Reviews (13)

This book was better than dessert.....
Love, love, love this book!I finally feel I have the green light to decorate in the style I've always wanted.I was slightly afraid to put certain pieces out for show, but at the same time I didn't want to stash them in the closet.Everything has been set free and now I can breathe.Thank you Jonathan for your amazing talent, your fearless decorating style, and your oh, so hilarious advice on life.

very clever and entertaining!
This is a fun, entertaining read. Great pictures and stories and awesome ideas!!!

Channeling Mrs. Goldstein
So while I was sitting on the couch yesterday, sick as a dog, I noticed my partner's new Jonathan Adler design book. The cover features Jonathan perched awkwardly on a couch, surrounded by his whimsical pottery and the typical Hollywood Regency-inspired design motifs one sees repeated in design magazines these days. Juxtaposed with his his super-cool pottery designs, the cover comes across as forced, tacky, and aimed at selling the maximum number of copies to the maximum number of people. Had I not been sick and had the book not been within arm's length, I never would have cracked it open.
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Subjects:  1. Decorating    2. Decorating - General    3. Home Improvement / Construction    4. House & Home    5. Interior Design - General    6. Residential Interior Design    7. House & Home / Decorating    8. Interior design   

Reviews (1)

amazing pictures and blueprints
I'm in the process of building a second location (salonspa) and this book had the most amazing pictures and the visual of the blueprints gave me such a different perspective of things that I had not even thought about. I love this book it was well worth the price. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Architecture    2. Beauty shops    3. Decoration    4. Design & Drafting    5. Health resorts    6. Interior architecture    7. Public, Commercial, or Industrial Buildings    8. Interior design    9. Public buildings: civic, commercial, industrial, etc   

Reviews (2)

A Liife In Decorationby Keith Irvine
I have been a decorator for 37 years..I have at least, 1000 books about decoration.....
Keith Irvine: A Life in Decoration
I very much enjoyed this book. It is filled with ideas and information. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. 1928-    2. 20th century    3. Artists, Architects, Photographers    4. Biography & Autobiography    5. Biography / Autobiography    6. Biography/Autobiography    7. History    8. Interior Design    9. Interior Design - General    10. Interior decoration    11. Irvine, Keith,    12. United States    13. Architecture / Decoration & Ornament    14. Biography: general   

Subjects:  1. Architectural & Industrial    2. Architecture    3. Architecture, Domestic    4. General    5. Interior Design    6. Interior Design - General    7. Interior Design - Style Books    8. Interior decoration    9. Mexico    10. Architecture / Interior Design    11. Home furnishing & decoration    12. Interior Design; architecture   

Reviews (1)

STRIKING!
Photographic journal that will definitely spur some new ideas. Most are more modern, but reminiscent of the Frank Lloyd Wright style of architecture with very strong lines. Multiple settings and unique media usage. Every structural artist who plans an endeavor in the garden should have this! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Architecture    2. Domestic    3. History - Specific Styles    4. Landscape    5. Outdoor & Recreational Areas - General    6. Architectural structure & design    7. Interior design    8. Residential buildings, domestic buildings   

Reviews (12)

Thrilled to find this book!
I happened upon this book on Amazon last year - shortly after purchasing my very first home - a little storybook cottage. I've always adored this style of home but never knew what to call them. I was so happy to find this book and see someone had come up with a name for these enchanting homes. This book has brought me hours of enjoyment. I read it cover to cover immediately but I look through it over and over again. It has been such a help in giving me inspiration and information for the restoration of my little storybook home. I cannot sing enough praises for this book - my only complaint - I want another volume. If a Storybook Style 2 were to be published - I would buy it the very day it came out!!!!
Rare original idea
My first impression of this book was that it was a trifle; once I started to read it though, I discovered it was surprisingly substantial. What a joy to look at these quaint medieval-inspired houses. Lots of them, and all those turrets! You won't find mention of this phenomenon in any of the popular books on house styles, and the author deserves credit for documenting it. Whodathunkit - a page-turner architecture book!
5 stars plus!A book to delight the heart! It's so well-written you don't want to stop reading, yet you want to see what delight awaits on the next page.My suggestion - page through and look at all the pictures - then go back and read it all.Great job - please do another one!Read more

