Mary Gilliatt's Complete Room by Room Decorating Guide [Hardcover]

Mary Gilliatt (Author), Andreas von Einsiedel (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Like M. F. K. Fisher achieves for food writing, so does Gilliatt turn many elegant phrases in^B interior home design. Adding to her already long list of books is this room-by-room decorator, which intersperses a history of style with some definitive guidelines--as only a confident and world-known designer can. She emphasizes, for the timid, the emulation of one of three easy-to-follow philosophies: one, suit decorating to a particular style or building or climate; two, try cutting-edge contemporary; or three, go thoroughly eclectic. From there, accompanied by compelling color photographs, each chapter is devoted to one room in a home, covering a brief room ethos (e.g., Shakespeare's "My library was Dukedom enough") and available decorative options in walls, lighting, flooring, windows, furnishings, and accessories. Her opinion filters through every nook and cranny. Treat windows like eyes, she advises. Or remember that less is more in halls, staircases, and landings. Visual sidebars add to the already overstuffed portfolio of information. One book truly fits all. Barbara Jacobs
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Product Details

• Hardcover: 160 pages
• Publisher: Watson-Guptill (July 1, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0823029700
• ISBN-13: 978-0823029709
• Product Dimensions: 11.3 x 9.4 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,542,937 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Mary Gilliatt (born 1935) is the author of some 43 books, almost all of them on various aspects of interior decoration though her Dictionary of Architecture and Interior Design (Watson Guptil, 2004) does, of course, appertain to architecture as much as decorating and her 'Fabulous Food and Friends (Pen & Sword/Remember When, 2008) is a memoir based around lunch and dinner parties given in the 1960s and 70s.

A couple of years ago, she went into a furnishings store on Madison Avenue and saw to her amazement her first book 'English Style' (Bodley Head/Viking, 1967) displayed on a plinth. Proudly admitting that she was the author she received the riposte from the owners that they thought she had died years ago. Notwithstanding she is still working as an interior designer and consultant as well as writing and working on her new blog: 'Lifestyle with Mary Gilliatt'.

She had the first TV decorating series in the UK for ITV in 1979, called 'Home and Design'. And interestingly, over a decade later, the first TV decorating series in the US, for PBS called 'Decorating with Mary Gilliatt. She remarks that it was extremely hard, at that time, to get TV companies to agree that the public would be interested in the subject, but look at the plethora of such programs now. "It does not do', she remarks ruefully, 'to be first'. She also tried unsuccessfully in the 1990s to persuade publishers to include DVDs with decorating books, again to no avail. But again look what is happening now with publishers like Pearson etc. So in her case, at least, plus ca change is not the same thing.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

30 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Breathtaking ideas, styles and color schemes, September 15, 2003

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mary Gilliatt's Complete Room by Room Decorating Guide (Hardcover)

Mary Gilliatt's Complete Room By Room Decorating Guide is a captivating interior decorations guide which offers both amateur and professional interior designers a wealth of tips, tricks, and techniques for sprucing up and adding unique individual touches to every corner of the home. Full-color photographs taken by Andreas von Einsiedel of breathtaking ideas, styles and color schemes fit well with Mary Gilliatt's thoughtful and inventive advice stressing balance and attention to detail. Mary Gilliatt's Complete Room By Room Decorating Guide is a thoughtful and thought-provoking contribution to Interior Design reference collections and reading lists.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An interesting read that is VERY useful, August 10, 2006

By 

K. Drake (IN USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Mary Gilliatt's Complete Room by Room Decorating Guide (Hardcover)

I bought this book to help me decorate a house I recently purchased. It has given me several ideas that I hadn't thought of. I love the way Mary Gilliatt delves into a brief history of each room before sharing her thoughts on them. It helps put her ideas into perspective. This is a very well written book with some beautiful pictures and ideas. I recommend this book for anyone interested in decorating as well as any ammateur decorators out there!

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Let down., February 24, 2009

By 

Ian Threlfall (Costa Rica) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Mary Gilliatt's Complete Room by Room Decorating Guide (Hardcover)

This book was a complete let down. My wife and I had hoped that we would get ideas for decorating our home, but did not find even one idea that helped us.