Customer Reviews

Country Living Merry & Bright: 301 Festive Ideas for Celebrating Christmas

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Thoroughly enjoyed this Christmas edition of the best of Country Living. Photos are beautiful, excellent layout. More about inspiring ideas rather than how-tos which is exactly what I look for so this was a perfect choice for me but perhaps not for the crafter. If you like the magazine, you'll love the book.

If you search for something which keeps the Christmas tradition and brings some extra original ideas and items, this book is quite for you. The cover is as beautiful as the inside, the text is easy to read, actually it is more long comments about the amazing photos. When I bought it, I was afraid that it would be just another book about Christmas, always the same stuff, but actually it brings something new, by keeping the traditional feel of this holiday. It is so gorgeous, that we could be tempted to keep these decors the whole year. There also are recipes for holidays at the end, what can be useful. I have been pleasantly surprised when I received it and it is certainly a book I will keep forever.

Country Living Merry & Bright is full of the country Christmas spirit. Antiques, collectibles, nature and tradition mix with new ideas and ways to put them to holiday use. Everything you need to make it a country Christmas. Beautiful and inspiring photos. Packed with recipes and holiday cheer.

Country Living's newest installment certainly doesn't disappoint. The images and ideas are fabulous and very refreshing. I already tried one of the craft ideas and the results were wonderful... A great buy and a good gift for friends!

If your idea of beautiful home is one that is minimal and modern, this book is probably not for you. But for those of us whose homes are layered with memories of Christmases past, family heirlooms, antiques and even with finds from online auctions, this books is of great interest. I loved the fresh looks using vintage items, and the greenery varieties, and the lovely homey look of the rooms in the photos. The book even some very exceptional cookie recipes! I am inspired, and am already planning on using some of the ideas in my home this Christmas.

This book celebrates style and decorating not fussiness and micro-bustling.
Small flourishes triumph over fuss and muss.
The photography is a beautiful accompaniment and even wanna be domestic goodnesses like me can find encouragement and gentle nudges toward the genteel.

This book is one I treasure all year long. It has some of the most unique Christmas decor ideas that I have been able to find. It has ideas for all tastes not just those who like the vintage or country style. You will not regreat purchasing this book.

I bought this to display during the holiday season. The cover is beautiful - but don't judge it by the cover. The inside is full of different, original ideas for decorating. I am always looking for display ideas that are different and this was a great source.

This book has some very good, easy-to-implement ideas, especially for those of us who are on a budget and prefer to decorate more creatively than a prepackaged jumble of home wares from a chain store. The recipes are also elegant enough to be impressive if you're bringing something to a holiday party without being pretentious or likely to take you the better part of a week and perhaps half your sanity. I like the re-purposing that this book shows you how to do and the space-saving tips are also effective. I kind of wish I'd bought this earlier in the year so that I could have been on the look out for various things during the summer yard sale times. The thing that keeps this from being a five-star review for me is that I wish there was a little more how-to regarding some of the decorating tips (e.g. there are some really beautifully decorated trees showcased in here and I would have loved a little more direction on how to recreate a few of the looks). Other than that, I'll definitely be keeping this volume handy for holidays to come and I know I'll have fun trying out some of the ideas that it suggests.

Perhaps I was looking for more from Country Living, but this collection of "ideas" was pretty drab. It starts with pages and pages and pages of different christmas tree themes. I started skipping pages to see what else was in the book. I did look at every page, and every idea, but really was yawning over these pretty ho-hum ideas. The way the book is organized is a little too formatted - one picture for each idea (or at least most ideas) which makes for little creative browsing. Personally, I would have preferred a bigger spread picture with several ideas being identified from the room or view.

At the end of the book, they have a few pages of 'credits' for each idea. That kind of trivialized the whole thing for me as well. It brought to mind how this probably worked... a company-wide email "Hey guys, we're pulling together a christmas book of ideas. Send your idea in, and we'll use it in our book." There really wasn't a cohesive tone or style to the book, and it was pretty darned dry.

When I'm looking for holiday ideas, I'm looking for inspiration. Both for decorating, and for putting me in the holiday spirit while I leaf through the pages. I really got neither from this book, and it'll go in the "to sell at next yardsale" pile. I get more interesting or usable ideas from one Country Living, or Martha Stewart magazine than I did in this book.

At the same time I ordered this book, I also purchased the Farm Chicks Christmas book The Farm Chicks Christmas: Merry Ideas for the Holidays (Country Living) I really preferred both the ideas and the format of the Farm Chicks book.