Interior Design Books

this book has nice pix of interesting, inspiring houses with some usable ideas

This beautiful book is obviously a must-read for architects and designers; it more than fulfills their expectations as to tge ingenuity and esthetic genius of the new wave of Japanese home-builders. That is not what inspired me to write this, my first on-line book review. Rather, it is the book's essays on current changes in Japanese culture, life-styles, and domestic paraphenalia that make it, surprisingly, a treat for anyone interested in cintemporary Asia.
Rutherford Poats, New York
rudpoats@aol.com

The book is a very complete review of modern japanese houses, divided in very accurate categories. Naomi Pollock is very clear in explaining the evolution of each subject and she describes each house in a superb way. The photographs are gorgeous.Excellent quality, very recommendable, it's worthy paying for a book like this.
Cecilia Domenech

This book has great ideas for Japanese inspired homes. Beautiful photos and unique design ideas.

When friends tell me they are building a new home with Asian themes, I buy them this book! I receive enthusiastic thank you notes from everyone. Two friends bought copies for their designers and contractors. This should tell you something about this great book!

This book strikes the perfect balance between pictures and descriptions, as well as varying geographical locations. The pictures are sumptuous. There are pictures on nearly every page. I wished I could step into the book and live in the homes pictured.

A rich variety of houses, some grander than the others, but all well-to-do peoples dwellings. Some of the manors featured aren't very well known even in Sweden, but they certainly deserve their place here. The few I do miss are featured in "The Swedish Room" e.i. Lay-out-wise it is by now perhaps a little dated, but the auther knows his subject very well and the accompaning photos are mostly marvellous. When a Swede writes on Swedish interiors the result is accurate as this book shows.

This is another great book for Swedish decorative detail .A great asset in the decorative artist`s Library.A good source for Bolander`s beautiful wall murals. Great photography with excellent detail shots .A beautiful and knowledgable book. I am a decorative artist specializing in custom painted furniture for decorators and designers and have found this book to be a great resource and very helpful in my work.

This book is a treasure of neoclassicism in Sweden. It is supported by sensible (not gushy interior design talk) text and is logically sequenced.

The pictures and additional material is excellent; although the lighting in some of the photographs is less than perfect.

This is an inspirational reference for the topic.

I found this book amazing because it helps you to organize ideas for any type of design. It allows you to use different elements like color, space, and light in a way that you can combine them with things that you may already have. After applying some of the ideas in my own home I noticed people would come in and feel different, I felt like I was somewhere else. I recommend this book to anyone who would like to little by little begin to redecorate or likes a change every now and then.

"A home is an extension of ourselves, expressing our interests and beliefs even when we aren't there."

If you love your home, you already know that a home plays a central role in you life. Each home reflects our individual tastes and can be a retreat from the stresses of our modern lifestyle.

This book contains over 500 color photographs to give you inspiring original ideas for every room in your home. There are sections on Space, Light, Color, Surfaces, Air and Sound to demonstrate the principles of successful interior design.

"While natural light is vital for life,
shade and shadows bring repose." pg. 50

Space - How do you think about space? Are you considering a minimalist lifestyle or do you want to order your clutter?

Light - Illuminate a room, use natural lighting or put up curtains to block light.

Color - The decorator's color wheel, explanation of color, using milk paint, an expression of yourself in earth tones.

Surfaces - Flooring, rugs, walls, tables & chairs, visual texture, patterns and stencils.

Air - Circulation, windows, plants & flowers, humidity, moisture.

Sound - Noise & echo, muffling noise, decorative textile hangings, pleasant sounds, wind chimes.

Home Comforts - How do you relax, entertain, cook, sleep, bathe, work?

20 Projects are included throughout the book. You might enjoy making a sunflower stenciled cloth, a double-sided screen, collectable shadow boxes, rolled beeswax candles, curtains, beautiful pressed flower candles, lampshades, cushions or an intoxicating rosemary wood polish. I imagine you could also infuse lavender. How about clove and honey soap you could give as gifts?

I love the "Glass Bead Door Curtain." Totally quaint! And then there is a section on entertaining where they use small rocks hanging on strings as table weights to keep the table cloth from flying away in the breeze.

Useful sections include:

Kitchen cupboard restoration
Painting techniques
Restoring garden furniture
A Resources Section
Easy-to-use Index

A book to read when you want to dream!

