1 comments about Minimalist Houses (Evergreen Interiors).

1. This is a really amazing book. I recomend it to all interested in architecture, interior architecture and design. It is filled with fantastic pictures of great projects. Buy it now!

1 comments about Do It Right The First Time: What Every Homeowner Needs To Know Before The Work Begins.

1. This book gives you lots of good info and the person who sold it may never have even opened it. I wasn't expecting a hard cover for the price- good deal.

1 comments about How to Design and Build Your Auto Workshop (Motorbooks Workshop).

1. While David H Jacobs' book provides a start for the design and building your workshop, it falls short of completing the task he set out to accomplish. The book starts with a beautiful example of a dream shop on the cover, but no further mention is made of this shop leading to a disappointment of the content between the covers. Many pictures are included showing examples of frayed wires, missing outlet covers, cluttered benches, and construction that wouldn't pass code in many areas. While there are a few good ideas to incorporate into a shop, I would not encourage the novice to design a new shop solely on the examples in this book. David tries to cover too much area in a small book. His time might have been better spent on automobile related tips and less on construction. There are plenty of books available that do a much better job showing good construction techniques. Show more innovative home shops and less high dollar, cluttered, and dirty commercial buildings.

3 comments about Daughters of Painted Ladies: 2America's Resplendent Victorians.

1. After I read and enjoyed this beautiful book I painted my home in Victorian style and soon many houses in Ushuaia Tierra del Fuego Argentina, also change the "white walls, black roof" they ever were.Thanks! Virgini



2. "Daughters of Painted Ladies" is a beautiful tribute to restored Victorian houses from throughout the United States. Full-color photographs by Douglas Keister are complemented by the commentaries of Elizabeth Pomada and Michael Larsen.

   The book focuses on what the authors call the "Colorist Movement" in historic house restoration. In other words, every one of the homes pictured has been painted "in three or more contrasting colors" that "bring out the decorative ruffles and flourishes" of each structure. So if your idea of a Victorian home is a dull, gloomy old mansion in a state of disrepair, be prepared to have that stereotype blown away. These "painted ladies" are some of the most vibrant and beautiful homes I have ever seen.

   The book captures many different Victorian era styles: Italianate, Second Empire, Steamboat Gothic, Queen Anne, Octagon, Stick, and Victorian eclectic. And don't miss the special appearance by "Lucy," the elephant-shaped house built by James Lafferty. The colorist approach to these homes truly accentuates the varied vocabulary of Victorian architecture, with its towers, covered verandas, neoclassical pillars, oriel windows, decorated verge boards, and other fanciful details.

   The book concludes with some helpful tips and resources for those interested in creating their own painted lady. If you are a lover of Victorian era architecture, buy this spectacular book and prepare to indulge in a decadent symphony of visual splendor.




3. Here Pomada, with co-author Michael Larsen and photographer Douglas Keister, branches out from her San Francisco roots in search of Painted Ladies in other regions of the country--and finds them. Once again she shows houses of all sizes, degrees of elaboration, and amounts of gaudiness--the quietly lavender Blackberry Inn of Camden, ME, the darkly splendiferous English Queen Anne at 130 Mt. Vernon St., Boston, beach cottages on Martha's Vineyard, a vividly red church in West End, NJ, a crisp turqouise-and-cream confection from Cape May, a wondrously porched house in Savannah, GA, even a brick eclectic in Milwaukee. One wonderful little gem on p. 89 is an Aspen, CO, cottage whose front-porch gable comprises a blending rainbow of 25 colors--"14 blues of the sky and oranges from the sunset." The Morey Mansion of Redlands, the Carson Mansion of Eureka, and several Main Street buildings are here too. Pomada even contrived to get permission to show some interiors from a Portland house. These lovely houses will set you dreaming even if you don't own one of the same vintage yourself.

5 comments about Safari Chic.

1. Upon first glance, Bibi Jordan's "Safari Chic" looks like a handsome, pretty-picture, coffee table, book that is ... just that; it looks good on an Ottoman in one's living room. Only, I have those types of books and was not prepared to buy another, hence my hesitation. But Africa is much more than an interest for me and so naturally I began to thumb through and shortly afterwards, lose myself in it.

   The preface by Peter Beard - Mr. Africa himself - sets the tone for the unfolding of a modern day journey. Miss Jordan's safari takes us to those breathtaking sceneries where man is as much a part of nature as the elephants, hippo and lion. In doing so, she introduces us to the men and women who live in "the bush". These characters, some of whose families have been safari outfitters in Africa for 90 years, make up the real fabric of what Africa is about. In telling their story, we learn that safari is a way of life. Each camp has its own unique history. By understanding these people and how they live in harmony with their fellow Africans and wildlife, we are able to grasp the complete picture.

