3 comments about Cool Cottages: 235 Delightful Retreats, 825 to 3,500 Square Feet.

1. I was entained by the way the book presented itself..altho the cottages are truely small they are perfect for that affordable gettaway.
   They have good layouts and easy to understand plans.



2. When one thinks cottage they imagine a mountain cabin, oceanside bungalow or lakefront getaway. Home Planners Cool Cottages was filled with mostly black and white 'Home Plans', many over 1800 square feet with manicurred lawns. Through the entire book, I only found 3-4 cottages in 800-1200 square foot range showing a unique creative design. The floor plans were even worse. Do people actually build and live in these? What about traffic patterns? Formal dining rooms? Hello! That's what I do when I think getaway college, entertaining. Cool Cottage would have made a good $3.95 magazine in the Home and Garden section of a local newstand. A disappointment at any price.



3. The description is very misleading. It is a book of 235 cottage floor plans - all black and white (with the exception of the first few). I expected the book to include floor plans, but I also expected it to be a good read and have real pictures. If you are just looking for floor plans, it's a great book.

2 comments about The American Collection: Craftsman Style (American Collection) (American Collection).

1. Nice, concise collection of Arts&Crafts house plans, with good color pictures and small but adequate pictures of the floorplans. The color pictures are good for ideas of paint schemes, column designs, window shapes, etc. If you're planning to build a craftsman style home, this book is well worth the small price.



2. This is a book a plans only. You can also find all these plans when you search online. Its a good book if you want to see what they would look like in color.

No comments about In Detail: High-Density Housing: Concepts, Planning, Construction (In Detail (englisch)).

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.

No comments about Trompe L'Oeil Italy: Ancient and Modern.

4 comments about Mediterranean Domestic Architecture for the United States (Twentieth Century Landmarks in Design, Vol. 9) (Acanthus Press Reprint Series. 20th Century, ... 20th Century, Landmarks in Design, V. 9.).

1. I love these elegant books put out by Acanthus Press. This book has vivid period black and white images of great american homes in the Mediterranean style. This is a reprint of a book first realized in the 20's. The images and text really make one appreciate the craftmanship and grace of the era. They really don't build buildings. like this anymore, whether they be for residential or commercial use. If you have any interest in wondeful period images, or singular craftmanship, then you will love this book.



2. This was a good coffee table book. Or, if you're interested in the "Mediterranean" look that would be more precisely refered to as "spanish revival" or "Santa Barbara" this is a great example of the architecture of southern CA in the earlier part of the last century. A very popular and good looking style. Only thing, for a style reference it could have used more floor plans of the homes.



3. I find this book a compelling record of a style and period of architecture I love. This is a reprint of a 1929 book, the period black & white photos and drawings are well realized and reveal a lot detail. There are also plans shown for most of the houses illustrated

   We would all benefit if architects, developers, landscape architects who are doing contemporary versions of Mediterranean Architecture would spend time studying these images. There is such a fine use of solid and void, plays of light shadow on extensive planar surfaces, and restrained but effective (and sometimes whimsical) use of ornament. Hey, this is not a difficult architecture, or particularly expensive to realize, but can be truly sublime and fully appropriate for Southern California where I live. This book has a lot to tell us designers about how to get it right.




4. This book covers some of the best California and Florida residential architecture of the early 20th century. The photos are great and the plans are incredible. The new introduction shows the house built by the author's grandmother in the 1920s. What a life style! I highly recommend this classy reprint.

3 comments about Small Spaces, Beautiful Kitchens.

1. This book might be useful to more people than its title implies. The emphasis is on efficiency and small kitchens, but some of the kitchens in the book are not so small. Most of the advice will be helpful to anyone who is considering a kitchen renovation, regardless of the size of the room. Of course, a large kitchen gives one the option to create unused space that a small kitchen does not, so the book is especially helpful for people with space-limited kitchens. I use that term rather than "small" because the dimensions of my kitchen are largeish, but the layout of doors (all necessary) limits the cabinets and countertops in the room. I'm looking for creative ways to think about reconfiguring the space, and this book has been very helpful in terms of encouraging me to think about where to store things (items used less often can be outside the main kitchen space, for instance), what I typically do in the kitchen vs. sometimes do or rarely do, and how to plan a cohesive design style that works functionally and makes the kitchen a pleasant place for the cook. For example, I've been using wire shelving units as a temporary solution to my kitchen's lack of counters and storage space, but I wouldn't have considered this as a permanent design option before reading this book. That wouldn't be everyone's preference, but this book provides examples of several design styles to suit a variety of tastes. Other kitchen books provide more advice about the nitty-gritty of kitchen functions such as including enough electrical outlets, materials choices, etc. For that sort of information, I recommend "This Old House: Kitchens" (an oldie but still the best). To help you think about what you want and need in your kitchen in terms of function and visual appeal, especially if every inch counts or if the kitchen is part of another room, this book is a good investment.



2. I am pleased with this book. It has a lot of ideas for the kitchen that I would have never thought of. If you are undecided and can't figure out just what you want this is a good book. I'm very pleased.



3. If you like contemporary, modern, eclectic, and retro styles, this book is great to look at. If not, borrow it from the library just for the text. I have made more practical moderations to my original ideas from this book than any of the dozens of other books and magazines that I own.
   
   For instance, I originally was set on installing a microwave/range hood combination over our stove. This book points out that having a microwave in this position is inconvenient, even dangerous since it is very high up and over an area that is frequently hot. Also, it is difficult for children to reach. Instead, a built-in microwave shelf in a different location makes more sense. The suggestion may not be as space-saving as my original plan, but made sense nonetheless. This coming from a family of four with an 11'x 8' kitchen.
   
