Last missed post from April: DOMINO The Book of Decorating

DOMINO The Book of Decorating: A Room By Room Guide To Creating A Home That Makes You Happy by Domino Editors Deborah Needleman, Sara Ruffin Costello ^ Dara Caponigro   271 pages

A very user friendly book with illustrations throughout and down to earth explanations that any one can understand and pretty much follow without too much strife   I particularly liked how they explained why certain things go together even though they might be different styles and how to play on your color palette throughout the room to bind the look together as a cohesive theme and how to add one amazing thing or bright color surprise to really make a room pop.   This book added a new wrinkle to my brain and gave me new eyes to see what a space could become. I really liked this book,  It was like taking Decorating 101.   I highly recommend it to anyone who loves to see the fabulous decorating ideas of others and they tell you to steal their ideas!  Bravo, good book.

- Shirley J.  (email missed by Jen O.)

House Beautiful: Think Small:

House Beautiful: Think Small:  Make the Most of Every Square Foot by House Beautiful (Editor)       Hardback Book: 160 pages                  

What a beautiful book.   I have always been fascinated with how other people decorate their homes.   I love to go on informal tours through any one’s house I am lucky enough to visit to see the way they place their furniture, what types of pieces they choose for their homes and the beloved things they use to express their likes and what they are saying with the how of the items they allow in and what each means to the home owner who is offering a view into their worlds.    I notice the colors they choose, the fabrics they use.   I am the type of person who orients my world with things that feel good, soft cozy and fluffy are winners with me, quirky, eclectic because my thoughts and likes jump all over the place and change from time to time are dear to my heart because my interests vary and I thrive on different from the norm just to shake things up now and then.    Also, though I have space to play with, the spaces are all different, some small or odd size so I am always on the look for fun ways to do a lot with a little space yet, have that space to make a statement and be visibly and tangibly pleasing to me.   Plus let’s just get it out there, I have a lot of stuff that doesn’t necessarily seem to go together, so, I love to see other people’s ideas on how they put their sentimental,  beloved or just fun eye-catching stuff or even collections of like things or things that make a bold statement together.   Sometimes one might want to say a lot about their personality with the way they display their goods, other times you might enjoy being a little mysterious letting others guess at what you were thinking when you put a particular set of items together – what is your “why?” to make sense of seemingly random groupings?    What is the meaning each item brings to you and what is your reasoning for sharing that with all who enter your abode?    This book is phenomenal from a decorating sense.    It shows how to pack a lot in a small space and look absolutely gorgeous without looking overdone or as if the room is bulging at the seams.    It shows how to place furniture at angles or in unique ways so as to make many beautiful and colorful dreams bring awe to your casual observing friends, family or visitors.   These rooms are magnificent whether the room is cut-off in odd dimenstions, whether it is lit by natural light or whether it is enhanced by dark glossy paint that becomes a character itself within the room.    It shows how to even make piles of things look “right” in the setting.    And how to cleverly play with space and mirrors and light and colors to bring a tiny room appear larger or an overly large space look intimate.   I adore books like this.    I love learning other people’s beautifying tricks and how unusual things can become amazing works of art not just to you because you love them but are made breathtakingly beautiful to all who view them and who want to take away the exquisiteness of your array and your ideas for making your home gallery perfect while retaining a cozy I want to stay here forever feel.    I love the ideas and illustrations found in this book and I lingered over all of them appreciating each and thoroughly loving each individual or partnerships purveying the magnificence of seeing into their souls.   Beautiful!   This book is a sensory experience for the eye, the mind and the exploration of transforming one’s things within the space we call our own which could be a science in itself of the who that we are inside ourselves that only lucky few get to experience along with us.      This book is so good it is transcendent.   I loved it!    It is not just a read or a visualization of what you see and what you could create within your own world from this inspiration it is an experience.   I recommend this to anyone especially those interested in the love of expressing themselves through interior design.  You will find a multitude of ideas here.