   Miss Jordan weaves these fascinating personalities together into a wonderful narrative. Inspirational quotes from Karen Blixen, Ernest Hemingway, and others, and - yes, great pictures, make for an enticing read.

   This book makes Africa real and for me, timeless. It makes you want to go there, and bring a piece of it back with you. The last chapter offers some excellent and affordable tips to decorating `safari chic'. Popular stores like Pier One and The Pottery Barn can bring Africa to your fingertips.

   As mentioned, many other African safari books are dictated by form and fashion above substance. "Safari Chic" is more than a decorating style; it's a frame of mind. From all of the famous quotes Miss Jordan uses, this one perhaps, sums it up best.

   "All things considered, there are two kinds of people in the world: Those who stay at home and those who do not. The second are most interesting."

   - Rudyard Kipling




2. Bibi Jordan has managed to capture the true spirit of adventure in her new book Safari Chic. Not only do the wild exteriors and the mannered interiors inspire one to redecorate their physical surroundings but they resonate with the kindling spirit of rejuvenation and imagination. This is a traveler's delight as well. More books Bibi, more!



3. Libraries with strong sections on ethnic or modern architecture will want to include Bibi Jordan's Safari Chic as a unique presentation of over a hundred photos of exotic exteriors and interiors. African bush style goes modern in homes which profile decorating choices achieved through ethnic crafts and fabrics. The color photos are lavish and display many options and styles.



4. Gorgeous coffee table book, which is actually great reading, too! Sumptuous photographs will inspire you to add a touch of Safari Chic to your own home! Exquisitely well done book...I hope there will be sequels!....



5. I am very pleased with the beautiful photography of this book. It gives you an up front & personal view of some of the most exclusive lodges in Africa. Safari Chic photograph's can help you find inspiration that will transform your home into a special Safari paradise of your own. There is even a list in the back that will direct you to stores that will carry exotic items to help with your decorating needs!
   
   I would recommend this book to anyone that is into "Safari" or decorating in general. It has lot's of useful information & the layout is easy to navigate.
   
   I also bought, "Simply Safari" by, Daryl & Sharna Balfour & fell in love with it! You can't go wrong with either book ... they are a must have!

1 comments about England's Lost Houses: From the Archives of Country Life.

1. In `Brideshead Revisited` Charles Ryder worries about the triumph of `Hooper`, the epitome of all that's mediocre and commonplace, over history, tradition and style. His thoughts are visualised to perfection in a deeply depressing photograph in this book, showing a brand-new street of featureless, drab modern 'cottages' perched literally on the doorstep of dilapidated Beaupre Hall, that is about to be torn down altogether. If you have any feeling at all for English country house traditions and architecture, this book will make your heart ache for all the beauty that was burnt, mutilated, abandoned and left to decay, or, most often and worst of all, deliberately demolished - at a staggering rate of one house a week during parts of the fifties. (Some offering fierce resistance though, like the domed core of magnificent Nuthall Temple, that defied all attempts at demolition and was left to itself for decades, until finally a big load of dynamite blew it away so that the M1 motorway could run its course; Nuthall's foundations remain buried underneath it).
   Well, as you can see it would be very easy to write a soppy, sentimental book about the subject - but fortunately Giles Worsley sticks to an eminently sober, scholarly (but lively!) approach. He notes that we lament the loss of 1 in 6 country houses during the 20th century, but that we might rather wonder at the fact that in a century of such huge political, economical and social changes, 5 in 6 survived! Also, he stresses that the downsizing of huge piles into something more convenient or fashionable is not a 20th century invention, but is of all ages. And who could blame the latter-day nobleman for not wanting to maintain a draughty, 150-bedroom Victorian colossus? (the Duchess of Westminster apparently once said that she thought of Eaton Hall as a town rather than a house - and a stay in the immense, British-designed Lalgarh Palace (now hotel) in Bikaner, India, has certainly taught me that Victorian buildings of that size are hardly fit for human occupation!). In fact, the 20th century is exceptional only because it was the first century to produce legislation AGAINST such activities. And finally, not all that was lost was of great historical or architectural importance - much of it was in fact second-rate, plain or downright ugly.
   Country Life liberally documented the good, the bad and the ugly (at times snubbing the ugly with elegant irony, some amusing examples of which are cited; at other times providing invaluable visual documentation to inspire later reconstructions), and the breathtaking photographs in this book seem to offer a fairly representative cross-section of all that was destroyed or downsized. The quality of the (black and white) pictures is exquisite. They show a wealth of architectural and interior detail, but many of them are also highly atmospheric, mysterious and haunting. The accompanying text is concise, instructive and always interesting (though inevitably a somewhat depressing recital of fires and bankruptcies). I was surprised, by the way, that the book contains no pictures at all of the process of destruction itself; also, for some houses that were dramatically reduced, I would have been interested to see a `before-and-after' comparison. But these are just minor quibbles. This is a magnificent book, beautifully produced on heavy, glossy paper, and is a definite must-have for anyone even remotely interested in this subject!

