4 comments about Artists' Houses.

1. I am an artist, so I bought this book for my coffee table. Good looking cover, as well as interesting homes pictured inside.



2. I was disappointed when first looking at this book as I thought it was about current artists but after spending some time with it I was rather pleased. The photos of the artists' homes and studios together with information about the artists and their friends made for an interesting book. You can always set it out on the coffee table to impress your friends!



3. This book provides a wonderful perspective on the artist, as one who paints,(attempts to paint)it was most enjoyable and educational to see and learn how truly gifted artists worked. It put so much in perspective.



4. In Artists' Houses, historian and art critic Gerard-Georges Lemaire has compiled and written a informed and informative work that blends art history, interior design, and biographical sketches of fourteen fascinating artists from Austria, England, France, Germany, Italy, the Czech Republic, and America. The reader is treated to a kind of survey of the private homes of these extraordinary men and women who put as much care and creativity into the design and furbishing of their homes and gardens as they did their paintings. The artists featured include Andre Derain, Frantisek Bilek, Frederic Church, Alphonse Mucha, Rene Magreitte, Rosa Bonheur, Gustave Moreau, William Morris, Gabrielle Munter, James Ensor, Claude Money, Alfred Kubin, Giorgio De Chirico, and the members of the Bloomsbury Group. The fascinating text is wonderfully illustrated throughout with the impressively visual photography of Jean-Claude Amiel. Enhanced with the inclusion of a House Directory and a Bibliography, Artists' Houses is an strongly recommended addition to academic library Art History collections -- and would make a superb Memorial Fund Acquisition choice community libraries as well.

5 comments about Home Theater Design: Planning and Decorating Media-Savvy Interiors.

1. This book gives an excellent overview of the different levels a home theater can be done at as well as many illustrations to refer to. It is very helpful in gaining knowledge of how theaters work and should be designed and integrated into their environment. That is where the hundreds of illustrations help out most.
   The only thing to remeber when reading this book is that technology changes so rapidly that some of the information relating to video displays and a few other items are outdated but not harmful in any way to your project or design. I recommend it.



2. The first question you have to ask is 'What is a home theater.'
   
   And the author doesn't have any better definition than you do, so she has written the book in three sections, and with a definite point of view.
   
   One section is on small systems in small rooms. Here you are basically using more or less standard equipment in more or less standard rooms.
   
   The next section is on multi-purpose rooms, such as a den or living room with a major emphasis on media but still useful for other things.
   
   Finally there's the dedicated home theater. Here a room is built to make your own small, but technologically, audiologically, aesthetically and in every other way professional quality. This often includes stadium seating, with high quality chairs and tables for drinks and popcorn between the seats.
   
   All in all the book is more concerned with the interior decoration of the home theater than with the technical aspects. I suppose that's fair, because the rapid change in the technology. Anything you attempted to print in a book would become obsolete at the next Consumer Electronics Show.



3. I bought this book to help me plan the space for a home theater I am planning to build myself. Big mistake. It contained nothing useful for me.
   
   This is a book written by someone who only knows home theater from the perspective of rich or trendy clients who pay big bucks to have someone else do all the planning. It's also something of a advertising piece to show off very big and expensive (nothing under six figures) home theaters designed by two firms the author repeatedly gives credits to. At the very end she even has a brief interview with the head of one of those firms.
   
   If you're really rolling in the dough and want to see lots of glossy pictures to see how to spend your money, this book is for you. Example: "John and Jane have a wonderful theater space with arched alcoves along the walls. They display their collection of antique vases in each alcove, and use accent lighting to enhance it. They install a crystal chandelier for ambient lighting..."
   
   For everyone else it's a waste of time. It's so limited in text that it didn't take more than a couple hours to read through. Instead of giving you some real planning guides, the author limits herself to glosses of the obvious along with references to the type of professional you'll need to hire (so many - I've never heard of an acoustician before. He came somewhere after the cabinetmaker you'll need to design the housing for the projector).
   
   This is a book that bows to wealth and trendiness. For those of us who want to tap our own creative ability as well as our more typical budget, we'll have to look elsewhere for inspiration and information.



4. This book has tons of helpful tips about features that you should have in an entertainment room. It helps you learn what accessories to get, but doesn't help much in the way of actually building the room. I was hoping to have some help on how to install a suspended ceiling with the sound-proofing material, or how they recommend to frame an elevated seating platform.
   
   All in all, I'd say this book is an advantage to have, and it definately is worth purchasing, but don't expect it to help you with the nuts and bolts of the operation.



5. This book is really helpful if you're planning a home theater system or integrating some type of audio and video stuff inside the house. I had a small house and was able to get lots of tips for designing my a/v system in it. Now that I bought my new house (much larger) I am able to reference the later chapters for dealing with the new challenges. Highly recommend!

5 comments about Living in Japan.

1. The book is a pleasure to read through and to look at the wonderful photographs. At the ~ $20+ sales price, it was a very good value. Of course the homes are not typical of the average Japanese home but rather something we all aspire to.



2. Saw this book in Tokyo and loved the photos of modern Japanese living. Great shots of modern architecture and interior design in Japan. Went back to the hotel and found the book on Amazon for half the price... it was waiting for me when I got back to the states. You can't beat that!



