No comments about How to Work with an Interior Designer.

5 comments about Fireplace Decorating and Planning Ideas.

1. My wonderful brother built a beautiful fireplace mantel and surround for me. I got my inspiration from this great book. I also use it for ideas for decorating the mantel - I love to change the look often.



2. This is the best fireplace book I have seen. First of all the book has hundreds of beautiful and varied fireplace pictures. The pictures are great because they show the fireplaces in the home, decorated, and with the home furnishings around them. They are all warm and inviting although very different. The text of the book flows well also. First it helps even a novice decorator find the styles that work with your personality and home. Then it breaks down fireplace ideas by the different living areas in the house.



3. The Better Homes & Gardens book "Fireplace Decorating & Planning Ideas" is an excellent book. We are building a new home, and were looking for fireplace designs for ideas. There is also a lot of "how to" information, in which we weren't particularly interesed, but the book gave us some good ideas. An even better book, for our application, which we ordered at the same time, is a Schiffer Book by Melissa Cardona entitled "The Fireplace Design Sourcebook" It has more photographs, and an enormous variety of fireplace designs to peruse.



4. Like another reviewer said, The Fireplace Design Sourcebook by Melissa Cardona is a much better choice. Why he gave this book 5 stars anyway I can't figure out. I have over 20 postits marking pages in the other book and not a single one in this book. Not a single idea for the stone, mantle, or anything worth using. Way too much filler writing that didn't apply to anything, describing styles and types that are never applied in real world designs.
   
   "The Inglenook is a charmingly old-fashioned idea and the word itself is equally quaint. Ingle is a British word for..." Well, you get the idea.
   
   I can see the point that this book has a good decorating focus, but I still don't think it is a great book even for that and if you are just looking for fireplace ideas I think you will find this lacking.



5. This book was everything I was hoping for & more! So much practical information and ideas. This book had ideas no matter where your fireplace is located or what your style is.

No comments about Living in China (Taschen's Lifestyle).

1 comments about The Well- Lived Life.

1. i was a big fan of the House and Garden magazine so i was disappointed by this book. More inspirational shots, ie. flowers, people, etc... than actual homes. the book is lovely but thought it would be more of a shelter book than "artsy" type format.

4 comments about Colorscapes: Inspiring Palettes for the Home.

1. Made me less shy with color, that's for sure!



2. This is another great book by Susan Sargent!
   A lot of pictures to give you ideas to design your home, and it looks doable! No oversized mansions with 20ft high ceiling and gigantic rooms full of antiques and paintings you expect to find in a museum.
   Real pro advice from a pro designer to help you achieve your own dream home design.
   And you will read this book like a good novel, there are stories behind those homes beeing redone.
   Susan is definitely the best when it comes down to put together bright colors without beeing tacky!



3. I am a Susan Sargant fan and a lover of color... Her new book Colorscapes is a true inspiration. If you are tired of decorating around beige then this is the book for you! Here you are guided to find your own personal color's,put together your own design board, and forge ahead with confidence in creating the colorful spaces you have always wanted to live with! It is a wonderful addition to your home library.



4. Susan Sargent has a brilliant eye for color, and the book is filled with fabulous pictures of vividly-colored interior spaces. Where the book falls short is in the text. The descriptions of what, why and how are all too brief and poorly related to the photos. The text and the photos often do not match each other, and too often there is no corresponding picture. In one chapter, the author describes how a family painting inspired the entire color pallette of the home, but the painting is never shown. In another, the photo caption lists the colors used in the room but omits the most dominate color. At one point, the text just stops mid-sentence, and the reader is left wondering how the book ever went to press in this condition.
   
   The photos are inspiring, but the book suffers from a lack of editorial effort. Matching text and photos on the same page or using the common convention of including a page reference or 'not shown' would have been most welcome. If you want more than eye candy, you have to work at understanding what is going on in the mind of this brilliant decorator.

5 comments about The Painted House: Over 100 Original Designs for Mural and Trompe L'Oeil Decoration.

1. I am a decorative artist, and I found this book to be really helpful when looking for inspiration,or looking up some new themes, fresh ideas.If You are a beginner looking for a step by step guide, don't bother,it won't help.However, it WILL make You want to paint, because it is just so beautiful, it makes You want to grab Your brush and paint all over the place. I also found this useful to show it to clients who want a mural, but are not sure about a theme.



2. Although the work depicted in the photos is incredible, none of it is very useful. Nice to look at - not at all practical for everyday painters.



