Interior Design
-- Library Journal, 09/15/2005
ABBOTT, GAIL & CATE BURREN. So Simple Window Style. c.208p. ISBN 1-58011-244-7. Creative Homeowner Eds. So Simple Upholstery. c.144p. ISBN 1-58011-238-2.
ea. vol: Creative Homeowner. (So Simple). 2005. illus. index. pap. $19.95.INTERIOR DESIGN
These two books will give an amateur do-it-yourselfer the confidence to tackle window decorating and upholstery projects. Abbott and Burren, who also coauthored So Simple Slipcovering, own the Cambridge, England–based interior design firm Angel and Blume. Here they've compiled 30 projects for curtains, shades, and accessories, some of which require no sewing, such as swags, as well as more complex projects like lined pinch-pleat draperies. Their step-by-step instructions are clearly written and effectively illustrated with color photographs. Techniques common to the projects are included on the last pages in the same lucid manner. Readers would have benefited, however, from an overview of the materials needed, as is provided in So Simple Upholstery, whose eight projects are more complex than those suggested by Abbott and Burren for window treatments but are similarly described in clearly photographed, step-by-step instructions. Beginning with the simplest project of recovering a chair seat, the projects progress to reupholstering a button-back chair and, eventually, a sofa. Both books are recommended for public libraries.
BREEN, SUSAN. Creating Your Dream Kitchen: How To Plan & Style the Perfect Space. Sterling. 2005. c.160p. illus. index. ISBN 1-4027-1960-4. $24.95.
Creative Homeowner Eds. The Best of Signature Kitchens. Creative Homeowner. 2005. c.238p. illus. ISBN 1-58011-251-X. pap. $19.95.
LEMOS, PETER. Kitchens for the Rest of Us: From the Kitchen You Have to the Kitchen You Love. Taunton, dist. by Random. Nov. 2005. c.192p. illus. ISBN 1-56158-759-1. $29.95. INTERIOR DESIGN
With the wealth of advice and ideas in these three books, homeowners will be able to make informed decisions on the various ways to redesign their kitchens. Breen (Entertaining for Wimps) dispenses practical information about real-life examples of kitchen redos. The accessible layout offers sections on countertop and flooring options and the pros and cons of what's available in storage, lighting, appliances, and sinks.
In Kitchens for the Rest of Us, Lemos, editor in chief of Home magazine, presents close to 20 real-life kitchen remodels in a variety of styles with before-and-after layouts and color photos. Each kitchen includes information on what the homeowners wanted and points out the features chosen that allowed them to realize their ideal. The experiences homeowners recount here give a real feel for what's involved in redesigning a kitchen.
The Best of Signature Kitchens features more than 100 kitchens that have appeared in Signature Kitchens and Baths magazine. The introductory chapters provide useful information on new products. Though there is little on practical design, the strength of this book lies in the color photographs. Information is also provided on design styles, special features, room dimensions, products used, and the designers' layout considerations in accommodating homeowners' needs.
Creating Your Dream Kitchen is similar to Susan Boyle Hillstrom's Design Ideas for Kitchens (see review, below), though fewer photographs and options appear in the former. Kitchens for the Rest of Us is less accessible than either Breen's or Hillstrom's book, as many of the practical tips are embedded within the real-life stories. Kitchens for the Rest of Us and Signature Kitchens are recommended for any size public library; Creating Your Dream Kitchen is for larger collections or where there is strong interest.
BUGG, CAROL DONAYRE. Creating Great Guest Rooms. Sterling. 2005. c.144p. illus. index. ISBN 1-4027-1659-1. $24.95. INTERIOR DESIGN
Bugg, vice president of the interior design service Interiors by Decorating Den, gives tips on making a welcoming space for guests. Similar to Mickey Baskett and Phyllis Mueller's Charming Guest Rooms, the book features close to 50 rooms in color photographs, all depicting Decorating Den's lavish trademark style. Tips are given on the choice of linens, pillows, mattresses, color, and decorating schemes. Especially helpful is the advice on how to make a guest feel welcome by providing maps, towels, books, and note cards. Beware: If you make your guest rooms this welcoming, your guests might never leave! Purchase for large public libraries.
CARPENTER, JOLIE. Dream Homes of Texas: An Exclusive Showcase of Texas' Finest Architects and Builders. Signature. 2005. c.264p. illus. ISBN 0-9745747-2-4. $39.95.