4 comments about The Art of Kitchen Design.

1. Nephew of Elizabeth David (the doyenne of English Food writing), and an architect by trade, Grey writes lucidly and cogently about all aspects of kitchen design. The first section of the book is a history of kitchen design through the ages with a good critique of the good and bad aspects of such kitchens. He includes lots of pictures of kitchens he has designed for various types of houses - including those for Elizabeth David (a winter kitchen and a summer kitchen no less) and for these insights alone the book is worth the price. Grey is scathing about built-in kitchens as he feels that, although they help avoid clutter, they are also devoid of humanity and warmth. Grey's kitchen's focus on the Kitchen as the centre of any house - as a place for cooking, entertaining, homework, socialising and generally enjoying your home. Kitchens should for example have lots of places to perch to encourage conversation to develop. The book contains lots of diagrams and pictures as well as some architectural style drawings to illustrate the points made in the text. Most everything you would like to know about kitchens is contained in this book which is well designed and presented. Highly recommended for foodies and home owners everywhere.



2. I am remodeling a kitchen and have bought almost every book I can lay my hands on. This book, which I had so looked forward to (on the basis, I might add, of the review posted above) is really not very good at all. The author is the nephew of Elizabeth David, England's most famous cook, a name he drops on every other page. David's kitchens, however, like many cooks of her generation, were very simple, very battered and cluttered, and not terribly inspiring (or even, from the pictures) well designed. Gray's own kitchens were designed for Smallbone, the most expensive manufacturer of bespoke kitchens. His own preference is for free standing, hand-made, beautifully constructed and unique pieces rather than for the kind of cabinetry that is semi-custom and custom fitted (typical of kitchens in the US). That preference is fine, as far as it goes, but he seems always to be dealing with extremely idiosyncratic spaces (he despises small kitchens, and almost refuses to have anything to do with them) but what looks good in a former Abbey turned private home will scarcely work in a modern American home, or even an old American home. In addition, since his focus is all on the type of wood used, the freestanding piece, etc...he has very little of use to say about the ergonomics of kitchen design. At any rate, in comparison to other books also available on Amazon, this book is a complete waste of money. The pictures, after a while, are very much of a muchness. The workmanship involved either unavailable in this country, or prohibitively expensive. The opinions expressed: either overdrawn or not that useful ("arms reach" as a measure is the single exception I can think of). If you are building or remodeling a kitchen in the US I would reccomend The Kitchen Idea book for excellent pictures and "How to renovate, remodel etc... without losing your mind" although i can't remember the author's name, off hand. Sorry for the typos, I'm using a new keyboard.--Aimai



3. This book is full of the most practical yet beautiful small to large kitchens you can imagine. All the history of kitchens is covered with photo's of old paintings to illustrate them. Tons of colour photos, and for only [money] he will build you your own kitchen! This is the best kitchen book I have found. A good addition to it is, "Dream Kitchens: Recipes And Ideas For Modern Kitchens" ISBN: 1571458492



4. I am confronted with the remodeling of my kitchen (status post water leak and Great Dane deconstruction project!) so I am casting about for ideas with which to plan my project. I've already enrolled in a cabinet making course-a two year project in itself-so I'm in a position to get really creative with my endeavor. I've prospected for a variety of design books, finding Johnny Grey's The Art of Kitchen Design among them. The photos are wonderful, especially of the historic kitchens and of the Dutch and other classic paintings depicting kitchens. I found the history of the kitchen and it's evolution from integrated activity room to the modern concept of separate functional space an interesting one, but I found most of the author's own designs somewhat cluttered and old fashioned. Since the author evinces a certain disdain for the streamlined, convenient kitchen that arose with the advent of technology applied to the home, I suspect we would disagree over our mutual sense of design anyway. As an ICU nurse, I don't like clutter and things in the way. I like to have a place for everything and everything in its place. Kitchens (and bathrooms) are dangerous places, I see no reason to accentuate the problem. I did like the author's gothic look, primarily because it's rather novel in a kitchen, but my husband vetoed it because it looks too "churchy (he's a "devout" atheist).

