Inspirations from France and Italy by Betty Lou Phillips, Danny Piassick (Photographer)

From the Publisher

French flair and Italian panache combine exquisitely in these rooms that are rich with quality furnishings and well-chosen colors. Beloved author and interior designer Betty Lou Phillips shows how favorite objects gathered from around the globe can be artfully blended in one's home to create a beautiful international setting that is both personal and inviting. Setting one well-appointed space apart from others is a distinctive way of defining style, which invariably communicates the thoughts, needs and feelings of those raising families, welcoming friends and celebrating meaningful occasions in these spaces. That these interiors owe more than a little to French and Italian influences, and sometimes England or Portugal, is noticeable. However, the images also illus-trate that inspiration can readily come from other far-flung cultures, including American shores. One picture offers a wealth of bright ideas.

This eighth book in Betty Lou Phillips' series on European design is filled with 200 color images that dismiss polarized notions about what understated elegance means or doesn't mean as Phillips urges readers likewise to fashion their own unmistakably swank empires, of sorts, whether furnishing a town house, chateau, palazzo or villa by the sea.
Aware that old-world artistry is not enough for a sizeable and growing number of design aficionados, Phillips caters to today's tastes, revealing that satisfaction comes from creating uptown European glamour-a chic blend of the traditional and edgy with a bit of attitude apt for an era with more choices than ever.

Betty Lou Phillips is the author of the award-winning Villa Decor, plus The French Connection, Secrets ofFrench Design, Unmistakably French, French Influences, French by Design, and Provencal Interiors: French Country Style in America. A professional member of the American Society of Interior Designers, her work has appeared in Southern Accents, Traditional Home, Decorating, Bedroom & Bath, Window & Wall, Paint Decor, and more. Additionally, she has appeared on the Christopher Lowell Show and the Oprah Winfrey Show. She lives in Dallas, Texas

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Much has changed since Louis XIV (1643-1715), Louis XV (1715-74) and Louis XVI (1774-93) unabashedly drenched the palace of Versailles in gilded excess, provoking a revolution that brought the monarchy tumbling down and prompted habitues of all economic levels-poor, middle class and rich-aspiring for better lives to famously proclaim "liberte, egalite, and fraternite!" the national mantra.