   The photos presented an assortment of styles, sizes, and cost-ranges although it leaned more toward high-end, contemporary, and larger than my kitchen.
   
   I would have liked to see more photos with large key ingredients like refrigerators. I would have preferred to see more floor plans and actual room dimensions. Unfortunately, I have not seen a book yet that was strong in this area. I think that any decorating book that has the word `small' on it's cover should strive to include those details.

3 comments about Land Development Calculations: Interactive Tools and Techniques for Site Planning, Analysis and Design.

1. A bit dissapointed that there was very little targeted toward Retail, specifically lacking in the areas of shopping center and out parcel development... but the formulas were interesting, and the concepts that were explained... were done so in great detail.



2. "Land Development Calculations" provides an excellent and innovative strategy for working towards sustainable land use and development. The models for varying land development strategies can assist local government land use decision makers and planners as well as developers determine the carrying capacity of land within realistic thresholds. The accompanying spreadsheets for the development scenarios on the CD-ROM are extremely user friendly and do not place an undue burden on the user by requiring what may be hard to find or to collect data. All of the data required just is typical of what is necessary to make appropriate land development decisions. As a local government planner, I am working towards incorporating the information received from the models in to the zoning and development code as part of the approval process by using it to further assess suitability of the property for the purposes proposed (a zoning consideration required in accordance with the State of Georgia Zoning Procedures Act). I strongly encourage other land planners and developers to read "Land Development Calculations," because of its highly practical and very timely material.



3. This is a terrificaly valuable technical reference for practitioners who need an efficient method of performing land development calulations. The book and its companion set of spreadsheets enable users to answer two key questions: 1) how much can be built on a given piece of land; or 2) how much land is needed to accommodate a given use? The material is clearly written and well illustrated, especially a series of worksheets leading through the method. Another strength is its comprehensiveness and detail, including all major land-use and micro site conditions.

1 comments about A Dictionary of Architecture and Landscape Architecture (Oxford Paperback Reference).

1. The completeness of the entries as well as the variety of drawings for entries---every variation on a capital, or on a roof line, or on window shape--makes this a perfect source book to learn from. The small paperback pocket size makes it handy to carry around when you are touring as well.

4 comments about The Chinese Garden: History, Art and Architecture, Third Edition.

1. I've been a garden designer in Portland Oregon for twenty years and have spent over a year in China visiting gardens . This book is a very good place to begin if you want to understand , on a basic level, Chinese gardens . It is however, not the place to stop if you really seek to understand them . To do that you have to try to understand the culture and times which produced them. Fruitful Sites by Craig Clunas is the best work which I have found so far as it analyzes the gardens at Suzhou over the course of several dynasties. Chinese Classical Gardens of Suzhou (Hardcover)
   by Tun-Chen Liu, Joseph C. Wang is also a very good book . It is a critique of most of the principal gardens in Suzhou and it punctures the illusion the every Chinese garden is equally great and every feature wonderful. And if you are actually going to travel to China to see gardens you really should read both of Peter Valders books . They will help you understand Chinese plants and to find gardens in many Chinese cities. I don't always agree with Valder's assessments . He is quite restrained at times . And if you are planning to travel to Suzhou consider visiting Tongli as well. I also consider the gardens of The Slender West Lake in Yangzhou and other gardens there to be equal to many of the gardens in Suzhou. And if you are going to go to China I recommend you start reading The Orientalist online and purchase Beijing by Peter Neville Hadley so that you will not be shocked when you travel China . It is by no means an easy process if you want to travel beyond some air-con rip-off tour.



2. While the attitudes and examples of Japanese gardens abound in books and in cities around the world, very little has been written or photographs of the unique concepts found in the Chinese gardens. Maggie Keswick repairs that paucity of information with this very beautifully designed, photographed and written monograph on the spirit of the subtle beauties that abound in the Chinese garden.
   
   Keswick offers an in depth analysis of the history of gardens in China and even if the reader is not an avid horticulturist, just the amount of information about China alone is reason to read this book carefully. But in addition to the history and the architectural elements of these gardens here considered, there are many graceful photographs and accompanying illustrations that keep pace with the narrative while providing an encouragement to return to the book purely for the art of it.
   
   Keswick has found the middle ground in creating a volume about the elements of the Chinese garden and a volume that stands strongly as simply an art book. Highly recommended for repeated readings. Grady Harp, April 05



3. How great Chinese garden are!From north to south ,east to west,royal to normal,fancy to simple,you could see all of the best gardens in China.Especially two cities that must visit:Beijing,my hometown,and Suzhou,a wonderful small town built beside the river.The spirits of Chinese gardens were focused on how to combine nature and humanity together.The gardens in Suzhou absolutely rendered an ideal level without artificial fixing,you might called it "Eastern Venice".On the oher hand,Beijing seems much more luxurious since it used to be the capital of China for 5 dynasties.The best known garden named Summer Palace ,which settled in Western part of Beijing,belong to the royal family. A fire desaster ruined most valuable garden named Yuan Ming Yuan,if it still being there,Yuan Ming YUan might be the most gorgeous garden in the world.However we pitifully left a waste garden,morely a Country's shame.You luckily better read this book before you visit China.<>is a helpful tourguide take you a preview.



4. A superb study that is as engrossing as it is elegantly written and lavishly illustrated, and a sensitive inquiry into the aesthetics, the history and the philosophy that underpin an ancient and majestic civilization's view of mankinds's place within the cosmos. Both unique and profound. An essential work.