No comments about Wonderwall: Masamichi Katayama Projects N'2.

No comments about Spas (Architectural Interiors).

5 comments about Choosing Colors: An Expert Choice of the Best Colors to Use in Your Home.

1. This is by far the best color reference book I have ever used. I am a residential design professional and there is a palette for everyone on your list in this book. It even provides you with the American paint suppliers and paint names/reference numbers. The brief histories are a plus as well. It is simply the fastest way to help yourself with color palettes for all architectural styles from antiquity to the present.



2. Save your money and buy the Color Bible. While this does have some historical references, unless you are doing a period home, do you care? I re-read the "how to use this book" 5 times. Couldn't find the numeric references to the palettes ("on palette 17.....etc"). Asked a few friends to help cause I was obviously missing something.
   
   Not worth the work. Buy a color wheel and a painters fan deck instead.



3. I bought this book while trying to plan a color palette for our new house. I've always liked houses with some color on the walls and different colors in different rooms. The challenge is finding colors that match the furnishings of each room and yet still coordinate with the other room colors.
   
   The book provides broader and more versatile palettes than I was able to find in any other book. Better yet, it provided some scattered advice about what colors to use in particular situations (i.e. exterior vs. interior, main color vs. accent, cloudy climate vs. sunny climate). It also offered advice about how to put together color combinations that work. For example, I found it's advice about the surprising utility of purple colors in bringing a complex palette together was quite useful.
   
   I would have liked to have found a book that offered more systematic advice or a palette that was precisely what I needed, but using the principles and some of the examples in this book I was able to put a household palette together that I am reasonably pleased with.



4. Kevin McCloud is an authority on residential architecture and design, and his personal choice of the best colors to use in every type of home makes choosing a snap in CHOOSING COLORS, which includes over 700 color swatches and tips for home decor ranging from historical to modern. From early period colors to modern earth tones and mixes, there are plenty of outstanding examples perfect for selecting the right color shade and combination, making this a top pick for any lending library strong in home and garden guides.



5. This was exactly the book I was hoping it would be. It truly helps you choose colors from the popular brands of paint available. I was most interested in colors for a room with only a northern exposure. Every color I tried seemed to turn green on the walls. This book was extremely helpful in this regard. The only reason I gave it only 4 stars instead of 5 is the same reason others have commented on. The paint colors used in palette 28 and 29 were omitted from the reference guide in the rear of the book. It covers blue which is most people's favorite color so the omission is significant. Fortunately, for me, blue is my least favorite color.

1 comments about Contemporary Asian Bathrooms (Contemporary Asian Home Series).

1. This is an undeniably beautiful coffee table book, which shows plenty of photos for bathroom design in Asian countries (Japan, China, Thailand, etc). If what you want is an overview demonstrating how gorgeous a bathroom can be, given an unlimited budget and (often) a lot of space, then you'll probably find this a five-star book.
   
   That wasn't what I was hoping for, however, so I'm personaly a little disappointed. First, when you can buy the finest (such as lots of marble) then it's easy to create something beautiful. For my purposes... as a new homeowner, I've been considering doing one of my bathrooms with an Asian theme. This book didn't give me much in the way of ideas for that. On the other hand, it's so pretty that I don't really mind.

3 comments about Cottages.

1. "Cottages" is the latest collaboration between writer/sylist Brian Coleman and photographer Douglas Keister. They profile fifteen homes including beach cottages, urban bungalows, historic houses and a cutting edge structure in Canada. Coleman's copy is rich and the photographs are gorgeous, but there could have been more diversity since eight houses are on Georgia's Tybee Island. Still, "Cottages" offers an abundance of fresh and invigorating decorating ideas, especially with use of color. It's the perfect book for for lovers of small homes and/or empty nesters looking to downsize with style.



2. It was easy to sit down and read a "cottage a day". Of course, I was not impressed with all, especially the non-traditional cottages. I was able to fine tune my likes and dislikes more with the book as there were beautiful pictures of insides and outsides and a nice write-up of history and descriptions.
   Most spoke "money" or were vacation/second homes. Many of the cottages featured were preserved and restored which I admire. I loved the simple furnishings in some and occasionally would catch a new idea for myself. I just wish that I could afford them. The book made a nice advertisement for Tybee Cottage Rentals. It is a great book for people who like to drool over those who "have".



3. I am all over any type of cottage themed book, so this was definitly going to be on my bookshelf. the pictues are really nice but the only thing that stood out when I first sat down with this book is how the author pretty much limited himself to one particular island on the east coast. There are about 5 or 6 cottages all from this one island, and all were fixed up by the same lady who rescues run down houses and breathes new life in them. Very cute and quaint for sure, but I almost felt like the book should have been titled "Cottages of " " Island". Because I ordered this book without being able to look at it first, I was a little disappointed, but all in all the cottages profiled are dear and sweet, so regardless of how many are within a few miles of each other, I will hold onto the book for decorating and color ideas.

2 comments about 150 Best House Ideas.

1. 150 Best House IdeasI am planning to build a house and was looking for some ideas to help me with the house plan. This book is outstanding!



2. I bought this book as a present for a friend who renovates homes, but I had to buy another as I didn't want to give it away.
   The photography in this book is simply amazing, and the designs are stunning. Most of the houses are contemporary in design, and the fitouts are superb. The architects names are also included if you want to contact them, a very nice touch indeed.
   
   There is something for every person interested in design in this book.

