What this book is great for is supplying an abundance of images of well-designed rooms which are stylish, fresh and original. This book is organized by rooms (living rooms, bedrooms, kitchens etc.) and by features such as beds, lighting etc. so if you're looking for ideas say for a fireplace mantel, you get some fresh inspiration on a design approach.
Many of us in designing our home may have difficulty articulating what we like, but when we see it, we know it. This book offers a visual file of images for us to peruse to begin to identify what we love in design. Often, what we love is complex--an assortment of color, textures, the way the light hits the room, a furniture style. This book offers a vast array of rooms and styles to help begin to define it. You can also use it as a resource, say, if you want ideas on accessorizing a room--go through and see how different rooms use collections and accessories and what you like seeing in a room, or on a table, and the quantity of stuff you want to surround yourself with.
If you find a room in this book you would love to live in, or visit in a friend's home/apartment, then you can begin to analyze the design elements that are attracting you. What I love about this series, is that the residences are not just from the United States but have an international focus. As many popular design styles originated in Europe, it's great to see real rooms from these homes, rather than our take on a particular style. The rooms are more authentic and organic--but the style can be translated and adapted. Much better to look at an original. For seasoned designers, this book offers an abundance of ideas that don't necessarily pop up in popular decorating magazines.
The book is a square ten inches approximately and a mix of 10 X 10 pictures of rooms and then some pages where 4 images fit on one page so a lot of rooms are included in the book. Quantity and quality images are combined. This book should be great for those of us who are looking for design ideas for our own homes and designers who are looking for fresh inspiration. The styles featured in this book tend to be classic, eclectic, some modern and a wonderful mix of formal and relaxed so the rooms and this book shouldn't get dated quickly. It's a good resource of well-designed rooms in beautiful buildings. I love the room on the cover of this book;the quality of it is typical of what you'll find inside.
