4 comments about The Splendor of France: Great Chateaux, Mansions, and Country Houses.

1. A great and large collection of huge impressive photos for any Francophile that loves the French countryside and it's haute-couture architecture. A super reference for artists and travelers.



2. This is a nice book on an amazing subject. Maybe I expected too much from this book, I don't know, but though I liked it very much indeed, it did not blow me away. Something was missing, I think it was Versailles and Fountainbleau and maybe Sceaux. I just thought most of the greatest chateaux where absent, although I loved the section on Vaux le Vicomte, now that is a spectacular chateaux by anyones definition; maybe the most beautiful in France...Louis XIV thought so. The photographs where first rate and I did enjoy the book, I just wanted more. Having said that I do recommend it to anyone who in interested in this subject; for those it really is a book worth owning.



3. I got this because I really missed France after studying architecture there for a semester. This book really captured the same feeling of many of the historical sites I visited. My favorites are Chenonceau and Vaux-le-Vicomte, the French chateaux with formal garden.

   This paper back version is only 287 pages much shorter then the first hardcover that was about 400-500 pages. I don't quite remembered, but I think there were some lesser chateaux taken out. I found the hardcover for $130 at a local architectural bookstore. So, this definitely a steal at Amazon price of $28.

   The pictures are very big; every other page is a full page photograph. Some pages have a smaller picture and a written summary. This is more of a picture book with very little written texts, so you can't really use it for writing a resource paper. The picture of the building or site is very clean, since most of these places are full of tourist and it is funny seeing it empty. There are photographs of Chateaux, garden, interior design with furniture, and sculpture.

   If you like France and garden after the Baroque period, this is a nice book. It would be a five star if they didn't condense the book from the in-depth first edition.




4. This book is an absolute treasure to anyone who loves French architecture and decoration. It contains spledid photographs of French Chateaux inside and out. While expensive it is worth every cent and then some. A Must!

5 comments about Contemporary Japanese Restaurant Design.

1. Dont get this book. They show the same restaurants over and over. Nothing really worth looking at. Lighting is the same in each and every restaurant. I am an architect looking for different uses of materials this book is not it. It you see one restaurant here you can see them all.From 1 to 10 I would give this book a 5.



2. Nice photography, printing, etc., but many of the empty-room interior photos cried out for people! Part of the excitement of the venue are the people enjoying it. Some photos were pretty self-explanitory, but others could have used a complete naritive.



3. I saw this book in the library one day, and decided to check it out. I ended up renewing it three times, and then coming here to purchase it. This book is an excellent source for ideas or just to browse through on a rainy day. I love looking at all the highly detailed pictures and the wonderful descriptions of the places photographed. This book is extremely well written and put together. A must have for anyone who is interested in interior design, or contemporary Japanese architectute.



4. I bought this book looking for inspiration for work and I am not disappointed. This book has beautiful nice quality pictures and mentions what the architect/designer did and why (As a designer I am always curious). It also shows the floorplan of the restaurant so you see how it's laid out. Now that I am venturing into restaurant design from retail, this is very helpful.



5. I'm not a professional designer, nor do I claim to be, so this review will be based on what I discovered from the book.

   This book is full of wonderful pictures of Japanese restaurants around the world, rooms decorated so elegantly, youd expect to spend $100.00 a plate easily at any of them. Each restaurant profile lists the designers intentions, design materials, colors, and even a detailed blueprint of the layout. Im not sure you need any more than what is in this book, I spent two hours reading and looking through this book, and I only got 1/4 of the way through it. I found myself staring in awe at what these designers can do with minimal space to use the Japanese culture and aesthetics in making these architectual masterpieces. A definite must if you are looking to integrate asian design elements into your home or office. There are so many design elements that can make even the plainest home seem elegent, streamlined and beautiful.

5 comments about New Cottage Style (Better Homes & Gardens).

1. I found this book very inspiration in helping me decorate my home. It helped define my love for the new cottage style.



2. This is a terrific book! It is the perfect companion to the original Cottage Book by Better Homes and Gardens. I highly recommend it!



3. I loved this book, and keep going back to it again and again, for comfy and yet clean looks for a more modern interpretation of cottage. I'm not that much into white, and like a spare but not modern look, and this book had enough examples of ways to do that to be really helpful. yarrow_m



4. I truely enjoy this book. The photography and ideas are very current and create a mix of style, comfort & ideas I personally delight in. However, I was so disappointed there was no resource guide...at all. :(
   I have spent days trying resource the botanical prints and have come up empty.
   oh, well.



5. Not my favorite cottage book, and I own many. There was just nothing special about it. It didn't inspire me as I had expected. I didn't enjoy the reading - didn't hold my interest. It does have some nice pictures.

2 comments about The House in Good Taste.

