The French-Inspired Home, with French General

Book Description

Kaari Meng’s first-hand knowledge of what makes a beautiful, French-inspired home comes from years of combing French flea markets for unique treasures. Her popular shop, French General, offers handpicked linens and collectibles from her yearly visits to the south of France, plus an array of products to awaken the senses, from bath and laundry potions to ribbons, beads, and baubles. Here, she distills her much sought-after sensibility into 40 charming projects that capture the sights, scents, and textures of the French countryside. They include lavender sachets, lovely etched glasses, pillows, covered hangers, French potting boxes, and herbal lotions.

A Selection of the Homestyle Book Club.

Customer Reviews:

Every page is a treasure!!.......2007-08-18

I read this book from first page to last right after I opened it from the mail. It is filled with inspiration, helpful hints, decorating ideas, and an archive of full colored images that you can scan into your computer and use yourself. I love how she does not force her shop onto the reader, she states that you can find the items that she is explaining at flea markets and antique sales all over the world. I would rate this book 5 stars, for helpful insight into creating a "french inspired home." Cant wait for the next one!!

Disappointed.......2007-08-08

I must say I was disappointed in the book. I thought that it would have been more ideas of what furniture and fabrics to use to create a French inspired looking home.
I am in the processing of trying to create a French looking kitchen and I had hoped that would be inspiring.
But unfortunately for me it wasn't.

Defining What Is French Decorating or a French Home.......2007-06-12

I would have given this book 3-stars, if I hadn't read the 5-star view of C Albers. I realize that perhaps I didn't read the fine print regarding the book's description. Based on the title "French-Inspired Home" with French General -- who I don't know, I expected a book with a greater focus on rooms (a suggestion also made by Albers). In fact it is essentially a vintage crafts book with a French flavor.

I've visited Paris and the south of France well over 250 times on business and pleasure, and this particular style of French decorating is not prevalent. In fact, the most inspiring to me aspect of French decorating is the mix of old and new, ornate and clean modern. I spent two nights at the Louvre in Jan. 07 and marveled that only the French would be flashing modern blue lights on a heap (truly) of ancient Greek and Roman columns, with modern dancers and acid jazz playing to create a "new" mood for ancient art. THIS is French imagination at its best.

The photos in this book, while lovely, are stylized in a very old-fashioned attitude . . . great-grandmother's attic. Most of us don't live this way and what we appreciate are touches of these special memories, not an entire house full of them. Who has time to dust. Just kidding. Some of the bath projects look like easy pampering to make for yourself or special gifts to create.

In summary, if you know French General, then I would follow the Alber's review and 5-star recommendation. If you are expecting a sophisticated book of French home and country decorating, this is not it. Like me, you will be disappointed. A more descriptive and informative title would have saved me the money.

Bravo!.......2007-05-29

Charming book brimming with inspiration - well done! The photography is wonderful! Geared to encourage shoppers to visit Meng's store (brick & morter and on-line), you'll want to incorporate all of her ideas. Lots of how-to's. Meng's creativity and ideas are not just crafty - she looks to Europe for clues to create a relaxed French life. C'est tres bonne.

The French-Inspired Home.......2007-05-09

If you are looking for pictures of French decorated homes this is not the book you want. This was more like a craft book on how to make things for the French home. If thats what you are looking for it is a good book, I wasn't. If you want pictures and ideas buy Charles Faudree's Country French Living.

Where Women Create: Inspiring Work Spaces of Extraordinary Women

Average customer rating:

AWESOME
Visually pleasing
Casual Cottage Chic favorite
Inspiring
Where Women Create

Where Women Create: Inspiring Work Spaces of Extraordinary Women
Jo Packham
Manufacturer: Sterling/Chapelle
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Guides | Job Hunting & Careers | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Decorating | Interior Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

General | Interior Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

Style | Interior Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

Organizing Your Craft Space
Fanciful Paper Projects: Making Your Own Posh Little Follies
Alphabetica: An A-Z Creativity Guide for Collage and Book Artists (Quarry Book)
Pretty Little Things: Collage Jewelry, Trinkets, Keepsakes
Creating Your Perfect Quilting Space: Sewing-Room Makeovers for Any Space And Any Budget

ASIN: 1402712294

Book Description

More than twenty superstars from the world of crafting--including Anna Corba, April Cornell, Sandi Genovese, and Andrea Grossman--offer their expert advice on how to design a work space where creativity can blossom. Like the bestselling Business of Bliss, it's practical, inspirational, and beautiful to behold.