GLASS, CHRISTOPHER (text) & Brian Vanden Brink (photogs.). At Home in Maine: Houses Designed To Fit the Land. Down East. 2005. c.160p. illus. ISBN 0-89272-639-3. $40.
SERRELL, ALLISON (text) & MEREDITH HEUER (photogs.). At Home in the HudsonValley. Chronicle. 2005. c.192p. illus. index. ISBN 0-8118-4466-8. $40. INTERIOR DESIGN
Professionally designed dwellings in Texas, Maine, and the Hudson River valley of upstate New York are the subjects of these books, although some homes reflect the style of the locale better than others. The examples Carpenter (Spectacular Homes of Texas) has gathered of leading Texas architects come across more as of an advertisement than an analysis of their work. The 50-plus homes shown are predominantly large McMansions with lavish interiors that come in all types of styles—modern, French château, English country. However, none seems to reflect a particular Texas style, nor do they have any unique relationship to their setting.
Serrell (Nest for Two) comes a bit closer to showing homes that reflect their locale. The 20 she chooses represent a diversity of styles, from a newly constructed Bauhaus townhouse to a renovated historic farmhouse. Color photographs and the text describe efforts to integrate these designs into their respective settings. The most successful of these books in terms of showing an area's vernacular style is by Maine architect Glass. Steering clear of the great historic Maine houses and those designed primarily for energy efficiency, he includes dwellings that have been photographed by architectural photographer Vanden Brink and have appeared in Down Eastmagazine. Each reflects a simplicity of design that shows "the care with which they suit their settings and the environment." PurchaseHudsonValley and Maine for large interior design collections and for the libraries in these locales.
HILLSTROM, SUSAN BOYLE. Design Ideas for Bathrooms. ISBN 1-58011-234-X.
HILLSTROM, SUSAN BOYLE. Design Ideas for Kitchens. ISBN 1-58011-218-8.
ea. vol: Creative Homeowner. 2005. c.223p. illus. index. pap. $19.95. INTERIOR DESIGN
Hillstrom (former editor in chief, House Beautiful Special Interest Publications) presents a huge amount of practical information on redesigning bathrooms and kitchens, the two rooms that can be the most costly to remodel. Bathrooms covers universal design considerations and the basics of master bath and half-bath layout, then focuses on bath and shower options that include tubs and fittings. Extensive information on surfaces like tile, stone, glass, concrete, synthetics, wood, and metal points to the advantages and disadvantages of each.
Kitchens offers a similar wealth of information, on cabinets, surfaces, and major appliances such as cooktops, stoves, and refrigerators. A few projects, like refinishing a hardwood floor, suggest that other sources should be consulted before beginning, since so few instructions are given. Kitchens is similar to Susan Preen's Creating Your Dream Kitchen (see review, p. 62), with more photographs and choices provided here. Both books would make excellent purchases for public libraries.
JOTISALIKORN, CHAMI & KARINA ZABIHI. Bedrooms.Periplus Editions: Tuttle. (Contemporary Asian Home). 2005. c.128p. illus. ISBN 0-7946-0180-4. $30. INTERIOR DESIGN
Dwellings in Southeast Asia are now being designed in a Western style as modern conveniences such as air conditioning have made the traditional styles adopted for a tropical climate obsolete. Jotisalikorn (Classic Thai; Thai Spa Book) and Zabihi, owner of the interior design firm kzdesigns, show how architects and designers are incorporating this modern style with ethnic touches to the home. Each of these books contains an introduction that explains how a room would have appeared in a traditionally designed home—e.g., with cross ventilation for cool breezes—and then discusses how these elements are no longer necessary with the use of new technologies. These houses, apartments, hotels, and resorts in Bali, Singapore, Thailand, and Malaysia are shown in a multitude of color photographs, with captions detailing how the architects, designers, and inhabitants have successfully blended the looks. Recommended for large interior design collections.
ROMPILLA, ETHEL.Color for Interior Design. Abrams. 2005. c.223p. illus. bibliog. index. ISBN 0-8109-5888-0. $40.