Subjects:  1. 20th century    2. Architecture    3. Architecture, Domestic    4. Architecture, Medieval    5. Design & Drafting    6. Domestic    7. History - General    8. Influence    9. U.S. Architecture - General    10. United States    11. Architectural structure & design    12. Architecture / Interior Design   

Subjects:  1. Architecture    2. Country homes    3. Decorating - General    4. Domestic    5. Interior Design - General    6. Residential Buildings Architecture    7. Residential Interior Design    8. U.S. Architecture - General    9. West (U.S.)    10. House & Home / General    11. Houses, apartments, flats, etc    12. Interior design   

Reviews (4)

Par Excellent
I first saw this book at a Baker Furniture showroom which sales the Garcia furniture line.The furniture on display did not capture the genius of Garcia which, on the other hand, the book does.I have not had the opportunity to read but a few lines from this book, as my busy schedule has not permitted. However, from what I have read, I am in for a treat.
A touts les glories de la France
Most American designers who would persuade that they present us with so called 'French' design, actually show us American interiors witha few traditional French furniture pieces thrown in the loupe - but this doesn't make them French. (Generally they come across more English country house, really; chintz et al.) Jacques Garcia is very different! He knows the traditional interiors of France as if they are tattooed blueprints on his mind; the panelling, floors, carvings, mantles, proportions, the furniture and accessories, fabrics, architecture and art - but most importantly he has that extremely rare ability to know those idiosyncratic and intangible differences, those transcendent and ethereal distinctions of the French intellect regarding aesthetics. He has found the French soul and is sharing it with you. It is not even slightly American! If you wish to know what France IS see Garcia's book!

French Opulence in Interior Design
This stunning book presents the residential and commercial work of the French interior designer Jacques Garcia.The printing quality and paper stock are superb.Though written in a subjective, praising and uncritical style, the book still provides insights into Garcia's background and design philosophy. As one who has visited Champ de Bataille, the book truly captures the beauty and grandeur of the place. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Architecture    2. Decorating    3. Decorating - General    4. House & Home    5. Interior Design    6. Interior Design - General    7. House & Home / Decorating   

Reviews (4)

Beautiful Book!
I can't say enough about the quality of the pictures in this book.Startling and brilliant color.Nice writeups about the inns and haciendas.For anyone traveling to Mexico and looking for unique and historical places to stay, this would be a great book to read before the trip.Highly recommend.

I wanna move to Mexico!
You can almost feel the colours and shapes, taste the food and smell the flowers in this lavishly illustrated book on Mexican Haciendas and Hotels. I can see why allot of the people that started these Inns sold everything they had and moved to Mexico to start a new life. This book will be an inspiration to architects and would also make a great coffee table book. Be careful to check the binding when you get it. The glue on mine all fell off in chunks after the first read!

Beautiful pictoral essay of historic Mexican inns and hotels
This book is good, maybe even great, but still can't compare to Melba Levick and Masako Takahashi's AWESOME "Mexicolor".Masako's other book, "Mexican Tiles" comes close, and still edges out "Mexicasa" a little bit as well, so when all is said and done I think I just have to chalk it up to Masako's EVIDENT love and appreciation for the unfathomable beauty of things Mexican.Melba Levick seems to me to see things more from the outside looking in, and without so much PASSION, kind of like a more disinterested spectator than a participant, but that could just be my opinion.Read more

Subjects:  1. Architecture    2. Domestic    3. Haciendas    4. Hotels    5. Interior Design - General    6. Interior decoration    7. International Architecture - General    8. Mexico    9. Vernacular architecture    10. Architecture / Domestic    11. Houses, apartments, flats, etc   

Reviews (7)

Rich, complex, atmospheric
I thought this book was exceptional.
Through the Keyhole
Have you ever walked or driven past someone's home and wanted to look inside?Looking through this book is a bit like that on an international scale.The book is a beautiful work of art in itself, the presentation top class, the paper quality excellent, the binding great.It is packed with marvellous photographs of interiors, accompanied by descriptive text.What it isn't is another of those boring interior design books, filled with rooms that are painted offwhite, with large mirrors, potted palms and overstuffed sofas.This book is interior design getting real!