3 comments about Bamboo Style: Exteriors, Interiors, Details (Icons).

1. . . .photographed very well. This is a 'picture book' meant to stimulate the imagination in finding ways to use bamboo creatively. If you have one, and just enjoy great photography and a homage to the beauty of bamboo, this is the book for you!



2. For anyone interested in design who wants to see examples of what others have done, this is a great book - lots of excellent pictures. For someone who wants lots of explanation of what they are looking at, it is a disaster as there is virtually zero text (whole book has maybe 1 page, pictures have no titles or descriptions of any sort, no idea of location, anything. So for the artist, designer who has a need for visual stimulation (like going to an art gallery), it is great.



3. I was given this book as gift by Joerg Stamm a famous bamboo builder. It is one of the most popular books in our library in our sales and design office. Shot mostly in Bali area (I think) it is a great photo essay of design possibilities using bamboo materials. Since it is what we do for a living we are always looking for ideas to help us create new tropical sanctuaries for our customers. I recommend it highly for design ideas, and a fine coffee table book filled with delicious images sure to inspire.

5 comments about Jansen (20th Century Decorators).

1. This book was a great disappointment to me. Maison Jansen completed some of the most incredible design commissions of the twentieth century, but there is little evidence here. Jansen completed three important houses for Anita O'Keefe Young, and yet there isn't even a mention of Mrs. Young, let alone photos of her apartment and houses. The Paley project is foolishly included, even though the included photos are of the rooms AFTER Parish Hadley redid them, completely changing the style and tone of the rooms.
   And the photos seem tiny throughout, with too much blank white space on each page.
   This book only shows that a better book needs to be done about one of the most incredible
   design firms that ever existed.



2. A very interesting collection from Acanthus Press: very well documented, pleasant to read with a real work of documentation from the author. If you are interested by the fabulous golden age style glam interiors, you must have this book which is an opportunity to have a look through some of the most beautiful places in the world, decorated by a company who knew perfectly how to give a sense of grandeur to the home of the happy few... This is well write and fascinating and the pictures are great and carefully choosen! A must have as Jansen was the better!



3. I just had to have this large gorgeous book on Jansen and the series on important decorators just had to include this famous firm. Most Americans had heard of this French firm when Jackie O used them to decorate the White House when she was Jackie Kennedy. I just returned from Leeds Castle on the outskirts of London where he was employed by the American Lady Baille. I also got lucky because a tournament was held that day-a dream castle with a royal history.



4. A very interesting book and a nice follow up to the 1970's cheaply produced book called Jansen Decoration (if you can find that book you'll shell out a lotta clams). Anyway I have one of the 70's books and comparing the content (not the quality of the earlier book) against this one, I was struck and how rather bland some of the rooms were that are featured in the new book. The 1970's book is filled (black and white photos unfortunately) with really chic rooms. So I guess I'm a bit prejudiced since I already had something to compare this one to. Anyway this is a great reference work for anyone interested in the history of Jansen interior design.
   Stylemaven



5. This is a beautifully presented book that provides a fascinating insight into the history of the legendary design firm, Maison Jansen. The most prestigious firm of its time, and one of the longest running (over a century), and most international, Maison Jansen completed some of the most celebrated interiors for the most influential people. Clients included royalty, statesmen, the rich and the famous - the Paley's 5th Avenue apartment, the White House for the Kennedy's, the Wrightsman's home, as well as homes and projects for the Shah of Iran, King Leopold of Belgium, the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, etc.
   There are plenty of photographs (although some in black and white), along with sketches and illustrations for proposals and completed schemes. The only thing missing is a reference of the amazing furniture created for each of their projects, but thankfully this issue has been addressed with a follow up volume titled "Jansen Furniture" by the same author, which I hope will be just as deserving of my high recommendation.

3 comments about 50 Great Bathrooms by Architects (By Architects).

1. I got both 50 New Baths and 50 New Kitchens.
   Each is a nice little book but neither offers much
   in the way of fresh ideas for contemporary spaces.
   The photos have almost no accompanying text, which
   might be acceptable if the photos were less stingy.
   These books are OK if you can get 'em cheap,
   otherwise, they're both rather disappointing.



2. I've been an architect for many years and bought this book to show clients some ideas from it. Good book. good photography. Worth the cost and more.



3. This series of books, two so far, the second of which is of similar title dealing with kitchens, is a poorly and sloppy attempt at presenting the works of contemporary architects' approach to design. The choices selected for the books are of such poor caliber that the we have to wonder about the qualifications of the author. It appears that this book was assembled by the writer to capitalize on the current market trend of the educated home buyer who is more receptive to a modernist approach to minimalism in a contemporary setting.
   There ought to be some sort of a standard barometer that individuals should meet before allowing them to publish.

3 comments about Hamptons Havens: The Best of Hamptons Cottages and Gardens (Hamptons Cottages & Gardens).

1. A lovely book with interesting stories but I was after beach gardens and there are very few. The title is misleading as it is from the magazine by this name.



2. This is a beautiful book which is as entertaining to read as it is to gaze at the pictures! I would have appreciated it more had all the houses featured been in a similar style to the one on the cover. There is quite a large spectrum of different designs. I wished they had presented more photographs of each individual home, but overall there is plenty to feast your eyes on.



3. The book was purchased for an anniversary gift for my daughter who resides on one of the Hamptons. She liked the book and even was familiar with the owner of the garden on the cover.