Living in a Nutshell: Posh and Portable Decorating Ideas for Small Spaces [Hardcover]

Janet Lee (Author)

Book Description

Release date: March 27, 2012

A fireplace on wheels? A chandelier lit by Xerox? A shrink-wrapped designer closet? These are just a few of the more than 100 stylish and innovative projects in Janet Lee’s Living in a Nutshell: a one-of-a-kind DIY decorating guide with fresh ideas to fool the eye into seeing—and believing—that even the most cramped little lair can hold more space and glamor than just the sum its of four walls.

The design maven behind livinginanutshell.com and Oprah Winfrey’s interior style producer for a decade, Janet Lee has personally handpicked a battery of clever projects for enhancing every area of a tiny living space—all are simple to do, require no craft skills, are emphatically affordable, readily portable, and big on style, so you can make these design dreams become your reality.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

A fireplace on wheels?
A chandelier light by Xerox?
A shrink-wrapped designer closet?

These are just a few of the more than one hundred innovative projects in Living in a Nutshell, a DIY guide of decorating ideas that fool the eye into seeing and believing a little lair is larger and more glamorous than its four walls. Here are fresh ideas for enhancing every living area of a tiny space. All are simple, affordable, portable, and big on style. An illustrated survival tool kit as well as extensive listings of untapped, off-the-beaten-track design resources and a select buying guide round out this invaluable book.

About the Author

Janet Lee is an Emmy Award-winning television show producer, styling and producing for leading home decorators, entrepreneurs, and designers such as Martha Stewart, B. Smith, and Thom Filicia. During her ten years as a senior producer for The Oprah Show, she worked closely with such style greats as Nate Berkus. She has also been a home décor producer for Lifetime Television's Our Home and was featured on camera as the show's weekend decorator, demonstrating chic, easy DIY projects. She has also appeared on CBS's The Early Show, where she demonstrated her high-end-for-less décor ideas. Now a freelance producer, she lives in New York City.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 208 pages
• Publisher: Harper Design (March 27, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0062060694
• ISBN-13: 978-0062060693
• Product Dimensions: 7 x 0.9 x 8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #44,695 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #30 in Books > Crafts, Hobbies & Home > Crafts & Hobbies > Decorating
  • #51 in Books > Arts & Photography > Decorative Arts & Design > Decorative Arts
  • #62 in Books > Professional & Technical > Architecture > Interior Design

More About the Author

Janet Lee is an Emmy Award-winning television show producer, styling and producing for leading home decorators, entrepreneurs, and designers such as Martha Stewart, B. Smith, and Thom Filicia. During her ten years as a senior producer for The Oprah Show, she worked closely with such style greats as Nate Berkus. She has also been a home décor producer for Lifetime Television's Our Home and was featured on camera as the show's weekend decorator, demonstrating chic, easy DIY projects. She has also appeared on CBS's The Early Show, where she demonstrated her high-end-for-less décor ideas. Now a freelance producer, she lives in New York City.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

30 of 31 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Tongue-in-chic decor for dinky digs June 24, 2012

By moi surtout

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

I'm no stranger to small spaces, having spent much of my adult life in a string of shoebox apartments from Boston to Osaka. There've been several books about decorating small rooms, and my main criticism is usually that the author and I have different definitions of 'small'. (I'm looking at you, Better Homes & Gardens.) The advice is usually given by someone who does not really understand what it's like to live in a small space day after day and is only guessing at what might be helpful for those who do.

Janet Lee's book is a refreshing change. The spaces shown are genuinely cramped with few architectural merits - finally! This isn't one of those glossies that hype small-scale minimalism by showing off white-on-white rooms with a murphy bed and a wall-to-wall view overlooking Rio. It is likely that at least one of the 100+ ideas in this book will work for your space if you give it a chance.

Now, this isn't for the faint of heart. The colors are vivid; if you like Jonathan Adler's Happy Chic books then you'll love the colors here. If you were hoping for something more neutral... well, give color a try anyway. Many people stick with pale tones thinking it'll make their tiny room look bigger, and buy small neutral pieces that won't overpower. This results in a perfectly fine room with as much personality as a dentist's office. If you've done your best but your little home still looks wilted, get this book. Even if you don't want to do every project, it might spark some ideas.