   While the book is an attractive and informative one, I found most of the ideas required far more space than I have in my kitchen or a major remodeling of the space I do have to achieve anything like the ambiance presented in the book.

No comments about Xtreme Interiors (Xtreme).

4 comments about Home Storage Projects: Creative Solutions for Every Room of the House.

1. Paul Anthony's new 'Home Storage Projects' from Taunton Press is not a run-of-the-mill 'store-it' campaign. He teaches fine woodworking along the way, with items as simple as a CD cabinet or pantry door storage. For those who want more complicated pieces, he offers a bench with curved, sleigh-bed end handles and a built-in of under-bed storage with a pedestal and drawers that roll out on both sides. He shows how to construct a printer stand that looks elegant enough to be a display case in a living room.

   A long kitchen work station, a file cabinet, and a desktop organizer designed for real storage of work at hand, are some of the projects included. A mobile closet for guests, a man's jewelry box, and a medicine cabinet with a locking partition for drugs, are all presented with design options for fitting to required spaces or use.

   The author offers up shop jigs for mitered clamping cauls, spline miter mortises and tapering. Hints show how to set router depth for leaf hinges in an instant, how to spring a batten for a fair curve, and how to install a full mortise lock. Producing these projects off the fully illustrated instructions would be a basic course in woodworking, with guidance in resawing, joinery and simple finishes.

   The nice thing about this book is that the author never forgets to inform the reader why he is doing something, so it all makes sense as you go along. Illustrations and photos are clear and move the work along step by step. Selecting a space in the home, then designing a project to fill that space, is one of the best ways to learn design and construction techniques, and that is where this book succeeds so well. From small projects to large, there are useful pieces here for nearly everyone.
   
   

2. Taunton Press realizes that a how-to book must not only deliver in content, but must be able to stand the abuse that taking it to the shop can cause. They use a slick cover and page material that looks like it could be damp-mopped many times without wilting. The content will also pass the test of time without wilting also. Anthony has brought six great woodworkers, including himself, to take on thirteen different storage projects.

   There is probably not a project in this book that anyone would have a problem with. The attention to detail is amazing; from the complete and accurate cut-lists, to the step by step written procedure for each operation with outstanding photographs to illustrate what tool or machine to use. We have all been advised to do "dry clamp-ups" to make sure of glueing sequence and optimum clamp placement. This is covered in detail on almost every project.

   For those of you who are Turners, you get your chance on the legs of the Storage Bench, and Allen Spooner shows how to book-match veneer for the Man's Jewelry Box.

   I have found Anthony's book to be more than worthwhile addition to my library, and I am sure you will also. Where else can you get working drawings, great instructions and photographs for thirteen projects for this price?




3. The best part of this book is the first twenty two pages. Paul explains customizing and planning a design to fit your need and then goes into working with different materials. He even explains and has a drawing to show the proper way to install a screw. His information on joinery is easy to understand with the shop drawings to help explain them. Most people think you need a large selection of tools to build a project, not so as is demonstrated with the list Paul gives you. Layout and stock preperation along with the triangular marking system is information every woodworker should know to make a project easier to build, and finally someone gives us a simple finish to put on a project instead of worrying about using expensive spray equipment. Throughout the book there are many tips that can be applied to any project. The photos are great, the book is well written with some fantastic projects anyone would be proud to show off in their home. Thanks Paul for a great addition to my library and my shop.



4. Paul does a good job of explaining the construction process,lavishly illustrated with clear photos and drawings. There are many nice projects by the author and others.

   This book is perfect for the beginning to intermediate woodworker who has a table saw and plate joiner and needs some guidance on how to use them on projects. Also ideal for swiping ideas or just learning how to do some simple case construction.

2 comments about 100 Turn-of-the-Century House Plans.

1. This is a reprint of Radford's 1909 Plan Book and (may I one day be forgiven for saying this, but), some of these houses were ugly. I mean really and truly UGLY.
   
   But some of them weren't so bad. If you were a wanna-be homeowner (almost) 100 years ago, you'd peruse the pages and pick out a house that suited your needs and your pocketbook. Then you'd send in a few bucks (typically $5 or so) and receive a full set of blueprints that you'd use to build your dream house.
   
   The quality of this reprint is good and this is a fun read, if for no other reason than to get an idea of the evolution of American architecture.
   
   Rose
   author, The Houses That Sears Built
   co-author, California's Kit Homes



2. This book was as useless as the German version of Strarwars that I received on Amazon