A Comprehensive and Sensitive Survey of Peoples and their Habitats
Stafford Cliff has collected images from all around the world and with the help of superb photographer Gilles de Chabaneix has done what few other innovators in design have done - created a book that is, yes, about design, but is equally about how climate, place, ethnicity, tradition, cultural philosophies, and history inform the decisions people make about their living environments.
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Subjects:  1. Architecture, Domestic    2. Art & Art Instruction    3. Do-It-Yourself    4. Fashion    5. General    6. House & Home    7. Interior architecture    8. Interior decoration    9. Pictorial works    10. Residential Interior Design    11. Subjects & Themes - Fashion    12. House & Home / Decorating   

Editorial Review

Sarah Susanka has a not-so-insignificant idea in Read more

Reviews (48)

Inspiring book with one big flaw
As I read this book, I found some ideas that will be very useful in designing my small handcrafted log home. The idea of ensuring long diagonal views, for example, was a good one. And the pictures and floorplans illustrated the concepts very well.
Beautiful Portfolio
A wonderful portfolio of Not So Big Houses across the country.This book holds a collection of already construction homes and home renovations that embody the Not So Big principles of design.Lots of color pictures and floor plans - some for sale.Certainly not a "How-to" for your own home.

Homes with souls and personalities instead of huge, impersonal boxes.
Instead of spending a lot of money on square footage and being unsatisfyed with the end result, Susanka asks for people to look at how they actually USE their houses, and to design them for the lives they live- which increases the cost per square foot, but gives you some stunningly beautiful homes, that LOOK like places you want to live.
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Subjects:  1. 20th century    2. Architecture    3. Architecture, Domestic    4. Design & Construction    5. Do-It-Yourself    6. Home Improvement / Construction    7. House & Home    8. House Plans    9. Repair    10. Space (Architecture)    11. United States    12. Building skills    13. Home furnishing & decoration    14. House & Home / General    15. House maintenance    16. Housing & property for the individual    17. HOUSE & HOME / Design & Construction   

Subjects:  1. Architecture    2. General    3. International Architecture - European    4. Architecture / General    5. Architecture / Interior Design   

Reviews (1)

Excellent Human Science Overview of Religions
The Brill Dictionary of Religion, 4 volume set edited by Kocku Von Stuckrad (Brill Academic Publishers) Excerpt: From Editor's Preface to English Edition: 1. Religion in the Twenty-First Century
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Subjects:  1. Architecture    2. Dictionaries    3. Dictionaries - General    4. History    5. Interior Design - General    6. Reference    7. Religion    8. Religion - Commentaries / Reference    9. Reference works    10. Religion & Beliefs   

Reviews (3)

Not as good as Guide to Frame Construction
I purchased this because I was very impressed with the "Graphic Guide to Frame Construction" book.I was much less impressed
Accurate and Detailed
Here you will find up-to-date information about virtually every material involved in interior construction - common and uncommon, residential and commercial - so you can compare key factors and make the best decisions for all of your projects.
God is in the details with this one folks!
The Graphic Guide to Interior Details: For Builders and Deigners gives a comprehensive analysis and break down, not only for professionals in the industry, but for the first time home buyer, or for people who are justplain interested in built structures.There are endless details and drawingsthat are accompanied by current and up to date information that not onlycomplies with modern day building codes and standards,but also hasinnovative and progressive techniques for the future. I'm a student thathas gotten great use and resource out of this book. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Architecture    2. Construction - Carpentry    3. Construction - General    4. Design & Construction    5. Home Improvement / Construction    6. Interior Design - General    7. Reference    8. House & Home / Reference   

Reviews (1)

its about time!
This book is very thorough about principles of color- it has tear out color charts and about every conceivable color combination that will look 'smashing" together. I absolutely love it and i will be using it to decorate my new home- The author has simplified a seemingly complex visionary task to a method that is foolproof for getting that designer look. I would have paid over $ 300.00 for the book to have the information that she supplies and i would like to have more by this author . fabulous! thank you ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Color in interior decoration    2. Decorating - General    3. Decoration & Ornament    4. Design & Construction    5. Do-It-Yourself    6. Home Improvement / Construction    7. House & Home    8. Interior Design - General    9. Home furnishing & decoration    10. House & Home / Decorating   

Reviews (4)

Incredible
This book is very helpful if you are truly wishing to uncover secrets of what I would consider one of the masters of trompe l'oeil illusion.