Research by Craft Trends Magazine reveals that 89% of all crafters are women, and that they want to work in an environment conducive to creating their art. This invaluable and very special guide helps them achieve that goal, whatever their passion. It goes straight to the experts: successful women who have made their mark in more than 10 different creative fields. These top designers and artisans offer insights gleaned from years of experience, reveal how they constructed their own creative spaces, and explain how the reader can make practical use of these decorating, organizational, and inspirational techniques as they go about designing their own work areas. Among the pertinent questions they answer: Where did you like to work as a child? What's the most important thing about having your own place to work? Are women's creative spaces different from men's? How important is it for you to organize your work, and how do you do it? Do you listen to music when you work--and what kind? The featured designers include Wendy Addison, Dena Fishbein, Jill Schwartz, and Suze Weinberg and their fields range from paper crafts to gardening.
A Selection of the Crafters Choice Book Club & the Homestyle Book Club.

Customer Reviews:

AWESOME.......2007-08-31

This book is one that I will page through again and again. I found
the work spaces of these woman, creative, fun, and totally beautiful
and charming. There are so many different ideas, and at the end of the book, you
are wishing to see even more. This book is worth every penny, and I will refer
to it now, and in the future, for inspiration.

Visually pleasing.......2007-08-11

While I was hoping for more this was a visually pleasing book. I enjoyed seeing how different creative women utilized their space. I would have like to see more spaces

Casual Cottage Chic favorite .......2007-08-05

What a delight to find many of our favorite artists in their working spaces. Cindy Ellis is one of our favorite artists...delighted to have a peak inside her studio, and studio's of many other creative women. They are all an inspiration to design and color!

Inspiring.......2007-08-03

For those of us who live and work in our creative spaces, this book is a great inspiration. It really helped me dream bigger about my work space, and gave me some great ideas on how to organize for beauty as well as funtion.

If you love vintage details (and even not) this book presents wonderful references for organizing and creating a workspace that is personal and inviting. Some of the artists studio spaces really push the idea of craft storage... Also the women featured in the book, who have used their art to make a business for themselves, can be empowering. Great photos, a good deocorating resource book for the price.

Where Women Create.......2007-07-07

I enjoyed the variety of creative women they featured. The photos were helpful and I got a lot of ideas for my new studio.

House Beautiful 750 Designer Secrets: Exclusive Design Ideas from the Pros (House Beautiful)

Average customer rating:

Pretty pics, not much else
Informative and Inspirational
Top designer secrets revealed

House Beautiful 750 Designer Secrets: Exclusive Design Ideas from the Pros (House Beautiful)
Inc. Sterling Publishing Co.
Manufacturer: Hearst
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Crafts & Hobbies | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

Decorating | Interior Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

General | Interior Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

Style | Interior Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

Home Improvement | Home & Garden | Bargain Books | Stores | Books

Interior Decorating | Home & Garden | Bargain Books | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

It's All in the Details: A Decorating Workshop (House Beautiful)
Ready, Set, Decorate: The Complete Guide to Getting It Right Every Time (House Beautiful)
Candice Olson on Design
Country Living 750 Great Ideas for Decorating on a Budget: Transform Your Home Inside & Out
Beautiful Interiors: An Expert's Guide to Creating a More Liveable Home

ASIN: 1588164764

Book Description

House Beautiful gives us an inside look at how interior designers create their magic. It's savvy, elegant, inspiring, and sure to equal the success of 750 Decorating & Design Ideas, which has sold nearly 65,000 copies.