Still, I have mixed feelings about this one. Though quirky and vibrant, there's a kitschy shallowness. Part of me says it's not pretentious because nobody will really believe your logo-stamped jute rug came from Hermes or that Louis Vuitton monogrammed your filing cabinet.... Anyone who takes it too seriously just isn't cool enough to get the irony, right? But grown-ups with aesthetic influences that extend beyond pop culture and designer labels may find the couture tributes a little trite.

The styles are on trend, barely. The Hollywood Regency details work, and your hipster staples are covered: repurposed paint-by-number art, Pantone boxes, letterpress blocks, etc. Spray-painting trophies is apparently a Thing now. But I'm pretty sure that ornately framed posters of chandeliers were on their way out when Moraccan motifs began to replace damask print, and everyone who wanted a Keep Calm reminder has twelve by now. And surely chalkboard paint is over - or is that wishful thinking?

You'll pick up some good tips if you read the text, which is a shame because the smug writing starts to wear thin by page 8. It's written like a collection of perky magazine blurbs, and there's only so much of that I can take in one sitting. I half expected to see weight-loss tips and horoscopes in the back. Special hints are highlighted in chartreuse boxes that say, "Look, there's more!" As much as I tried to unsee them, I was begging, "Make it stop!" by the end of the book.

The subtitle is "Posh and Portable Decorating for Small Spaces." Portable? It's been awhile since I had a landlord who'd let me paint the living room black; many small spaces are rented and some of the ideas just aren't practical. Two different look-there's-mores tell us to apply fabric to wall/cabinet surfaces and "peel it off without a trace" when we move, but neither example does this. One involved removing stucco and wallpapering, and the other involved sanding and mod podge. If the starch idea is good enough to mention twice, why wasn't it used once?

Still, do check this one out if you like what you see in the preview. The book itself is prettily hardbound and delightfully arranged. It's a thick volume that feels good to hold and look through. The printing could be a touch better, but the images pop and the text is easy to read. This is definitely a gift-worthy book and would make a perfect present for a budding fashionista or someone moving into her first apartment.

Update: Adding a star. Several times I've found myself thinking, 'now where did I see that idea for...?' and it's been this book. Also, I forgot to mention that the resource section in the back is brilliantly useful. The author shares all her secrets: both how to make the projects and where to buy everything else. Read more ›

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A Design Treasure! April 29, 2012

By momoftwo

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

Beautifully written with exquisite photos and clear, easy to follow tips, this book is a must have for anyone decorating a small space. Other design books haven't captured my attention like Living in a Nutshell, I think in part because this book has so much personality. I was really charmed by the author's warm style & for me, her writing genuinely served to inspire rather than intimidate. Not only does Lee give clear & well thought out instructions on how to re-create the gorgeous looks from the book, she also provides a detailed index to make the whole process seamless. I also love that the ideas for decorating a small space feel fun & doable, even for a decor-challenged person like myself. Janet Lee deserves accolades for a rare decorating book that goes beyond decor, giving the reader fresh, actionable, and frankly, brilliant ideas for making a home feel unique, personal, and lovely, no matter how small.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Purchase April 11, 2012

By saramable

Format:Hardcover

I bought this book because I saw a review of it on Design Sponge and thought that it looked interesting. It has lots of great ideas for decorating your space that are easy, and that you can take with you/remove if you ever move. And it's got some fantastic eye candy! I totally recommend getting this book.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars a "darling" DIY May 31, 2012

By Ashley Kendall

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

As a former Southern girl, my best description, in a nutshell, is darling. Having read & owning way more decorating & design books than I'll ever be able to use, I found this book: fun, light-hearted & entertaining. It's a book that encourages creativity &, by that I mean, not only trying a project or two, but coming up with your own possibilities. & it's not just for small spaces. Extra applause for rating the time involved. Definitely, five stars. Off to my favorite thrift stores!