An amazing artist shares his works.
This book is full of stunning photos of murals, renderings, and panels of the artists' portfolio. There is little text but with some imagination it is great reference material.

good reference material
When looking for a book on trompe l'oeil, an art which is in itself a difficult thing to master.If you are a novice, look for book reviews where they tell you that it is a step by step manual.Then you will have a foundation and a valuable starting point to begin your artistic journey.Books such as this are basically good for reference material, the artist here is showing off so to speak his works of art, which is okay but if he or she offers no help in the way of instruction all you have is a pretty picture book.An author like Roberta Gordon-Smith is a better bet for the beginner.Janet Shearer offers good advice for intermediate and above.If a person praises it up and down and is overwhelmed by the quality of the artists work, that's just it...they are simply overwhelmed.The book in and of itself may not be that helpful.So read those reviews and try to read between the lines so you won't throw away your hard earned money.Best Wishes,Rick ... Read more

Subjects:  1. 20th century    2. Architecture    3. Architecture (Specific Aspects)    4. Art & Art Instruction    5. Decoration & Ornament    6. Decoration and ornament    7. General    8. History    9. Painting Of Specific Subjects    10. Techniques - General    11. Techniques - Painting - Specific Subjects    12. Trompe l'oeil    13. Art techniques & materials    14. Interior design    15. Painting & paintings   

Subjects:  1. Animals    2. Classification    3. Environmental Science    4. Interior Design - General    5. Mammals    6. Sociology    7. Soviet Union    8. Voles   

Reviews (1)

For BIG rooms and budgets only
If you are planning to entertain a cast of thousands (or at least a few hundred), own at least ten acres of land, and have unlimited funds (including hefty fees for architects and engineers), then this book offers a few good ideas. Unfortunately, I was looking for something more down to earth, such as ideas for a modest gazebo or shelter that would blend nicely into the back of my modest half acre piece of land - a place for thinking or reading or conversing with a few god friends, a place to escape the rain, or a place for star gazing. This book didn't even come close to my expectations. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Architecture    2. Design & Construction    3. Domestic    4. Interior Design - General    5. Outdoor & Recreational Areas - General    6. Architecture / General    7. Houses, apartments, flats, etc   

Reviews (3)

Outstanding Book -Dont miss it
This is an outstanding book, with plenty of pictures - great insider material on furniture and architecture.And I already have a design MA with my own firm.

Underwhelming and overpriced
The text of this volume is decent and well organized but in the area that most designers are interested in, visual examples, it is sorely lacking. A very minimal section of color photographs (which jump from Roman to the Renaissance. No sign of the Gothic)and a series of low contrast black and white ones are augmented with a series of uninspired drawings. All of this might still be helpful and useful were it not for the price. There are many volumes on furniture and decor that have come on the market recently which are superior in their content and priced more reasonably.

Better for furniture/antiques dealers than designers
This book is a good encyclopedia of the history of interior design going back to ancient era- it catalogues the general overview for each period chronologically, explaining the function and materiality of a space or piece of furniture.The book is particularly nice for classifying particular styles of furniture and may be more suited to an antiques dealer or furniture dealer than a professional interior designer.The major problem i have with the book is that most if not all of the photographs are black and white, and it completely skips the modern era of design, pretty much ending with the turn of the 19th century.No mention of my favorites like Mies van der Rohe or Mr. Wright.This absence somehow makes this book seem incomplete. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Architecture    2. Decoration & Ornament    3. Furniture design    4. History    5. History - General    6. Interior Design - General    7. Interior architecture    8. Interior decoration    9. Architecture / Interior Design   

Reviews (1)

Insulate walls, update plumbing, install new wiring and more
Part of the outstanding "Smart Guide" series from Creative Homeowner, Basements: Step-By-Step Projects is a no-nonsense, "user friendly" collection of step-by-step projects to insulate walls, update plumbing, install new wiring, eliminate moisture problems and much more in the basement of one's home. Color photographs, diagrams, and detailed instructions distinguish this excellent do-it-yourself resource which is confidently recommended for personal "do-it-yourself" and Interior Design technical reference shelf collections. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Architecture    2. Basements    3. Do-It-Yourself - General    4. Home Improvement / Construction    5. Interior Design - General    6. Interior decoration    7. Remodeling    8. House & Home / Do-It-Yourself