5 comments about The New Hacienda.

1. The collaborative effort of Karen Witynski and Joe P. Carr (joint owners of Texture Antiques, an Austin, Texas-based interior design firm and gallery specializing in hacienda style, Mexican colonial furniture and architectural elements), The New Hacienda is an eye-opening source book of interior design showcasing ideas drawn from Mexico's remote country estates. Full-color photography and raptly descriptive text combine to present the flavor and history of homes on both sides of the border. An impression-forming and memorable showcase spotlighting deep brown and yellow colors, and artifacts of Mexican culture. Also very highly recommended is the Karen Witynski and Joe P. Carr collaboration, Mexican Country Style



2. The New Hacienda is a beautiful and inspiring book for anyone who loves Mexico's art, design, and hacienda-style culture. From traditional architectural elements to colonial antiques, the book reveals many rich details for those seeking ideas and inspiration in creating a hacienda-style home of their own. I found the book's Resource section especially helpful for contacting design sources here in the states. Also, after writing the authors at their site I found out that they have restored a colonial hacienda in the Yucatan which is now available as a vacation rental and Mexican Design Center.



3. "Mexican Country Style" and "The New Hacienda"
   Both of these books are helpful in understanding the reinterpretation of Mexico's indigenous styles and architecture, in the latter case, particularly the transformations that haciendas surviving the land reforms have undergone in recent years...In "The New Hacienda", colonial antiques and historic objects are shown intermingled with contemporary notions of art and comfort, rendering a visually pleasing balance between old and new. Also included is a guide to Mexican haciendas, which may be visited...Both of these books will thrill anyone with an interest in interior design.
   --New Mexico Magazine, March 2000



4. The New Hacienda garnered the prestigious La Pluma de Plata (Silver Pen) Award from Mexico's Ministry of Tourism. Presented to authors Witynski and Carr by Mexican President Ernesto Zedillo, the award is a testament to the book's distinctive celebration of Mexico's restored haciendas.
   --Latin Style Magazine, September 2001



5. This book has lots of beautiful pictures but hardly enough of true haciendas. It is lacking originality and exterior/interior photos of the haciendas themselves. Text content is "ok" but repetitive and sounds like that from other books. Very overpriced for what it presents. The authors mention that they are building their own "new" hacienda. If they have such a true love for the old ones why didn't they rescue one from ruin??? Very commercial in my opinion.

No comments about Natural Architecture.

5 comments about Traditional Mexican Style Interiors (Schiffer Design Book).

1. What a beautiful book. One of the best I have seen. I live in Mexico and will be using many ideas.



2. Excellent photo's to plan off of. They give ideas to maintain a modern design and still keeep the traditional flow of true Mexican and Spanish feel



3. This is definately a well layed out book, with really nice high quality pictures, my only question is why are at least half of the picture in this book of houses in the United States? Granted they are in the Southwest where there is a obvious Mexican influence, but I refuse to believe the best examples of Mexican interiors are found in Tucson Arizona! And of the interiors in this book most of the ones from Mexico are from San Miguel de Allende, or Guanajuato which are two towns a hour apart from each other. There are extraordinary colonial gems in Zacatecas, Oaxaca, Puebla, México City, ect, ect, that could have easily been included in this book instead of some American's house in the Southwest... I would have liked to have seen a book on Mexican interiors that were 100% Mexican. The book MEXICOLOR, though not entirely consisting of interiors is a far more authentic book.



4. We were looking for ideas for our outside patio area, especially colors, and this book is great for various decors with vibrant colors. You will find yourself looking through it again and again.



5. I was looking for a reference book to guide my Mexican-style remodeling and redecorating efforts, and this is the best I've found yet. (I have about a dozen!) Gorgeous pictures, and plenty of them. Each section discusses a particular room type (kitchens, bathrooms, bedrooms etc.) and each room type gets a good amount of attention. Something I dislike about other books is their tendency to look only at the courtyards or living rooms of Mexican or adobe-style houses -- not so useful if you're considering how to tackle your kitchen. This one covers it all, including touching on gardens and indoor-outdoor spaces that are such an integral part of Mexican living.
   
   Definitely pick up the companion volume, "Traditional Mexican Style Exteriors", while you're shopping. Together they paint a vivid picture of the colorful and vibrant style of Mexico.

No comments about Cabinets, Shelves & Home Storage Solutions: 24 Storage Projects Plus Ideas for Organizing Your Home.

5 comments about Tudor Style: Tudor Revival Houses in America from 1890 to the Present.

1. This book offered plenty of ideas in my restoration and planning process of my tudor home. Great buy for the $$$



2. This is a very good book, the houses chosen are first rate and the text well researched and informative. The images are very well done, they are crisp and well presented. Some of the houses chose are amazing, frankly Tudor is not my favorite of the Eccletic styles, I really prefer Beaux Art and Georgian, but this book made me appreciate the beauty of the Tudor. I highly recommend this book, it made me fan of the style.



