The Decoration of Houses - Hardcover

Stoddard, Alexandra

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0688149596 ISBN 13: 9780688149598

Publisher: William Morrow, 1997

Synopsis

In 1897, Edith Wharton and architect Ogden Codman, Jr., collaborated on The Decoration of Houses, a groundbreaking book on the art of interior design. Now Alexandra Stoddard gives us her own version of decorating houses for today's world, making the wisdom and expertise from her thirty-six years of interior design experience accessible to all individuals, regardless of their budget or the size of their home.

While adhering to the classical principles espoused by Wharton and Codman, Alexandra Stoddard shows us how to see our homes as professional designers do: as an expression of our own personalities. She teaches us how to think about space, scale and proportion, color, light, and texture as she advises us on the different elements of a roomthe floor, furniture, lighting, fabric, art, and more. She captures the essence of interior design by attuning us to our own sense of beauty, giving us the confidence to create the home of our dreams.

Alexandra Stoddard's decorating clients range from notable individuals to young people starting out. She's designed the interiors of mansions and embassies as well as cottages and one-room studios.

About this title

Review:

Alexandra Stoddard has reinterpreted and restated for a late-20th-century audience the basis of Edith Wharton's and Ogden Codman Jr.'s 1897 The Decoration of Houses, then a groundbreaking book. Stoddard's approach to interior design is sensitive, holistic, practical, and thorough, building a solid aesthetic on classical design principles. Readable and appealing, the book offers a thoughtful analysis of the intersection of architecture with personal style, interspersed with concrete and sensible suggestions for the decoration and use of floors, walls, furniture, and storage space. As in Stoddard's other books, her warm personality comes through on every page. (You have to love a woman who says, "Most rooms are improved by the presence of books.... A house with many books is a house with many mansions.")

About the Author:

Author of twenty-four books, Alexandra Stoddard is a sought-after speaker on the art of living. Through her lectures, articles, and books such as Living a Beautiful Life, Things I Want My Daughters to Know, Time Alive, Grace Notes, Open Your Eyes, and Feeling at Home, she has inspired millions to pursue more fulfilling lives. She lives with her husband in New York City and Stonington Village, Connecticut.

About this edition

• Publisher: William Morrow
• Publication date: 1997
• ISBN 10: 0688149596
• ISBN 13: 9780688149598
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 480