Even those of us with great taste and a natural talent for decorating know that there are certain insider design skills and secrets accessible only to professionals with years of experience. House Beautiful: 750 Designer Secrets gives everyone access to this precious knowledge. This spectacular, expansive collection of more than 400 photographs leaves no doorknob unturned, as some of the country's most creative decorators reveal their design know-how. They'll help amateurs understand scale and proportion, as well as how to decorate with color and pattern, add atmospheric lighting, shape the shell, hang and showcase art, and fix up small spaces. There is ample advice on creating family-friendly areas, bedroom basics, smart storage, and outdoor rooms. Take advantage of House Beautiful's unrestricted pass to the world of interior design! A Main Selection of the Homestyle Book Club.

Customer Reviews:

Pretty pics, not much else.......2007-09-04

The book is lovely, but it could've been so much better if it had more desciptions of what you're looking at. Instead, it's full of little phrases that may be helpful, but they are also somewhat pithy. I wish I had purchased a couple of magazine subscriptions instead.

Informative and Inspirational.......2006-07-28

I love looking at House Beautiful books. I find the pictures to be inspirational. However, I usually don't think the text is very informative. I was pleasantly surprised to find House Beautiful 750 Designer Secrets to be an exception to the rule. It does contain beautiful photographs, but the "secrets" are useful and/or inspirational comments by designers. I have to admit I don't recognize the names of most of them, but I find the information to be consistent with other interior design/decoration books I have read. The quotes may not always be particulary earthshattering, but there were enough good ones to justify giving House Beautiful 750 Designer Secrets a 5. Out of 750 quotes you are bound to find something that is useful to you!

Now, just to give you a clear picture of what the book does and does not have to offer: no where is there a set of explicit instructions for how to incoporate the comments dirtectly to your home, but that is not the intention of the book. It is suppose to make you think for yourself how to add your own sense of style to your house. The book is set up so that there is a picture or two on a page and quotes by several different designers. The pictures illustrate the comments. I choose the following quotes because I thought that they are good advice and/or they made me rethink how I decorate my rooms.

"The most important thing is what you feel when you walk into a room." Benjamin Noriega-Ortiz

"Not interfering with views is decorating 101." Scott Salvator

"You don't need a lot of elements to create a dynamic effect." Jeffrey Marks

"Anchor a large room with a sense of symmetry." (quote from the author).

"I edit rigourously for scale, form, and color." Celeste Cooper

"Incorporate a common thread-such as a neutral color-to unify electric furnishings." Kelly Harmon

The one drawback to the book for some people might be that the pictures portray a similar style of decoration. If you like a mix of modern and antique, you will probably like the book, but those who like other styles, may or may not enjoy the pictures in the book. However, I think that the information given by the designers applies to any style.

Top designer secrets revealed.......2006-03-19

House Beautiful Magazine specializes in award-winning interior design presentations, so you know that when they lend their name to a collection, professionals are involved. Their top designers reveal secrets, provide room makeovers, and pack in over four hundred color photos from selected superior interiors. Utility blends with art in 750 DESIGNER SECRETS: EXCLUSIVE DESIGN IDEAS FROM THE PROS, which tells how to shape and tailor a design project for maximum efficiency and best visual results.

Mid-Century Modern: Interiors, Furniture, Design Details (Conran Octopus Interiors)

Average customer rating:

Great Design Ideas
Mid Century Modern
mid-centry modern: interiors, furniture, design details
interesting but lite
Get the fifties look for your contemporary home

Mid-Century Modern: Interiors, Furniture, Design Details (Conran Octopus Interiors)
Bradley Quinn
Manufacturer: Conran
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Architecture | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books

General | Crafts & Hobbies | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

Furniture | How-to & Home Improvements | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

General | Interior Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

All Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Arts & Photography | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

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Professional | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

Mid-Century Modern: Furniture of the 1950s
Modern Retro: Living With Mid-Century Modern Style (Compact Paperbacks)
Modernism Reborn: Mid-Century American Houses
Atomic Ranch
Modern Retro: Living With Mid-Century Modern Style

ASIN: 1840914068

Book Description

The 1950’s house was a scientific triumph, designed in a laboratory and tested on inhabitants of all ages before being built for the masses. Never had homes been so thoroughly contemporary, with antiques and period styles entirely banished. Mid-Century Modern explores the interior decor of this seminal decade, concentrating on all aspects of a home's decoration—walls, flooring, surfaces, lighting, and, of course, furniture. Case studies examine beautiful present-day homes that exhibit mid-century style in an exemplary way, and suggest ideas for taking the 1950’s look—complete with collector's pieces—and mixing and matching it with elements from other eras.