3. Great photos, a well picked and varied number of interiors and still... I can't rate it at five. It's so slick and gorgeous but I miss some smaller and perhaps more lived-in dwellings. And a little more gardens. But it is definetely worth getting and browsing. A small defect is the habit of re-using objects and motifs in some of the pictures, always annoys me when they do that. Top marks I can only give to the twenty-some-years old Japanese Style, but then you won't get the recent modern interiors.



4. I bought this 'coffee-table' book as a gift for a friend, but when it arrived, we were so impressed with the extensive collection of photographs that I had to purchase a copy to display, re-visit, and share with future house guests. The authors have managed to capture the rare and simple beauty of Japanese architecture and design through history. An impressive tour!



5. I am a big fan of Alex Kerr and this book did not let me down. It contains a many images that aren't normally seen in most traditional print, and thankfully none of the babbeling of authors that only spend a week in Japan and white about the "true Japan". The last thing I am looking for is another tatami mat or Japanese screen.
   
   I have already begun a home re-modeling plan with some of the ideas in this book. I also got the idea from another one of Kerr's books, and began to collect old Japanese lumber to re-use in my own home.
   
   Thanks Alex!

No comments about Basement Design Guide (Better Homes & Gardens).

5 comments about Behind Adobe Walls: The Hidden Homes and Gardens of Santa Fe and Taos.

1. This book is EXACTLY what I was looking for. Perfect condition and rapid delivery. Excellent service.



2. I am a native New Mexican and even though the others did comment on how nice a book about "real" New Mexicans would be, I do love this book for the excellent photography. It is on my coffee table now and I just love looking at it!



3. Unfortunately, the sample pages are in black and white. Never fear, they're actually IN COLOR in the actual book!

   Got this for my Mom, she loved it!




4. I would NOT loan out my copy of this book! I live in Taos (moved AFTER reading the book) and have since been to some of these homes, they are wonderful...and not at all pretentious...as one reviewer said. I use this book even today for inspiration in my own Taos home.



5. I was specifically on a quest for inspiration for Santa Fe style decorating with bold color schemes, somewhat off-the-wall furnishing choices and the like. This book fit my needs perfectly, I'm happy to say. I agree with other reviewers that the book is rather limited in scope, but it was exactly what I was looking for. Beautiful photographs, clear writing, overall a very dynamic book.

1 comments about Stone Designs for the Home.

1. The photography displays the stonework in a way that makes you envy the occupants of every structure. If the homes are half as much joy to occupy as they are to look at, the author is a genius.

1 comments about Bedrooms: Creating and Decorating the Room of Your Dreams (The Small Books series).

1. I got so many ideas from this book it's driving my husband crazy. This woman has put together a really useful and practical book. Of course the pictures are nice! I have already adapted one of her ideas for the closet in our guest room, I am so glad I found it because the doors are absolutely wonderful and I never would have thought of it alone.

No comments about Wine Cellar Design.

2 comments about The Complete Idiot's Guide to Designing your Own Home (Complete Idiot's Guide to).

1. Striking out on designing one's own house is a lonely prospect. I read every book I could get my hands on. Most provide cursory information, which left me hungry. This book goes into much greater detail on the process than any other. So start with it and then wander over to [...] and go to the home forum. That is where you'll get a major education from people who are building homes whether with book plans, and architect, or their own design.



2. This book is a very helpful, easy to understand, and comprehensive guide to home design and renovation. Mr. Drapaca's excellent sense of esthetics, great negotiation skills and committment to high quality projects evidently inspired the content of this book. We had the pleasure to work with Mr. Drapaca on the renovation of our apartment and found in the book many of the things we learned thanks to his advice.

5 comments about Sensual Home.

1. I have owned this book for about 3 years now and it by far the most helpful home book I have ever owned. I think this is a book for people that are very aware of their five senses and want a home that is intimate, simple, nurturing and pleasurable. Crawford cover the five senses, examining how to enhance your home experience with fabrics, textures, smells, sights, sounds, tastes and sights. She focuses on using natural materials rather than chemical ones. Cotton, silk, cashmere, natural stone, aromatherapy, flowers, etc. are all discussed. There is a great directory towards the end on what businesses she recommends finding the best, natural materals discussed in the book. I also love that the cover of the book itself is textured. I always ome back to this book for guidance on what I really need in my home to make it a warm, intimate, senual, pared down and happy place.



2. i have many, many home decor books and this one by far and away is my most favorite and has the best philosophy. and the cover is fuzzy and pleasant to handle AND nice to look at.



3. And the text makes you think about things that you are probably never going to think about in today's madcap and rushed society, simple things like natural lighting, linen textures, plants for detoxifying your environment, etc. There is just one thing that frustrated me about this book. On pages 54 and 55 there is the most amazing sofa I have ever seen, but there is no mention of where it came from or how to get one like it. Some of the references are clearly European and cannot be found in the States. But the overall philosophy is simple- we are animals and we need to slow down and rediscover our sensual being. And once you have found this simple mindset, you will see ways to make it happen all around you.



4. I love this book. I found it on a small interior design store in Italy,and It was love at first sight.I judged it by it's cover(and thought the idea of the velvet cover was great) but when I read it I was transported by its contents.Its absolutly great! Everyone should have it!



5. This book teaches us how to feel calm and organized, how to embelish and refine our senses with the best home arrangements. I loved it!