Customer Reviews

The House Always Wins: America’s Most Trusted Home Columnist’s Guide to Creating Your (Almost) Perfect Dream House

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

 

 

What a wonderful, witty, informative and engaging book. There is something for everyone within the covers of this book. It takes you from the very earliest stages of decorating your home to the completed look without the expense of a decorator, all done with a wonderful sense of humor describing the perils we have all experienced. If you have ever had to deal with contractors, painters, no-shows, budgets and calamaties here is the help we all need to prevent those costly mistakes. I loved the feeling of familiarity with the experiences of the author and had many a laugh along the way. I can think of no better way to chart a course to a warm, personal touch in my home than to use this book as my decorating bible.

It's rare for me to pick up a decorating book which is all text and no pictures, so I was surprised to thoroughly enjoy this book and can warmly recommend it. It's well-written, entertaining, yet full of sound advice from experts. The best part for me was the realization I am not the only one whose spouse sees no point at all in decorating!

I understand the main point of the book is that we learn from Ms Jameson's mistakes and get things right first time. But her description of glibly tearing out the hardwood floors already being installed in her new home, to go with an upgraded option, really made me blink. Her aforementioned spouse must truly be very laid back. In addition, paying $200 for a designer's suggestions for what to put on top of her kitchen cabinets seems way extreme. You can read for yourself the cost of the flower arrangement that didn't work out for the entryway. One final gripe on finances - in a couple of places, Ms Jameson suggests buying things out of state to avoid paying the sales tax. I have to point out that, at least in California, the IRS would be very interested in that tactic - you are supposed to declare those items on your filing and stump up the cash at the end of the year.

So, although I feel this book is not quite 'of our times' in terms of the funds she clearly sinks into her own projects, I will take it in the spirit intended, and hope that I can save a couple of costly mistakes because of it. Moreover, knowing it's OK for my house to be un-magazine-worthy, and recognizing it's absolutely normal for men to be essentially color-blind, made it a worthwhile read for me.

This is the book you will wish you had written. Haven't we all felt like we were in the Tom Hanks movie 'The Money Pit' a time or two when trying to dress our nest?

Marni Jameson takes you through her journey of learning how to find your true style, develop a workable (and affordable) plan of action, and, most importantly, how to both learn from AND laugh at your mistakes.

You'll cry from laughing and commiserating with her over things that you may have experienced in your quests...but you'll also gain the confidence to get going again.

From yard sale finds to antique stores, close-outs, cast-offs, and special orders...won't it feel good to do it right next time? Or at least be able to have a glass of wine and laugh over your follies? The best part is that Marni infuses the laughs with specific help to make your next attempt a success.

You'll learn why "it never looks as good as in the magazine" but why that is actually A-OK! You'll learn that everyone makes the "cheapskate" mistakes and has contractor "issues" now and then. You'll get some great ideas from Marni...to help you find your OWN ideas. Brilliant concept!

You will enjoy this book and I predict you will see yourself and others in it. In fact, I predict, like me, you'll order a few more copies for those buddettes of yours. Go ahead...make their day!

If you are looking for a good laugh combined with lots of great decorating advice, pick up The House Always Wins by Marni Jameson. I find myself laughing out loud while reading The House Always Wins more times than I can count. Jameson's book takes the reader along with her as she navigates the confusing and often stressful process of building and decorating her house. She recounts conversations with her husband, whose idea of home decor is a Lazy boy and a table to put your feet up on, and decorating experiences with her children with the kind of humor any wife or mother will appreciate.

This is much more than a humor book though. Alongside her true to life stories of decorating disasters, she includes plenty of advice from the experts on everything from picking carpeting to getting the correct drapery hardware to just about anything else an amateur decorator would need to know. There are no pictures in the book and it's just as well. One of the insider tidbits she shares is the fact that decorating magazines remove objects like phones & computers from rooms before photographing them and what can't be physically removed, like light switches and electrical cords are edited out with computer imaging programs thereby creating the illusion of a perfect room. Jameson retelling of the decorating perils she faced is far more engaging than pictures of untouchable perfect rooms anyway.

Stephanie Ann, Author

THE CHEAP DIVA'S GUIDE TO FRUGAL AND FABULOUS LIVING: How to Shop Smart, Look Your Best, Decorate with Style, and Have Fun for Less Money!

I was browsing through the home dec section in the library and passed over this book three or four times. I'd pick it up, see that it had no pictures, and slap it right back down on the shelf. Three days ago I was looking for something to read, not just look at, and gave it a go. What an entertaining and informative book. Yes, the author's home decorating budget is clearly waaaaay more than mine (Craigslist, Goodwill and the fabric store) but the principles she shares are the valuable bits of knowledge she's earned the hard way, or paid way too much for, and we get to learn from her mistakes and triumphs.

I'd rather drag in every woman I know to tell me how to decorate the top of my kitchen cupboards than pay an "expert" $200, BUT, now that Marni J has done it and written about it, I don't have to. She shares concise tips on dealing with all sorts of home-related issues and writes in a very down-to-earth manner. Aside from the fact that I probably couldn't afford a house in her neighborhood, she comes across as someone very "real", whose goal is to help the rest of us who can't afford that $200 shelf decorator lady.

Loved the book and will recommend it for all my friends who struggle to make their houses look beautiful but can't afford the professional help that might make a big difference.

So why did I give it four stars instead of five? The chapter on Christmas was pretty off-putting. It's the only chapter that talks so much (yes, more than once) about doing something to your house so that the neighbors will envy you. Reading about how one must choose a THEME for the Christmas tree and get rid of all the homemade ornaments your kids have contributed over the years made me choke on my diet Coke. Sorry, Marni, but I most definitely part ways with you here. A Christmas tree reflects your home. If your home needs a theme, so be it. You'll probably have a beautiful tree. Our theme is "Our Family Through the Years" whether our neighbors are jealous or not. And we definitely have a gorgeous Christmas tree.