Customer Reviews:

Great Design Ideas.......2007-09-06

This book is filled with spectacular color photos of mid-century modern home interiors. Lots of ideas here for color schemes, furniture layout and incorporating mid-century aspects into any room of your home.

Mid Century Modern.......2007-08-01

An absolutely stunning book & a must for any mid ce
ntury enthusiast. Fabulous photographs & narration.
Very inspiring.

mid-centry modern: interiors, furniture, design details.......2007-05-12

this book is very good if you are interested in retro, modern design. I highly recommend this book.

interesting but lite.......2007-01-16

Great overview of MCM style, but not as complete of descriptive as I expected.

Get the fifties look for your contemporary home.......2006-10-01

Could someone possibly put together a better tome on Mid-Century Modern interiors than this exquisite piece by Bradley Quinn? They'd have one helluva tough time trying.

This book is fairly short and slim, yet every single page and photograph has relevance. Each photograph is of some aspect of a home interior and is absolutely fantastic. Not a single wasted shot. I'm assuming that the majority of people interested in this book are admirers of 1950s decor and would like to incorporate elements of this into their homes. What is so wonderful about this book is that the pictures themselves are of contemporary homes that have been decorated in that Mid-Century style, resulting in achieving that look without appearing dated - certainly the effect that I'm striving for! You want elegant beige lounges or loud primary colored kitchens? It's all here. And you just gotta dig the living room on p.42! Wow - have red and yellow ever been used to such devastating effect in such circumstances? And this is just one example of many.

Although it's doubtful that people buy books like these for their text, I think in this case, they'll be glad they did. Quinn discusses at great length the various components that made up the Modern style, providing tremendously useful ideas for home decor. He doesn't get into tedious sociological analysis like so many of these type of books do. Instead, he goes straight to the interesting stuff - how mid-century modern arose within the history of design, the components of the architecture and the lifestyles of the homeowners back then. Each chapter is broken down into a different aspect of decor - color, materials, lighting etc. Why can't all interior design books be arranged in this way?

I can absolutely recommend this book to anyone looking for '50s ideas for their home. I doubt I'd ever need to buy another book on this topic. Unless Quinn sticks in more pictures for a second edition.

Victoria Intimate Home: Creating a Private World (Victoria Magazine)

Average customer rating:

Victoria Magazine

Victoria Intimate Home: Creating a Private World (Victoria Magazine)

Manufacturer: Hearst
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Crafts & Hobbies | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

Decorating | Interior Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

General | Interior Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

Home Improvement | Home & Garden | Bargain Books | Stores | Books

Interior Decorating | Home & Garden | Bargain Books | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

Victorian Details: Decorating Tips & Easy-to-Make Projects
Victoria Designers in Residence: The Personal Style of Top Women Decorators and Designers
Victoria Romantic Touches: Charming Handmade Projects for Every Room ("Victoria")
Victoria The Pleasures of Tea: Recipes and Rituals
Carolyn Westbrook Home

ASIN: 1588164225

Book Description

Victoria magazine pays tribute to private spaces, special places where a joyful love of life thrives and every day offers a round of pleasures. With the help of the magazine’s experts and 85 exquisite color photos, a haven can exist right in your very own home. All it takes is some imaginative decorating and “emotional furnishings” devoted to your personal pursuits. For example, you might install a cushioned window seat for solitary reverie, keep a basket with stationery and pen at the ready, or showcase favorite collectibles that will delight your eye. Bedrooms and baths emphasize grace and light, with creamy linens, flowery coverlets, and gossamer-sheer curtains. Inspirational writings from beloved authors such as Virginia Woolf, Balzac, and Saki accompany the superb photos.

