Let's Ask Michael : 100 Practical Solutions for Interior Design Challenges [Paperback]

Michael Payne (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 20, 2003

Michael Payne--popular host of the hit HGTV's hit series Designing for the Sexes--brings his unique talent and expertise to this beautiful and practical reference designed to help homeowners find stylish solutions to today's most common and challenging home design dilemmas.

YOU ASKED HIM, NOW HE'S ANSWERING
Through emails, internet chats, and attendance at his seminars, Michael's fans have directly asked him to solve their most difficult design dilemmas. This beautiful reference delivers the answers they seek in a style that captures Michale's trademark wit and charm. Questions range from the common to the outrageous, providing always informative -- and often amusing -- reading.

* Beautifully illustrated with 175 full-color photos
* Features a logical room-by-room approach
* Convenient format features each problem and solution presented across a single two-page spread
* Covers living rooms, family rooms, master bedrooms, kitchens, bathrooms, work spaces, child's room, and more
* Packed with advice, ideas, and tips on lighting, upholstery, storage, and accessories
* Includes an informative Basic Questions chapter (20030313)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Devotees of Payne's HGTV series, Designing for the Sexes, will welcome this richly illustrated user-friendly guide to interior design. Payne, a California interior designer, has compiled frequently asked questions he has received from viewers since his show first aired in 1998. Divided into sections by rooms, the author addresses design issues such as color, space, light and budgetary considerations. For example, a stay-at-home working mother who is using a guest bedroom for an office wonders how to make the room most attractive and efficient for both her and sleepover guests. The author suggests purchasing a "Murphy" bed that can be housed behind wall cabinetry with shelves that can be closed when the bed is not in use. Payne is also adept at resolving conflicts in taste between two people who are living together. He helps a husband and wife who are planning to remodel their living room in order to reconcile the husband's love of new design trends that emphasize light metals with his Japanese wife's desire to incorporate elements from her culture. Since both tastes begin with simplicity, Payne demonstrates a design marriage between traditional Asian simplicity and geometric lines. The color photos complement and strengthen the author's solutions. Although Payne does take budgetary and space constraints into account, this manual will be most useful to upper-middle-class families who live in houses rather than apartments.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

Excerpts from feature article about author Michael Payne by Erica Noonan
A couples-therapy view of decorating

Every Thursday night at 9, Payne strolls up the front walk of a Los Angeles mansion to call decorating timeout for a bickering couple. Usually, he introduces the design dilemma with something provocative like, "She loves French country. He loves Salvadore Dali melting-clock posters. Can these two ever agree? Then in 30 minutes, courtesy of Home & Garden Television, they invariabley do.

Payne, 57, is the first of the new wave of telegenic, celebrity interior designers to advocate for the man of the house. For decades men's decorating opinions were ignored -- or worse, mocked by women and the designers they hired.

..."It's all about compromise," he said, and most "Designing for the Sexes" couples end up happy. ... Payne's first book, Let's Ask Michael, a collection of reader e-mails and solutions to common design dilemmas, is due to be published next month by McGraw-Hill...

(Boston Globe )

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 197 pages
• Publisher: McGraw-Hill Professional; 1 edition (March 20, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0071416277
• ISBN-13: 978-0071416276
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 7.4 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,668,987 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Delightful Read, April 9, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Let's Ask Michael : 100 Practical Solutions for Interior Design Challenges (Paperback)

After reading this book decorating makes so much more sense. Michael really gives straight, concise answers to common decorating problems in a very well put together book. It was a delight to read. The graphics and photographs were great. The book is divided into several chapters, each one focusing on a specific room of the house, bedroom, kitchen, etc . It's extremely organized and very helpful. This would be a good general reference book to have on hand as pretty much all styles of decorating are included in this very informative book. Anyone who has seen Michael Payne's show on HGTV knows what a great personality he has, and it really comes through when you read this book.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fabulous book, April 14, 2003

By 

Ali Nusbaum (Cincinnati, OH) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Let's Ask Michael : 100 Practical Solutions for Interior Design Challenges (Paperback)

Michael Payne is a design genius! I have been a long-time fan of "Designing for the Sexes" and I am thrilled that he released a book. I loved everything about this book- it's simplicity, personalization, it's how-to approach, the clean and modern graphic design- this book is impressive from all angles! His design ideas are by far the best of any I have seen. He is able to artfully extract the individuality of a person into his design. It is no wonder that he has been so successful at reaching a compromise for married couples. Buy it and heed his advice!!!

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Let's Ask Michael, April 17, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Let's Ask Michael : 100 Practical Solutions for Interior Design Challenges (Paperback)

This book is a terrific guide to avoiding decorating disasters! Michael gives practical advise to those of us who like to dabble in interior design. The pictures are helpful in illustrating his points.