designers

This is the fourth part of our experts' experts series; the first looked at the best craftspeople in Britain, as recommended by a panel made up from members of our Country Life Top 100.

• The best antique dealers in Britain
• The best craftspeople in Britain
• The best furniture makers in Britain

Francis Terry: If there is a bible of classical architecture, then it’s Palladio’s The Four Books of Architecture. First published in 1570, this book illustrates Palladio’s villa designs, his version of the five classical orders (Tuscan, Doric, Ionic, Corinthian and Composite) and his own measured drawings of Roman ruins. I have a copy sitting by my landline and during dull phone calls, I leaf through it and almost invariably find new treasure.

Geoffrey Preston: British Architects and Craftsmen by Sacheverell Sitwell (first published in 1945; Batsford) is a great book of its time written by a true connoisseur.

Greg Tirri, RW Armstrong Group: Wynn Bullock: Photography, a Way of Life by Barbara Bullock-Wilson (Morgan & Morgan) showcases Bullock’s masterful understanding of light, contrast and composition, offering parallels with modern design and architecture.

Shankar Kothapuram, Tom Stuart-Smith Studio: The Image of the City by Kevin Lynch (MIT Press) is still as relevant today as it was when it was first published more than 60 years ago. It is essential reading for anyone interested in how and where we live.

Bee Osborn, Osborn Interiors: Patina Farm by Brooke and Steve Giannetti (Gibbs M. Smith), the other ‘Patina Farm’ books and, of course, my own book, The Organic Home (Frances Lincoln) which will be published in October.

Angelica Squire, Studio Squire: I am reading Patrick Williams’s The House Rules (Quadrille), which is beautifully written and insightful.

Hugo Bugg, Harris Bugg: Martin Crawford’s Creating a Forest Garden (Green Books) is a huge source of knowledge and ongoing inspiration. The idea of weaving edibles into shady spots and unexpected corners of a garden has quietly influenced a lot of what we do.

Sarah Vanrenen, Vanrenen Hanbury: I particularly love Miguel Flores-Vianna’s beautiful book of boho interiors around the world, Haute Bohemians (Vendome Press), and Lucy Moore’s wonderful book, Christopher Gibbs: His World (Clearview Books). Jenny Rose-Innes’s British Designers at Home (Hardie Grant) and Carlos Mota’s G: Forever Green (Vendome Press) are great — and not only because I am in them!

Lonika Chande: Impossible to choose only one. Inside Tangier: Houses and Gardens by Nicolò Castellini Baldissera (Vendome Press) is a favourite, as I was lucky enough to visit Tangier last year and the city is a constant source of inspiration. I also love New English Interiors by Elizabeth Metcalfe (Frances Lincoln) and return often to Jaime Parladé: Decoration by Spanish interior designer Jaime Parladé (Ediciones El Viso).

Ross Sharpe, Yiangou: The original 1906 edition of M. H. Baillie Scott’s Houses and Gardens (George Newnes), which is poetic, practical and full of the most wonderful watercolours and line drawings of the seminal British architect. And a nod to my old mentor Robert Adam’s invaluable Classical Architecture: A Complete Handbook (Viking), which has everything you need to know about the subject, so carefully orchestrated.

Robbie Kerr, ADAM Architecture: The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand (Penguin Classics) is a book I come back to again and again, because it offers a wonderful narrative wound around the familiar subject of architecture. And The Apprehensive Gardener by Griselda Kerr (Pimpernel Press) is the go-to for help in the garden.

Rupert Cunningham, Ben Pentreath Studio: The most recent addition to my library is Patrick William’s wonderful book The House Rules (Quadrille). Informed by a deep understanding of old buildings, his work seamlessly blends old and new, combining natural materials, judicious detailing and careful use of colour.

Tim Crump, Oakwrights: The Conservation of Timber Buildings by F. W. B. Charles (Routledge), the book that led me into the oak-frame repair trade. Building the Timber Frame House by Tedd Benson (Simon & Schuster) helped me realise that oak frames can be designed for the modern age.

Ben Naylor, Jack Badger: As we are a company dedicated to the conservation of historic joinery, Walter Rose’s The Village Carpenter (Linden Publishing) resonates deeply with us. His description of a craftsman’s responsibility to both the material and the community serves as a powerful reminder of why we do what we do. The book captures a disappearing world, but the principles it champions — skill, patience, attention to detail and respect for tradition — are as relevant today as they were in Victorian England.

Meg Boscawen: Charleston: The Bloomsbury Muse by Philip Mould, Darren Clarke, Deborah Gage et al (Paul Holberton Publishing) is a book I find myself returning to time and time again. The creativity, layering of interiors and sense of artistic freedom continues to inspire many of my projects.

Edward Smith, Artorius Faber I always enjoy Gardens Old & New: The Country House & Its Garden Environment, published at the offices of Country Life in 1900–08, available in three volumes and various editions.

Chloe Willis, Sibyl Colefax & John Fowler: The Book of Decorative Furniture: Its Form, Colour and History by Edwin Foley, two volumes, first published in 1910, has fine coloured illustration plates of antique furniture on its own and in historical interiors. Very much of its time, but a good historical record and I love looking at both volumes.