Customer Reviews:

Victoria Magazine.......2007-06-08

I loved this magazine and the books I have found that they sold when the magazine was being sold are just wonderful..This book was in great shape, came fast and I just love it........thank you

Victoria Designers in Residence: The Personal Style of Top Women Decorators and Designers

Average customer rating:

Beautiful Book with Lovely Photos
Victoria Magazine's book on various Designer's Homes

Victoria Designers in Residence: The Personal Style of Top Women Decorators and Designers
Claire Whitcomb
Manufacturer: Hearst
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Decorating | Interior Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

General | Interior Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

Style | Interior Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

Home Improvement | Home & Garden | Bargain Books | Stores | Books

Interior Decorating | Home & Garden | Bargain Books | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

Victoria Intimate Home: Creating a Private World (Victoria Magazine)
Jessica McClintock's Simply Romantic Decorating: Creating Elegance and Intimacy Throughout Your Home
Carolyn Westbrook Home
Victorian Details: Decorating Tips & Easy-to-Make Projects
Victoria Romantic Touches: Charming Handmade Projects for Every Room ("Victoria")

ASIN: 1588164977

Customer Reviews:

Beautiful Book with Lovely Photos.......2007-07-22

This is another lovely book by Victoria. It's filled with page after page of beautiful photographs in a range of styles including shabby-chic, vintage flea market, traditional, Victorian, country, European and my favorite, decorating with whites & creams. This is not a how-to book, but a wonderful one to enjoy with a cup of tea, curled up on your favorite chair. You will not find contemporary design in this book. Although I am not partial to bright colors, every designer showcased in this book has a lovely home with warmth and inviting comfort. I would have given this book a 5 star rating if all of the designs were in a soft dreamy color palette. For those of you who enjoy the same, there are 5 designers and plenty of pages filled with lovely photographs, including the queen of shabby chic, Rachel Ashwell.

Victoria Magazine's book on various Designer's Homes.......2007-06-14

When "Victoria Magazine" first came out in the very early 1990's (or late 1980s) , it was the first of it's kind. I just loved it, and subscribed to it until it stopped being marketed. (By the way, this was before magazines such as ROMANTIC HOMES became popular in the late 1990's).

If you are familiar with the typical format of VICTORIA MAGAZINE, then you can envision what this book is like.

The photos are of the highest quality,just like in the magazine.

The format is the same as the magazine, in that there are many WONDERFUL photos, but note that this is NOT a decorating "how-to" book.

I would categorize this book as a lovely coffee table book. A feast for the eyes, especially if you love romantic homes.

However, if you are drawn to the more typical "modern" homes, or the bright colors of the current retro homes, then this book is not for you.

As I said, this book is for those that like "romantic style" homes of the 1990's & early 2000's, (with the more muted colors).

Conjugal Love in India: Ratisastra and Ratiramana. Text, Translation, and Notes (Sir Henry Wellcome Asian Series, 1)

Average customer rating:

Conjugal Love in India: Ratisastra and Ratiramana. Text, Translation, and Notes (Sir Henry Wellcome Asian Series, 1)
Kenneth G. Zysk
Manufacturer: Brill Academic Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Architecture | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books

General | World | History | Subjects | Books

General | Interior Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

General | Social Sciences | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

General | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

jp-unknown3 | Specialty Stores | Books
ASIN: 9004125981

Book Description

The purpose of Ratiśāstra was to provide instruction and advice to young Hindu couples before and after they cohabit as a couple. The desired outcome of lovemaking has always been, according to Hindu law and custom, the production of male issues. Conjugal love or "Ratiśāstra" is the means to assure that auspicious result.

Kenneth Zysk's Conjugal Love in India is a study of traditional Hindu ideas about love in the domestic abode, and deals with the two principal Sanskrit treatises on the subject, Ratiśāstra and Ratiramaṇa. These two works, leaving no stone unturned, cover every aspect of conjugal life, from the finding and selection of a suitable pair to procreation. With an introduction that situates the doctrine of conjugal love (ratiśāstra) and the texts that explain it in the history of brahminic scholasticism.

