Decoration of Houses by Alexandra Stoddard

From the Publisher

Alexandra Stoddard continues her creative and insightful guidance by showing us how to make our homes a real expression of our true selves. Starting with the Fifteen Defining Principles of Interior Design, Stoddard grounds us in the classic standards that make any home timeless and follows with inventive suggestions. Her own bold ideas about color, pattern, and texture are affordable tips from her own vast experience involving every imaginable decoration problem. From lighting a room to adding fabrics, furnishings, and the perfect finishing touches, she offers her expertise while always encouraging us to listen to our inner voice for the final answer.

Publishers Weekly

Following in the tradition of such pioneers of interior-decoration books Edith Wharton, Elsie de Wolfe and Eleanor McMillen Brown, Stoddard (Gracious Living in a New World) believes in the power of beauty to elevate the soul. Like Wharton, whose Decoration of Houses was published 100 years ago, Stoddard applies such architectural considerations as scale and proportion to the rooms within a house. Among her precepts: furniture is meant to be rearranged; beauty offers more comfort than a La-Z-Boy recliner; the sweet scent of freshly laundered cotton is the perfume of family life. Chapters are organized to follow the logic of fixing up a placefiguring out budgets and priorities; analyzing architectural styles; making the most of texture, color and paint; and personalizing the space so that the home reflects the owner's soul. Stoddard sprinkles her text with examples of creative problem solving drawn from her client files. One client resolved two dilemmas in one stroke by placing bookcases under the kitchen counter to turn "the heart of the home into a sunny place where the family could gather and read around the table." Prose that is sometimes artificially upbeat and some precious recommendations -- e.g., suggesting that one can brighten a room and demonstrate one's love of color by displaying colored pencils in a clear glass -- indicate that this design book targets the converted. BOMC/Country Homes & Gardens and Crafter's Choice alternate selection. (Oct.)

Library Journal

Each of these books gives a different view of some of the major issues in home decorating. Interior designer Hanby-Robie has written an easy-to-read workbook to be used by the do-it-yourselfer. She discusses furniture, wall and window treatments, fabrics, flooring, interior design accessories, and planning. For all topics she never advocates a particular style but gives practical advice to enable consumers to make knowledgeable home-decorating choices. Landis, a contributing editor to Metropolitan Home, takes a "helpful hints" approach to interior design, much like Leslie Linsley does in her 15-Minute Decorating Ideas (LJ 5/15/97). The "workable (and) designer-tested" tips are divided into chapters for topics such as color, windows, and display. Appendixes provide information on hiring an interior designer and a helpful list of mail-order resources for home furnishings. Stoddard, the interior designer and much-published writer, updates Edith Wharton and Ogden Codman's classic The Decoration of Houses, first published 100 years ago. More style conscious and less tip-oriented than the authors of the other two books, she gives her own comprehensive interpretation of how to decorate a home in the last years of the 20th century. All three titles would be excellent, broad-interest additions to every public library.

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