~TheRebeccaReview.com

I just love this book. The evocative messages are an inspiration. Don't just look at the pictures - read this book!

I've flipped through many nursery books and this book is beyond compare. Buy this book if you're looking for modern beautiful and unique styles. The book does cover 'vintage' decor aswell but the authors have done it in a very current and modern way that most moms our time will love. It comes with design tips that help you cut your budget aswell. I feel that, if you're the type of parent that wants to decorate a nursery without it looking too childish or toys'r'us looking this books is for you. A fantastic find for me.

I found this book to be worth every penny. The inspiration in decor can be applied on any budget, which is the beauty of the authors' suggestions. I thumb through this book every night and seem to find something I hadn't noticed before each time I do. I love this publication!

This is an amazing Nursery book, it does not matter if you are vintage, classic or modern in your taste. It's very instructive on how to create a one of kind nursery. Loved It! Beautiful rooms and ideas!

This book is part of a series that Mary Engelbreit issued a few years ago. The book series is comprised of these nifty little books filled with great ideas, depending on the topic. The photos in this particualar book are absolutely amazing, just as all of M.E.'s books have wondeful photos. Ideas are easy to follow. Very inspirational.

PS: this book was written in 1999 but the information still holds true, ---even in 2007!

Great book with looks of interesing ideas and techniques. Sumptuous pictures which are a feast for your eyes. Lots of excellent ideas...well worth it! You'll enjoy.

This is a typical Mary Engelbreit book with lavish pictures and a "vintagey", comfortable look. Where some of her books are more for ideas than how-to's, this one is not. While you will most definitely find much inspiration in these pages, it also includes shopping lists and detailed instructions for recreating these looks in your home. There are many painting techniques described, including striping, sponging, glazing, and a few more!

I haven't had a chance to by this book yet, but I did get to skim through it at my local big box of a book store (and it cost a lot more!). The projects were very contemporary, easy, and surprisingly you would be able to find the materials with no problem. A very go read, especially if you are trying to decorate on a shoestring budget.

This is an awesome book that shows you how to create sophisticated items for your every room in your home with easy-to-find materials. A wide variety of techniques in paper arts and crafts present endless decorating possibilities. The instructions are easy-to-follow and step-by-step including photos demonstrating each technique. Though some projects are time-consuming and require some patience, they are not necessarily hard to create.

The book starts out by showing you how to create your own paper, including making a mold and deckle. It then guides you through the essentials of paper mache including layering paper, pulp casting and relief formation. Several paper decoration techniques follow, including waxing, dyeing, using a latex resist, bleaching, stamping, stenciling, decoupage, collage and gilding.

Over 20 full projects follow, and they provide ideas for many more. My favorites include the flower screen, music floorcloth and modern looking coffee table made of cardboard. Other cool projects include collage wallpaper, an exquisite checkered table top, a leaf blind, herb pot, an embossed drawer unit, paneled lampshades and a mosaic window border.

There are also some very helpful hints and tips as well as a nice resource guide in the back. Even if you don't particularly like the style or theme of something this book will give you the basics of the projects and you can let your creativity flow. With so many different ideas, this book is nothing if not inspirational.

I really liked the projects/photos in this book. I'm a collage artist and I found a lot of interesting and inspiring projects nicely photographed. If you like to make your house into a work of art, this is the perfect book. If you are a mixed-media artist who likes books like Making Journals by Hand and Sophisticated Surfaces, you'll like this book. Sometimes I use books more for pictorial inspiration than for the actual projects in the book and that is the case here. However, in this case, I might actually try some of the projects, especially the collage wallpaper. She gives basic info on papermaking and paper mache, and the projects include a floorcloth, a stitched patchwork wall hanging, an embossed drawer unit, and a screen that would be beautiful if made with your own handmade paper. I have an area in my personal library for decorating books and a separate area for collage/decoupage books and this one is kept in the collage section. You won't be disappointed in this book. :)

A beautiful book, certainly more valuable than a mere 'coffee table' book. If one is serious about interior design, seeing and understanding what these amazing people did to the art is imperative. The photographs show rooms that will stand the test of time and make you salivate over the treasures. What an incredible legacy they have, american design owes them beyond measure.