This work will help to elucidate aspects of Indian history and culture in the medieval and modern periods, and will provide a good basis for comparative studies with similar themes in other cultures.

Country Living Crafting Vintage Style: Charming Projects for Home & Garden
Average customer rating:

Charming!

Nice, could be better

This book is not worth purchasing.

Country Living Crafting Vintage Style: Charming Projects for Home & Garden
Christina Strutt , and The Editors of Country Living
Manufacturer: Hearst
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Decorating | Crafts & Hobbies | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
General | Crafts & Hobbies | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
Textile Arts | Crafts & Hobbies | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

The French-Inspired Home, with French General

Comfortable Country

Romantic Home Sewing: Cottage-Style Projects to Stitch for the Home

Where Women Create: Inspiring Work Spaces of Extraordinary Women

Quick Country Decorating: Ideas for every season (Country Home)

ASIN: 1588162419

Customer Reviews:

Charming!.......2006-11-22

I do a lot of crafting so don't need a lot of directions, just incredible thought provoking, inspiring, make you feel like you are there breathing the country air, romantic. So... this is one of those books I sift through over and over again, love the book covers with the ties, love the fabrics and the country prints and the sigh...pillows! Absolutely adore this book, so glad I purchased in spite of the reviews. It is trully one of my very favorites what to sew, make with fabric books. Don't be fooled by the 'crafting vintage style, charming projects for home and garden' title, this is all fabric projects, not beeswax candles or other neat ones, but all dreamy blue flowers on white linen, pin stripe, country fabrics that dreams are made of.

Nice, could be better.......2005-08-21

This book has some really nice pictures, and I do love the fabrics she uses throughout.(Cabbages & Roses, out of England.)The book could have been more creative with it's project ideas, and DEFINATELY could have used better "instructions". All that said, I LOVED the ideas for covering sturdy boxes with pretty fabric and for covering books with pretty fabric.

This book is not worth purchasing........2003-05-17

A few pretty pictures and little substance. I purchased this book and her "Decorating Vintage Style". Very few ideas in either book - pretty cover, a few pictures, very little text. Neither are worth the purchase price. If you are looking for a vintage decorating or craft book, any other than these would be a better investment. For example, in the craft book, she shows, with very limited instructions and a picture or two, how to make a duvet cover. Then you use the exact same technique to make a pillow cover. For your next craft, you use the exact same technique to make an herbal slumber pillow. At 92 pages and just a few "crafts", you really are loosing when she spends a quarter of the book "teaching" (very loose definition here) you to use the same technique over and over. I think she was just using filler to get a book out. I was extremely disappointed in both of her books.

You are also given "instructions" on how to make a celebration skirt. Later in the book you find the exact same instructions on how to make a summer skirt. She did the same thing with a few blankets, too. You will not glean any new ideas from this book, I'm quite sure. And if you are a complete beginner at sewing, her instructions are not sufficient. If you are an experienced sewist or crafts person, you've probably already made everything in the book.

The book contains "30 stunning projects that will make a room loving and warm". They are:
Scalloped shelf edging, simple slipcovers, summer curtain, basin skirt (using velcro hang gathered fabric from sink), heart shape cushion (cut a heart shape - stuff), beaded pot cover (trim a piece of fabric with lace and beads - hang over a pot), storage boxes (purchased boxes covered with your fabric), fabric covered basket, greeting cards (fold a piece of cardstock - decorate - my children do this all the time), cozy cushions (instructions repeated throughout book on different projects), clothespin board (nail clothespins to a board), dog blanket, dog bowl mat (cover board with some oilcloth), herbal slumber pillow (same techniques as cushions), duvet cover (basically same technique as cushions), summer skirt, scented sachets - sew a tube, tie with a ribbon, laundry bags (sew a sack - insert a cord)), plaid teddy bear (cut out teddy bear shape - stuff - my children thought it was kind of ugly), celebration skirt (same as summer skirt but embroider with running stitches Merry Christmas (or something else) along hem), tab headed curtains (same as summer curtains basically), fabric roses (strips of unhemmed fabrics gathered into a "rose", gardener's apron (you make your own pattern from looking at her picture), linen-covered journal, frayed napkins (edge stitch pieces of linen and fray. She does not tell you to pull a thread to get these on grain as it will not turn out if you don't), lined picnic basket (using your own pattern cut fabric to line your wire or wicker basket), child's play tent (edge finish some fabric and hang over a clothesline), beach rug (edge finish some fabric). That's it. The same techniques repeated.