3. The murals in this book are beautiful, fantastical, grand and WAY above my abilities. :-) I enjoyed this book because of the possibilities and the ideas it fostered versus my ability (or inability) to mimic the designs. I've been looking for a book that addresses how to incorporate doors into murals and this is the first one that I've come across that showed some ideas.
   
   Obviously, this author and muralist is a VERY experienced painter (note his mural interpretation of the Old Woman Who Lived in a Shoe nursery rhyme - pg 82). Many of the murals depicted would be something expected in a museum, hotel or grandiose mansion. In fact, if you look in the back of the book you will notice that many of them are from private collections and the Marquess and Marchioness of Hertford.
   
   The Painted House does not contain much info on techniques or step-by-step instructions. It is more of an idea book to open your mind to possibilities. I do think some of the less complex designs could be adapted to smaller spaces with some creative thinking.
   
   If you want inspiring mural designs to paint, this book is probably only for the very experienced or talented artist. If you are a creative beginner, it's a good resource for ideas to stimulate projects on your own artistic level.



4. This is a great book to see what someone else has done using trompe l'oeil, however it is not instructional.



5. Rust's imaginatively detailed murals, are full of creative inspiration. Both beginning and advanced muralists like myself, will love the treasure trove of renderings and design elements scattered throughout every page. There is such a wide spectrum of subject matter covered here, that bits and pieces are sure to find their way into your work. I personally have never been more appreciative and impressed of another living muralist's portfolio. For myself, "The Painted House" has become a continual and favored source for creative borrowing.
   I own every book on the subject, and by far Rust's books are most beneficial.

No comments about Designing Interiors with Tile: Creative Ideas with Ceramic, Stone and, Mosaic.

2 comments about Painted Furniture Decorating Ideas & Projects.

1. Categorized into rooms,(aka living, bedroom, dining) this book starts off demonstrating how the painting of existing furniture can accentuate a room. In some photos, everything is monochromatic, in others - brightly decorated with bold colors and patterns. All photos are color, and show the entire room. Complete instructions for each project are in the back, along with some stencil patterns used.

   If you're looking for a primer on faux painting, this isn't it though. It does cover antiquing & crackle finishes.

   I liked looking through it, but there's nothing really impressive. ...




2. This book has inspired me to be more adventurous when it comes to painting my furniture. I have a hard time imagining what I want in a room, so this book is just what I needed because it provides the inspiration as well as step-by-step instructions. There are plenty of examples from funky to formal, which will help you make your room lively and personal.

2 comments about The Smart Approach to Window Decor (3rd edition) (Smart Approach).

1. I found this book to be a very useful resource for creating distinctive window treatments. It is extremely comprehensive and covers just about every topic imaginable. It's also well organized and easy to read. There are beautiful photographs on almost every page and plenty of sidebars with useful tips and information. It gave me great ideas not only for windows, but for home decorating in general.



2. I personally find the decorating styles and colors in these photos very appealing. If you "search inside" and look at the table of contents, you'll see that the book covers the design process as well as depictions of various styles.

5 comments about Williamsburg: Decorating with Style.

1. This is a great book above any other. Shop around before you get charged 10X the amount of actual retail price. The Williamsburg Foundation is easily accessible thanks to the World Wide Web.



2. This book offers timeless grace and elegance for your decorating projects. It is not, however, out of print. A definite must-have for the home. I haven't ever purchased a Colonial Williamsburg Foundation book under fifty dollars that I didn't like.



3. After reading the editorials, I took the advice of one and contacted the Williamsburg foundation bookstore (757) 229-1000 x2753. This book is still available. You can purchase it for $[...] shipping and handling.



4. Excellent book. Worth every cent I paid, (...) Well I guess you can pay 150 for a 1st edition, but why,for a book like this. Anyway, buy it from Williamsburg, the book is full of eye-candy!!
   Book is great, and under Twenty dollars is a bargin! Beautiful pictures and text.



5. i love williamsburg and period decorating, especially floor mats...what a great value at amazon... this IS an out-of-print book with limited availability, once they are completely sold out thats it...i had my copy appraised at pbagalleries.com using bibliobot...appraised value for this 1st edition book between 75 and 150 dollars!Get one while it is still available...sure to be a highly collectible book, you'll cherish and pass down to your kids...you'll love this book if you love history too...1st edition is printed inside this book...i also recommend you read Founding Brothers...