16 of 22 people found the following review helpful

2.0 out of 5 stars Living in a Nutshell May 10, 2012

By NWMDesign

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

Living in a Nutshell was very disappointing to me as I live in a nutshell of an apartment and was looking for ideas to make my space seem larger. For instance, I have a double duty table in my living room right now. It is a console table which the sides expand and the top flips over and it becomes a dining room table. The book however, is full of cute craft ideas. Example: You can get rubber stamps of a horse and carriage to stamp the edge of a rug so people will think it's an Hermes rug. If you are that concerned about fooling your friends into thinking what you have is a designer brand, good luck. This book is for those who like cute crafts. I would NOT suggested this book to anyone.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars GROWS on you - Quirky & creative December 28, 2012

By Madelyn Griffith-Haynie

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

I love this book more than makes sense. It makes me smile, and jumpstarts my own creativity.

Had I been forced to review it after my first scan-through I might have given it a 3.5 or a 4 - but I keep going back to it and I find something new to like every time I do. And the fact that I keep picking it up is REALLY saying something, btw - I am a "shelter porn" junkie (as one magazine columnist refers to decorating publication collectors), so it's not like I don't have other choices, *many* in the "small space" category as well.

One of the things that I REALLY like is the way that the captions relate to the photos. I recently purchased another small space decorating ideas & hints book that underscored the importance of the relationship between what you see and what they say (because, in that OTHER book, there was little to no relationship *many* times - disorienting & frustrating!)

In "Nutshell," the author not only writes about what's ON the page visually, she goes even further. If the caption is in one color (sort-of robin's egg blue), it is an "In a Nutshell" caption that underscores the reason for the photo (words of category included, btw, no need to remember the color scheme). In a light sage-y-ish green, however, there is "Look, there's more!" -- where she points out something you might not have noticed at first giance - or might not have realized all the benefits, or WHY it would be a clever storage solution, etc.

One "Look, there's more!" - next to a photo of a duvet cover make-over (from ordinary poly-filled comforter) - is this, "Small ponytail holders stitched to the inside corners of the duvet cover secure a down blanket for an invisible no-slip solution...."

And cheap - though she doesn't say that on the "custom comforter conversion" page, on the left-side page she explains how to save 75% on the cost of a pillow by using designer placemats from the kitchen section, opening one seam, tucking in a pillow form and slip-stitching closed. The size is the same - 14 x 20" - but the placemat is 75% less than a matching pillow. While I'd never use her choice (different taste), I WILL use her idea, I'm sure.

She also goes W-A-Y outside the box for her solutions, and shares where she finds them. For example, "Boating supply companies are surprising design outlets for rubber towing & storage straps that come in a variety of hot colors" - next to a photo of repeating, parallel white straps that she screwed in place on a brightly painted square on her wall, holding mail, a trio of booklets, a small camera, sunglasses, etc. (that might otherwise clutter up an entry table). New to me!

Another cute tip labeled "Cat Scratch Fever," is wrapping a plastic dog-shaped nightlight in jute twine for use as a scratching post for her cat -- a design minus becomes a design plus. Her left-page illustration shows the wrapped dog finished, and the [pink!] plastic "naked" lamp perched with front paws on the finished project and back paws on a roll of jute twine. (No mistaking what she means even possible!) On the right-hand page, you see a [live] cat, paws perched on the scratching post, chair & throw pillow in the background, which gives you a good sense of scale and how cleverly it solves a former problem, with the backdrop of the room it lives in. (It's also in the room on the cover, but I missed it totally until I understood what it was for)

Like I said, it takes a bit to really appreciate how artfully **designed** this book on small-space design creativity really IS. The author has REALLY thought about presentation as well as content. Her ideas are fresh, too, even for a book published in 2012. Like I said, I'm not new to these "decorating tips" books and magazines. There are quite a few ideas I've never seen before (40 years worth of before), and more than a few she does "better" than similar ideas I've seen elsewhere.

She also uses a project rating system: quickies (1-hr or less), one-nighters (2-5), and weekender (6+) to help you guage the time commitment before you make a mess you might have to clean up before you completed your project. (If you are like me, that's a recipe for a project that languishes forever!) She sprinkles some "befores" in with the "afters," too, which I always like.

So, Miss Janet Lee, I hope you sell a ton of these Nutshell books so that your publisher will be eager to get your NEXT one into print! I'll buy it too.

Madelyn Griffith-Haynie, CMC, SCAC, MCC
- ADD Coaching Field co-founder -
(blogs: ADDandSoMuchMore and ADDerWorld - dot com!)
"It takes a village to educate a world!" Read more ›