Any of my children's crafts books are cheaper and contain much more in the way of ideas and instructions.

Good points:
The photos are nice, as the author used to be a stylist for magazines. Her fabrics are pretty too. She owns Cabbages and Roses and uses her products throughout the book.

The Art of Kitchen Design
Average customer rating:

Somewhat cluttered and old fashioned

Delicious Kitchens.

Not at all Useful

All you need to know

The Art of Kitchen Design
Johnny Grey
Manufacturer: Cassell
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Crafts & Hobbies | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
Design & Construction | Home Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
Kitchens | Remodeling & Renovation | Home Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
General | Interior Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
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Kitchen Culture: Re-inventing Kitchen Design

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Joan Kohn's It's Your Kitchen: Over 100 Inspirational Kitchens

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ASIN: 184188085X

Book Description

“Included in the dozen or so kitchens illustrated and written about are the use of inlays, pane decorations, plate and hanging racks, and freestanding dressers and cupboards. A true dream and wish book from a man [honored] as the world’s best kitchen designer.”—Booklist. “Mr. Grey has built dozens of kitchens, some for celebrities like Sting. He is a kitchen design detective and problem-solver, first and foremost.”—The New York Times.

Customer Reviews:

Somewhat cluttered and old fashioned.......2003-02-25

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.

Delicious Kitchens........2002-12-20

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

Not at all Useful.......2000-09-27

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

All you need to know.......2000-05-10

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.

Average customer rating:

A dream of a book

Country Style
Judith Miller , and Martin Miller
Manufacturer: Mitchell Beazley
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Architecture | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books

General | Crafts & Hobbies | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

General | Interior Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

Professional Reference | Interior Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

Style | Interior Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 185732465X

Book Description

Welcome the definitive book on a perennially popular approach to decorating. People love country-style design because it celebrates simplicity, warmth, and the enduring rural tradition—and this informative volume beautifully traces its origins. It features more than 400 stunning photographs of homes throughout Europe and North America that convey the country essence, while all the essential stylistic elements (furniture, floor and wall surfaces, and architectural details) are covered in detail.

Customer Reviews:

A dream of a book.......2001-01-03

This book is a dream. If you like warmth, wood, natural finishes, natural shapes, a relative degree of simplicity where humaness rather than layers of chinz fabric or in-human white lines rules, truth, age and interiors full of love, then this is the most wonderful book on the subject I have ever seen. Of course its dominated by hundreds of full page, color photographs, each one stunning.

The main body of the book (about two thirds) is dominataed by chapters which divide up interior looks according to different countries. Miller covers English Country style, American colonial, Scandinavian/Swedish, Italin and Spanish plus a couple of others. Under each country, we get a tour of a number of special houses which represent the country style of that land. Under Italy, a beautiful Tuscan villa is visited room by room. Under England, a mid-sized Elizabethan home. And so on.

The remainder of the book, is divided into chapters which look at country style according to different rooms: kitchens, living rooms, bedrooms etc. Also a brief, but enlightening tour of country style through the ages - ie by period.

What more could you ask for? Sensational, utterly inspiring photographs - (is the text EVER really that useful in these sort of books?) Incidentally, if you love wood for your interiors, I also HIGHLY recommend Wooden Houses by the same author. all just glorious and real and definitely make one want to either move out of the city or somehow bring the warmth and beauty of this style into one's town house.

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