 - Shirley J

The Scandinavian Home: Interiors Inspired by Light

The Scandinavian Home:  Interiors Inspired by Light by Niki Brantmark             Hardback Book: 176 pages            

I’ve been on a Scandinavian kick lately.   You’ll note some of my earlier blogs mention books on the Scandinavian way that promotes having enough – not sparse, not over indulgent – just enough to feel right.    This plays out in the interior decorating of Scandinavian homes, too.    Having things that you love and not a lot of excess leaves clean lines, and interesting things to catch the eye and delight the esthetic senses.    Scandinavians prefer to use a lot of interesting mixes of textures in their homes.   Natural pieces reign.    Wood or carved furniture is a dominant feature.     White walls are favored as they allow more light into the room in a geographic location that has long dark winter phases to get through.    Glass and silver relective pieces add not just interest to a room but cleverly add sparkle and illumination.     Sensory pleasures for the eye are everywhere from beautiful repurposed antiques to the gentle feel of fur blankets and throws left on chairs and sofas as if inviting visitors and homeowners to come enjoy the luxury of their comfort.    Mirrors give the illusion of vast space even in small areas.   They offer the impression of open space even in tight quarters.   Mirrors also capture light and expand it softening shadows and delivering a convivial feel to a room or a welcoming to a new space in a hallway or entryway.    Nature indoors is often found regardless the style or tone of a room be it bohemian chic growing herbs in a windowsill or geraniums set on a table or a large plant residing in a cubby of the family room or library.   Color becomes a character residing in a room rather than just a theme repeated here and there throughout.    A signature piece within a room of starkly white background walls pops in a bright beautiful color of teal or purple, sunny yellow, kelly green it speaks of the personality of its owner as well as the time put in to please the eyes of the beholder whether family, friends or lucky visitors stopping by.   Lots of unique items stand alone in their glory almost a presence in their own rite.   Windows are important in Scaninavian architecture and are respected for the views the offer both outside and inside.   Like openings to dreams – step inside or stay a voyeur to something wonderful – those fyords weren’t put there for nothing!   Throughout the book I found a purposeful elegance to all the illustrations included.    Everything seems to be just right and serves a purpose for being where it is and how it is displayed.    The Scandinavian taste does not require a lot of busy walls – often nothing or just one framed something, a photo, a drawing, a painting or something meaningful to the person living there placed in a frame or placed under glass or arranged just so like finding one flower in a sea of grass beautiful in its simplicity that seems to sum up the Scandinavian style.   Relaxed, just enough,  not scant, but, artistic or better yet personal taste and touches blended with much loved pieces sometimes older pieces bought or handed down to join old and new, mixed pieces and sets that make the beholder feel good in the space.   Relaxed, well lived in, artistically pleasing places you enjoy seeing and that are so comfortable you want to linger and soak up the joy you feel from it.   Like that feeling you get from soft fluffy slippers that seem to give you a hug you mentally relax in the atmosphere.    From the photos you get a 3-D like experience you can visualize yourself being there in those rooms and gardens and it feels good.   Like getting out of the City and all its hubbub and escaping for a blissful day spent in nature or driving in the country to see a favorite friend or loved one.   Serene would be a good word for Scandinavian flavor.   Good book.    After finishing it I felt like I had visited a mountain lodge with a delightful surprise art gallery within.    Very nice.  Loved the virtual visit.  Next time I will stay for tea.  I would definetly recommend this book especially for artists, designers, want to be artists or designers and especially for folks like me who love to see how other people decorate and place things in their homes.

Interior Desecrations: Hideous Homes From The Horrible ‘70s

Interior Desecrations: Hideous Homes From The Horrible ‘70s by James Lileks, 175 pages

This book is hilarious.  The photos of the rooms alone would make a lot of people laugh but the author’s commentary throughout the book really enhances the humor.  The 1970s were truly awful for décor and this book has found some of the best (or worst, depending on how you look at it) examples of the era.  Features are rooms that are almost entirely one pattern, including the walls, floors, drapes and furniture, patterns and colors that make people want to gouge out their eyes, and ridiculous styling techniques that just make you say, “What the what?!”  This book will probably be funnier to those of us that lived through the 1970s but I think that younger people might be able to appreciate it also.