1. I bought this book when it first came out. I tried reading it, was (too) quick to call it 'trite' and gave it away. Later my boyfriend gave me a copy (not knowing that I'd tried it before) so I had to slog through it. I am so very glad I did. Ms. DeWolfe has a unique style of writing that must be understood before you will truely enjoy the book. She has a wit and charm that is backed by such sincerity that few designers today could pull this level of writing off. The book will make you want to find more by or about this stylishly pragmatic decorator



2. Elsie De Wolfe is acknowleged as the first woman to make a fortune as a decorator and can be called the first life style maven of the 20th century. Her opinions on home decor were eagerly seized upon by millions of aspirational women around the country. She wrote The House in Good Taste 90 years ago but it's just as fresh and suitable now as it was then.

   I can't bring myself to agree with her on patchwork quilts, lace curtains or rocking chairs but she's absolutely correct in her advice on wallpaper, paint and apartments. It's amazing how much this delightful and informative book still has to teach us.

1 comments about Interior Color by Design: A Tool for Homeowners, Designers, and Architects.

1. I am a professional color consultant and am always looking to refine my skills. This book was much more informative than other books I've read. It tends to be written for the professional as opposed to the average homeowner, though I still recommend it for anyone looking to understand color.

4 comments about New Color Schemes Made Easy (Better Homes & Gardens).

1. If you are one of those people who go to a paint store and stare helplessly at the five billion color samples in front of you, zoned out, in a panic over what to decide, then this book is for you.
   
   It runs through such useful categories as starting points--choosing maybe your favorite color or a favorite color from a rug. And then, and this is what really helps, the book goes through all the colors, such as yellow, or red, and shows different hues, different tones, and what other colors go well together with them. Every set of colors shows you a photo of a room using those colors.
   
   There is also a section at the back that includes many neutrals, and shows you how to blend them. If you are terrified of painting everything in your living room blood red, then this part of the book, with its soothing blend of neutral shades, will really help.



2. I'm taking a color class in an interior design program. I have a textbook and various color-related books that I purchased by myself on Amazon. This is one of my favorite of all.
   
   It does introduce some very basic yet important concepts about color in such an understandable language first. Then, it gets into the color application part, explaining how to combine colors to create a certain kind of ambience or impact, in a very easy-to-understand way again.
   
   It is really well written, although it's not written by any certified designers. For beginners who like colors and would like to understand colors, this is the book for you. I highly recommend it.



3. Clear, concise guide to choosing and co-ordinating colors in the home. Lots of helpful pointers, such as how to unify rooms in the home with the baseboard color. Often I flip through interior design books looking at the photos, but this one was interesting to read as well as look at.



4. I have purchased my first house and will soon be tackling the job of painting it. I bought this book to get ideas on how to paint without using neutral colors in every room. This book has opened my eyes to the various color schemes and how to use them. It has a painting wheel inside. It tells you how to use colors and even has a question/answer page in the very back. It gives you a lot of pictures with furnishings and talks about how to tie the color on the walls with the furnishings and vice versa. I really liked how the author explained what the colors draw out, for example, "Yellow. Happiness and good cheer circle the room when you invite yellow inside. Bright citrus and pistachio yellows wake you up while the softer tones of vanilla, cream, and honey warm you like sunshine. Yellow-greens add brightness, golds glow with richness. Whatever your pick--buttercup, mustard, bamboo, or lemon sherbert-- yellow is sure to improve your outlook on life." I had some ideas of how I wanted to paint my house and this book helped me to figure out if I was headed in a good direction. By allowing me to pick a trait I wanted to draw out, for example my living room I would like to draw on conversation, while the bedroom relaxation; this book helped guide me into the correct colors to draw on those attributes. The author speaks in a basic level so the average person can comprehend what they are saying at a basic level. I would recommend this book for beginners, but would also recommend purchasing another book to go with it that may give more ideas.

1 comments about Ultimate Shop Design (Ultimate Books).

1. This book is HUGE (525 pages) and took me almost 2 hours to skim; I look forward to going through the book more thoroughly when I have the time. The majority of the stores featured are ultra modern, minimalistic styles... works of art themselves. You'll find stores located in Europe (London), Asia (largely Japan), and some from the US (LA and New York).
   
   Even for use as a simple design-idea reference, this book is worth its price. I will undoubtedly apply many of the concepts in this book the store I'm opening.

No comments about New York Style: Exteriors, Interiors, Details (Icons).

1 comments about Mini House Now.

1. Made me feel like a glutton after buying an 1200 sq. foot condo... what a waste of space! An excellent book showing you don't need an 8,000 square foot mansion to live comfortably. The book is also great for anyone interested in minimalism interior design as many of the homes don't allow for much clutter or adornment.

2 comments about Frank Lloyd Wright's Stained Glass & Lightscreens.

1. I actually DID read this lovely book accentuated by wonderful pictures....just be aware that it is NOT a book of stained glass patterns although the pictures will surely provide ample ideas for you to adapt. It'll be difficult NOT to get excited about doing some 'lightscreen' projects around your home or office where you DO want want to see outside, unobstructed light and scenery with either full panels or partial panels. Am I glad I bought this book?...You bet!



2. This book has a fairly decent amount of photos of FLLW's glass designs, and the quality of the photos is decent also. I haven't read much of the book since I'm mainly interested in the photographs of his windows. There's not a lot of quality books out there for his stained glass (unless you want to spend $... on the Glass Art book), so this is a worthwhile introductory purchase.