STARMER, ANNA. The Color Scheme Bible: Inspirational Palettes for Designing Home Interiors. Firefly. 2005. c.256p. illus. index. ISBN 1-55407-032-5. $29.95. INTERIOR DESIGN
Using color in the home can be intimidating, especially for an amateur. These two books present an abundance of information on how to choose colors and what types to use in the home. Whereas Tom Helme and Joseph Friedman's Paint and Color in Interior Decoration focused on the history and examples of color in interior decoration, Rompilla (color theory, New York Sch. of Interior Design) gives a more comprehensive study of color and its use in interiors. She discusses the historic, artistic, and psychological aspects of color as well as explanations on how texture, tone, and light affect it. She also describes how color has been used in the 20th century by both architects and designers.
Starmer (Swatch Selector) discusses how to use color effectively in interiors and devotes the majority of The Color Scheme Bible to descriptions of 200 color schemes for the home. The main colors are given in a table-of-contents format where one can select a color and then turn to its page to find suggested room use, different tones of the main color, and accent and highlight colors, as well as the type of mood or look conveyed by each choice. One drawback is the lack of illustrations showing the color scheme used in an actual room, as Starmer provided in Swatch Selector. Color for Interior Design is recommended for large interior design collections, while The Color Scheme Bible is highly recommended for public libraries.
SCHMIDT, FRANKLIN & ESTHER SCHMIDT. Victorian Kitchens & Baths. Gibbs Smith. 2005. c.176p. illus. ISBN 1-58685-302-3. $39.95. INTERIOR DESIGN
Whether authentically restoring a Victorian house or just wanting to add Victorian touches to a newly constructed abode, both amateur and professional designers will find a wealth of practical information here. Focusing on the Victorian decorating style in the United States from the mid-1800s to the first years of the 20th century, the Schmidts (Cabin Kitchens & Baths) explain the lifestyles, fashions, and technological advances in homes during that time. They give an overview of the style in bathrooms and kitchens, then turn to those who have particular experience in the field, such as tile expert David Malkin and designer and architectural historian Robert Esposito, who shares his experience with restoring a Victorian home. The one drawback is the lack of an index. Still, the book is highly recommended to public libraries for its comprehensive coverage and usefulness.
TRULOVE, JAMES GRAYSON. The New Wood House. Bulfinch: AOL Time Warner Book Group. Sept. 2005. c.175p. illus. ISBN 0-8212-6201-7. $40. INTERIOR DESIGN
This is the first volume in a planned series on the primary materials of the home, which include wood, glass, and stone. Trulove (Cottages: The New Style) focuses on houses that use wood as a featured material. The homes he has selected incorporate the sentiment expressed by landscape architect Lawrence Halprin, who created a master plan for the Sea Ranch, a coastal residential community north of San Francisco for which Halprin coined the phrase "living lightly on the land." For each of the 15 architect-designed homes located on the West and East coasts, Trulove includes plans and elevations as well as numerous color photos that clearly depict how the wood has been showcased in the interiors and exteriors. Recommended for large interior design collections.
WARD, LAURI. Home Therapy: Fast, Easy, Affordable Makeovers. Putnam. Oct. 2005. c.306p. illus. ISBN 0-399-15296-2. $34.95. INTERIOR DESIGN
This book continues in the tradition of Ward's Use What You Have® Decorating and Trade Secrets from Use What You Have® Decorating, which contained a wealth of practical decorating advice. Twenty-five of Ward's clients discuss how he worked with them to identify problems with space and room layout and show readers by way of example how they can do the same. The case studies are presented with before-and-after photographs of mostly living rooms and dining rooms, with text describing common decorating mistakes and how to remedy them. It is especially informative to see how even attractive rooms can be made more comfortable and inviting with simple redesigns. Highly recommended.
WHATELY, ALICE. Rooms in Bloom: Contemporary Florals for the Home. Watson-Guptill. 2005. c.160p. illus. index. ISBN 0-8230-6843-9. $29.95. INTERIOR DESIGN
Floral motifs in decoration have been popular in decorating for hundreds of years, but the uncluttered modern design style seems to have made them passé. Whately (Contemporary Eastern; Peaceful Spaces) shows how florals in fabrics, stencils, and decorative accessories can be used to enliven this minimalist décor. She presents a number of design schemes, including a feminine "shabby chic" look, an exotic, boldly colored Asian theme, and a mid-century retro décor. For each, she gives suggestions on which rooms are best suited for a particular theme and how to incorporate florals in each style; tips on lighting, color, and other details enhance the look. Sprinkled throughout is advice about flowers—whether to use fresh or artificial, what floral scents to use for a particular mood, and when to use bold or small prints. Recommended for large interior design collections.