I borrowed this remarkable book from the library, and it's a treasure. Many years ago Sister Parrish, the chintz-loving society decorator who helped Jackie redo the White House, teamed up with Albert Hadley, a polite genius of timeless, clean design and proportion.

The result of this union of opposites was a partnership made in decorating heaven. In fact, the "marriage" produced wonderful offspring: Marriette Himes Gomez and Mark Hampton both got their start here.

If you'd like to see how many of the top American names of the 20th century lived, Jackie, Nelson Rockefeller, Babe Paley, it's all here. And if you'd like in depth exposure to the design principles of two American masters, you couldn't ask for a better source.

What a shame this out of print book costs $250. If it were $50 I'd buy it in a one-click minute. Attention book publishers, you need to reissue this book for the design-starving masses.

A beautiful book, certainly more valuable than a mere 'coffee table' book. If one is serious about interior design, seeing and understanding what these amazing people did to the art is imperative. The photographs show rooms that will stand the test of time and make you salivate over the treasures. What an incredible legacy they have, american design owes them beyond measure.

Photos and advice combine to introduce a clutter-free, peaceful way of life. I was looking for some inspiration as to how I can simplify my life and stop keeping so many knick-knacks out. This book is helping me realize how important it is--and how good you'll feel--when you finally decide to clear up your space. If you already know a little bit about Fung Shui, it'll add to the positive effects of this book.

Looking for a book that actually was what it said and this book did not disappoint. Peaceful spaces galore and into a haven of calm and tranquility are what it delivers.

Page 10: 'By questioning the purpose of everything you own, you will quickly realize that it is you, rather than the stuff that surrounds you, that must take center stage in the home.' Page 13: 'Next look at your furniture and fixtures and ask yourself what you could do without. If you are scrupulously honest, you may well discover that many things you thought were indispensable to domestic bliss are, in fact, easily dispensed with.'

Page 18 'continuity of color prevents fragmentation' I have found to be one main asset when it comes to creating calm and tranquility and the author knows their stuff well. As is the authors thoughtfulness in showing a variety of spaces and abodes from city to suburbia, country and mountains. Something for everyone. Well laid out and a book one will probably use as a reference for decades since the ideas are not 'fad' but timeless.

In the back of the book starting on page 138 there are sources galore listed both international and here in the states. Where possible she includes their websites which is so helpful. The book was well worth the price.

'Peaceful Spaces' is composed of two parts. The first half is a truly wonderful collection of decorative rooms and principles telling you how to make your own rooms look really nice. The idea is to get rid of clutter and excess furnishings, and then artfully arange carefully chosen furnishings & decorations to build a cohesive, peaceful room. Some of the rooms are a bit too spartan for my tastes, but most are simply wonderful. This book isn't about decorating style (e.g., country or modern) but how to use shape, texture, color, and materials to compose an inspiring display. 'Peaceful Spaces' touches upon Feng Shui, Zen, and Japeneese decorating style.

The second half of the book applies the principles to different rooms of the house & office.

If decorating your house were an art class, then most books teach technique (e.g., how to do faux painting, how to decorate in the country style, how to recover a sofa, how to choose colors); whereas this book teaches composition (e.g., how to put the pieces together into a pleasing ensamble). My experience with art classes & decorating books is that actual advice on composition is very, very rare. This book is a gem!

This is an excellent book for the professional designer or decorator looking for a comprehensive catalog of "out of the ordinary" finishes. The finishes reviewed are generally european in heritage, although many were imported to the US during the last 2 centuries. This is not a handbook for the weekend "do-it-yourself" decorator/painter as the finishes illustrated require multiple steps and practice to attain the desired look. The book is an excellent resource when discussing finishes and 'looks'with a professional painter/finisher. Additionally, the photographs are of a fine enough quality to help the reader understand the relationship of the color, technique and texture to the surrounding room. This should help the reader to visually conceive the design before the project execution and thereby minimize 'mistakes'. Enjoy!

I found the book very well done. There are many techniques that can be used to decorate furnitures and walls and all of them are very well explained. I'll soon try to embellish my house!

I may be a weekend do-it-yourselfer, but, I love looking through this book for period ideas for my 200+ year old Georgian home.

The photography is beautiful and it's full of ideas and the history of the colors and methods used is fascinating.