3. The photos and houses shown in this book are fantastic, both the old and modern dwellings. I have many books on Manor houses and old english houses but the photos shown in this book are the best I've seen. I was very interested to see the modern tudor style houses that have been built in the USA like the one shown on the cover. I bought this book from Amazon and it was delivered to Australia in top condition. A great buy and people visiting my place have picked it up and had a read because it captures the eye.



4. I caught a glance of the book on my architect's desk, and immediately ordered it the next day. I was not disappointed.
   
   Tudor Style gives an excellent overview of the English Tudor influence on architecture in the United States. I particularly enjoyed the narrative that accompanied the pictures throughout the book - very well written and researched! The picturesque neighborhoods and historic homes featured were inspiring examples of what truly draws people toward this style even today.
   
   An excellent book for anyone who appreciates timeless architecture and european-influenced design.



5. This book is long overdue. There's really no exclusive published works in print on American Tudor Revival architecture, except for this. It is a beautifully photographed and organized book, with nice fonts and well-balanced photographs. There are a few holes, though. Styles and geographic concentrations aren't focused on well enough. The section on Philadelphia Tudor Revival ingores a rich and very diverse Tudor variety in favor of a few French country houses. Also, the 1950s and 1970s mixes of ranches and split-levels with Tudor sensibilities are ignored, either out of distaste or pretension. The modern Tudor section is dominated by one very large McMansion with mock Tudor references. In all, the book is unfit for study but is basically a very pretty coffee table book.

No comments about The Houses of Martha's Vineyard.

2 comments about The Decoration of Houses.

1. Amidst today's seemingly endless supply of domestic guides and treatises on interior decoration, Edith Wharton might be surprised that her The Decoration of Houses (co-authored with architect Ogden Codman, Jr.) would still be as relevant and necessary as it is a century after its first publication. Long before "simplicity" and "classic" became catchwords for branding, Wharton took a public stand against the bland, trite excesses of Victorian décor in America. Favoring the considered, informed and complex processes of design rooted in architectural principles, her graceful humility was matched only by her assertive plea against the contemporary dominance of thoughtless, conspicuous consumption visible in New York society. As she determinately decreed: "According to the creed of the modern manufacturer, you have only to combine certain `good' to obtain a certain style."
   
   Often associated with the frivolity connected to historical descriptions of femininity, this volume might be a surprise for those who prefer to view Wharton as a New York literary powerhouse. While her 40 books in 40 years (many of which were devoted to travels through European residences and gardens) are a testament to the force of her pen, it's the themes of beauty, pleasure, societal indulgence, cultural education and cosmopolitanism in America's modernity that make her analysis, and eventual ruling on the importance of design and space, a necessary extension of her literary thought. As she aptly begins her historical and aesthetic analysis, "Rooms may be decorated in two ways: by a superficial application of ornament totally dependent of structure, or by means of those architectural features which are part of the organism of every house, inside as well as out." And it's through these sixteen chapters that reflect on everything from the front door to the dining room to bric-a-brac that she offers readers a glimpse at the historic function of furnishings, as well as her claims about taste, beauty and the impact of residential design.
   
   The Italian, French and British capacity for decorating in accord with the Grecian edict of "wise moderation," so admired by Wharton, is illustrated by black and white plates. The illustrations also reveal that the author's penchant for "classic" beauty wasn't about recreating kitschy historic facades or stoic sparseness. Rather, a considered pleasure seems to be her goal as she concludes, "There is no absolute perfection, there is no communicable ideal; but much that is empiric, much that is confused and extravagant, will give way before the application of principles based on common sense and regulated by the laws of harmony and proportion." True to her appreciation for sincerity in the application of decorative principles, readers can see the realization of her rules if they visit the Mount, a 113-acre Lenox estate designed by Wharton in 1902.
   
   Recreated by Rizzoli using photographs of the original 1897 pressing, the only change made by the publishers in this edition is the use of the original interior dust jacket as the model for the printed design that now covers the book. But I don't think Wharton would mind, as she truly believed that design was about the external reflection and illumination of what's on the inside.



2. The "Decoration of Houses" allows a comparison of styles from antique to modern, with variations for each time period. I own it, but gave it to my daughter too, since she does set design in New York. The only one tht is better, is one that is out of print. My father used as a decorator in Boston.

5 comments about Small Spaces, Beautiful Gardens.

1. Looking for ideas for some small gardens and outdoor spaces for some new homes I am building. This book offered very little support.



2. The title says it all. Amazing what you can do with such little space. Beautifully illustrated with before and after pictures, step by step explanations and level of complexity.



3. The author's non-traditional approach to garden design produces exceptional results. Before and after photos beautifully portray his amazing transformations. The author clearly describes the challenges he faced with each garden project, provides an illustration of his solution and then takes you step by step through the transformation process discussing the elements of design he used and how he applied them. I've read several books on landscape design and this is the first one that has truly helped me apply the principles and elements of design to my own garden spaces. My husband and I recently bought a new construction home and we are both excited to begin the transformation of our blank slate yard into a wonderful suburban retreat.



4. Standard spaces I might see set up at a garden show. Nothing spectacular.



5. esp for urban small gardens - he makes you think you can do it!

5 comments about The Japanese House: Architecture and Interiors.

