Customer Reviews

At Home With Japanese Design: Accents, Structure and Spirit

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I ordered this thinking it would be a good collection of Japanese design elements and ideas. I have no problem with mixing different cultural elements and using traditional elements creatively. However, most of what is featured is a sort of faux-Japanese design for yuppies. Items are completely out of place (i.e. a footwarmer used to keep flowrs; clothes hung on walls as decor) and rooms often cluttered. Further, many rooms were cluttered or not very Japanese at all. That said, a few featured houses were nice, and one in particular -- built in rustic Japanese fashion with dark wood -- was beautiful. Overall, unless this is your type of thing, I'd say look elsewhere for design ideas ...

I love this book and have spent a great deal of time absorbing the design ideas it offers. If you are looking for a book of traditional Japanese design, this is not what you are seeking; the authors are very straight-forward about their aim: how to integrate items from another culture into your lifestyle. Hence, a beautiful kimono may be used as an art object hung on the wall, because if you live in a large Western city, you probably wouldn't be wearing your kimono to the office. Come to think of it, most museum-quality artifacts from other cultures wouldn't be used in another age or setting EXCEPT for either decorative purposes or for an application other than what was originally intended. But that aside, there are many lessons to be learned here about incorporating elements of the Japanese aesthetic into a Western setting. This book, along with the authors' earlier "Japanese Accents in Western Interiors" are books to dream on for a person who is receptive to the notion of mixing facets of the East and the West.

Many books on japanese interior design require that you remodel your house or make huge changes in order to get a fully authentic Japanese style. For many of us that is just not an option.

This book, instead, shows how to use Japanese fabrics, kimono, chests, etc, to give a Japanese style to your Western interior - WITHOUT - having to remodel. It does show some spaces that were built specifically for the Japanese look, but most of the book is more about decorating your existing space. I enjoyed also the suggestions about breaking up a space with hanging dividers and also creating a japanese-style bedroom, etc.

Wonderful book to look at over and over again. Great ideas for decorating with all the Japanese furniture, dishes and fixings. Can not wait to take some of the ideas from the book and use when back in the states. Guess it is off to the antique and shrine sales to look for more decorations.