Mary Randolph Carter, (but you can call her “Carter”) was born in Richmond, Virginia, but has lived in New York City for much longer. Her first book American Family Style was published in 1988. Since then, she has not strayed far from her path of Junk writing four book on the subject–American Junk, Garden Junk, Kitchen Junk and Big City Junk.
Her more recent books celebrate her love of old things and how to live with them happily ever after–For the Love of Old, A Perfectly Kept House is The Sign of A Misspent Life and Never Stop To Think…Do I Have A Place For This? Her latest—The Joy of Junk goes back to her early junking roots sharing her collector’s passion and wisdom, along with that of 15 other iconic collectors from Mike Wolfe of American Pickers fame to the doyenne of antiquing and gardening– Bunny Williams. A special bonus is Carter’s Junker’s Guide, a compendium of her favorite coast-to-coast junking haunts including the classic fields of Brimfield and The Rose Bowl. Also, included is a special gift from the Junk Queen herself—a “I Brake For Junk” bumper sticker. Carter has worked for Ralph Lauren for almost three decades and writes a monthly collecting column for Country Living Magazine. In her spare time she is on the endless Hunt for more and more Junk. The oldest of nine–seven girls and two boys, her mother always told her to marry an unselfish man. She did! Howard Berg and she have been married 47 years, and all he ever asked for among all her stuff was one comfortable chair, which was quickly taken over by their dog. Her biggest treasures? Their two sons–Carter and Sam.
Books in order of publication:
| American Family Style: Decorating, Cooking, Gardening, Entertaining | 1988 |
| The Welcome Book | 1991 |
| American Junk | 1994 |
| Garden Junk | 1997 |
| Kitchen Junk | 1999 |
| Big City Junk | 2001 |
| For the Love of Old: Living with Chipped, Frayed, Tarnished, Faded, Tattered, Worn and Weathered Things that Bring Comfort, Character and Joy to the Places We Call Home | 2006 |
| A Perfectly Kept House is the Sign of A Misspent Life | 2010 |
| Love Where You Live: At Home in the Country | 2013 |
| Never Stop to Think… Do I Have a Place for This | 2014 |
| The Joy of Junk: Go Right Ahead, Fall in Love with the Wackiest Things, Find the Worth in the Worthless, Rescue & Recycle the Curious Objects That Give Life & Happiness | 2018 |
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