1. Don't expect much content in textual form. The book is a photo book, and there are many excellent pictures of japanese houses and interiors in terms of themes and photographical skill.
   
   What is totaly contradictory to this, is the poor low-budget color printing chosen by Tuttle publishers. The pictures are devaluated by a easily seen coarse printing sreen.



2. Take the text with a huge grain of salt. It says nothing original about the Japanese aesthetic (terms like "elegant", "minimal" and "harmony with nature" abound); it contradicts itself on a few key points (is the half-height tea-house door for guests, or the host?); and in one caption it identifies a Go board as a "game of mah-jong". Oops.



3. I bought the book for inspiration in designing my retirement home. It is that. Lovely pictures and ideas for anyone interested in Japanese design.



4. The photography is beautiful. This book shows the best of ancient and modern Japanese design concepts.



5. Compre este libro para conocer mas de la cultura japonesa en el recinto mas sagrado para una persona, su hogar. La cultura japonesa es sumamente rica tanto en belleza como en practicidad y este libro me ha servido para idear refugios dentro de mi casa y asi evitar la rutina diaria y todo lo "fast" que la vida occidental tiene. Recomiendo mucho este libro para aquellas personas que quieran hacer de su casa un lugar equilibrado, que esten planeando alguna reconstruccion o hacer una casa nueva.

5 comments about Ranches: Design Ideas for Renovating, Remodeling, and Building New (Updating Classic America).

1. Writing a book is a huge undertaking so hats off to the authors. I can't give this book a favorable review however. This is not a book about mid-century architecture. The ranch-style homes in it have been substantially remodeled and very few mid-century details remain as you can readily see from the photos. As a fan of that period of architecture, this was a disappointment. But for someone who finds their rancher to be too low, too spare or too retro, this book shows how to get rid of all that and turn a rancher into something more like a bungalow or a shingle-style Cape Cod with a new kitchen. The furnishings in the homes are often brightly colored Scandinavian, early American, Native American, or craftsman. Many of the shots look very much like they are from a 1992 Metropolitan Home magazine although there are quite a few kitchens with stone countertops. If you want to convert a rancher, this might be for you. If you want to restore one, you'll need a different book.



2. The title implied that this book would be ideal for me; I like ranches, I feel that they are undervalued, and I see many that are ripe for renovation after years of benign neglect. They're often small by today's standards, too, and I'd like to know how other people have expanded or changed their ranches while maintaining the buildings' architectural identity. For all these reasons, I didn't like this book much. The author disparages the architectural style that some of us appreciate--she is downright insulting about the exteriors--and seems to feel that the reader/owner's main goal will be to ignore the exterior of their house or transform it into something very different such as a developer-style colonial. Little advice is given about maintaining or updating the wonderful horizontal form of the ranch, choosing trim, siding, roofing, hardware, doors, windows, etc., or maintaining and enhancing the architecture-nature connection that makes ranches interesting through appropriate landscaping, decks, gardens, and other outdoor features. If you find it at your library or a charity book sale, it's worth a look, but it didn't contain what I thought it would.



3. Before buying, I was offended by the spate of terse, one-star reviews of this book (which may or may not have been written by the same person) and took the advice of others who seemed to love it. I was so wrong. This book is for people who find themselves stuck with a ranch house ("Very few people love the exteriors of ranch houses") when they might have preferred a bungalow or a cottage. The photos are well-shot, the design ideas apparently fill a need, but this book is by no means Atomic Ranch.



4. I sent this book to my brother who is restoring a 40-year-old Ranch house. He's really found it inspirational and I've enjoyed looking through it too. Here in the Atlanta area, the old Ranch houses are in danger. McMansions and their greedy, tasteless developers would have them eliminated. Yes, most of the Ranch survivors are unremarkable upon first glance but the ideas behind them--well explained in this book--are wonderful and they are certainly built of better materials and with more care than the slapped-together structures of today. Of course a weakness of the Ranch house is that like the McMansion of today it was mostly built by developers out for a dime. The pages here show the potential of the Ranch. There are some lovely rennovations, beautifully photographed. There's a good history lesson on the Ranch and its architectural and cultural sources too. I heartilly recommend this book for Ranch owners and architectural historians.



5. The common ranch house was developed shortly after World War II. The design fit the needs and desires of the returning servicemen and the workers leaving the wartime industries for traditional employment.
   
   The ranch style house had several new design concepts. Typically they were built somewhat remote from the downtown area, this was the era of the automobile. They were very well made, and designed to be easy to expand (thanks to the coming Baby Boom). The building lots of the time tended to be quite large, with plenty of room in the back yard.
   
   Many of these homes, built in the 1950's or early sixties are available at quite good prices. In addition, with a house over fifty years old, many states and localities give preferential treatment in taxes, loan guarantees or other advantages to remodelling, renovating or updating an existing structure.
   
   This book looks at a series of ranch style homes that have been updated to meet the needs of their current owner. This is a beautifully illustrated idea book. It is filled with ideas that ranch remodellers have used to update their homes. And while some of these ideas are expensive, so is moving into a new larger home.