Customer Reviews

Michael S. Smith: Elements of Style

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

No, not much instruction. How many instruction books does one need? I've read it once. I've looked at it thoroughly a dozen times. I'm sure I will look at it far more than that in the future. Yes, I have seen some of these photos in magazines. Now I can toss those and keep this forever. I see nothing wrong with the quality of the photos, as other reviewers have mentioned. If someone gave these reviewers a book on Van Gogh that did not have instructions on how to paint, would they toss the book in the trash, or would they keep it to look at the beautful paintings? I do not want any more instruction books on decorating. I want books to show me a mood, a subtle color, how lighting,paintings, or even floral arrangements can make an interior.

This book is instructional and very well done. The "instructions" are in the photographs. Read them like paintings, which is how I think Michael S. Smith's rooms each look. There are 2 illustrations in the Amazon listing. Look first at the pictures of the room with the green sofa, then at the cover illustration. Then, please, read below & see whether you agree with me.

1. Pairs help to create a formal look: See the 2 leaf green lamps w/blue grey shades, 2 crystal sconces on end wall, 2 ornate crystal candelabra, 2 brass candlesticks on mantle, and 2 photos framed alike.
2. Echoes: Black fireplace box w/white surround & mantle echoes... the black & white photographs/sketches w/white mats & black frames and...the black piano next to all-white floor lamp; Painting of black curving figures on light tan background in brass/gilt frame echo the very solid black coffee table on the cream rug w/tan curving figures.
3. Use of Color in this Room: A subtle example -- There are 3 pieces of furniture with painted wood (excluding the piano): A chair with a cream/white frame, a table/stool in oxblood, and a settee with a blue grey frame. These are shades of the three primary colors. The colors of these 3 painted pieces together comprise the complete spectrum. The "color scheme" of the room as a whole also comprises the complete spectrum. The painted wood is a microcosm of this characteristic of the room. (And the complete spectrum gives us? ...Light.)
4. Gradations of Tints: The use of light-to-dark shades of each color gives a painterly quality to the room, softening the contrasts of colors and emphasizing the volume of the architecture, of the space. RED: cherry rug border, oxblood table, deep coral chair, pink & red flowers (5 shades of red, 3 not counting flowers). GREEN: deep & light green in settee fabric, brighter green in sofa & curtains, slightly brighter green in lamp bases, spring green in leafy bouquet (5 shades of green, 4 not counting bouquet). GOLD: Cream walls & rug background, gilt of picture frame & candlesticks on mantle & gold of print on settee, light tan of painting background and sisal rug, light camel of rug pattern and side chair, deep bronze of oblong sofa pillow and mantle figure, muted yellow of Chinese vase, sunny yellow of blossoming plant on coffee table. (7 shades of yellow, 6 not counting flowering plant). BLUE: Light & darker blue in settee print, soft deeper blue of Chinese vase (3 shades of blue).
5. Use of Black: Always important, but especially obvious here. It's needed to balance the massive black piano.
6. Rooms Need an Element of Surprise. Here it's the settee. The architecture of this room, its paneled walls, high ceilings, wide windows and volume, as well as that 7-foot Steinway (I think.) suggest the use of traditional furnishings. The settee is a subtle and beautiful contrast to the overall English look here. The "surprise" of a steel & glass table, for example, would have been a boring cliché and no surprise at all, don't you think?
7. Now for the Cover Photo. Its design follows that of the previous room, even though the style is completely different. The branches and leaves of the paper, bouquet and table echo one another. Here too the colors yellow, blue/green and red all range from light to dark, pale to bright, and there is a restrained presence of black. The bright blue Chinese vase, the gilt table and the cherry red (of the cherries) in the paper dramatically form a full spectrum, emphasize the full-spectrum of the color scheme and create light right across the center of the photograph. The surprise here is the hand. I think the main role of the pagodas is as verticals against the movement in different directions of all the curvy diagonals in the paper, the table and the vase of branches.
8. True, in the end, it's in the eye of the beholder. And yes, some, even many, of the rooms in this book may not be what you want for yourself. Nevertheless, study this book -- carefully. Then follow Michael S. Smith's lead. Simple as that! (Sorry this is a bit long.)

Michael S. Smith has been my favorite designer for a few years. I fell in love w/ the interiors he created for Cindy Crawford in Manhattan and Brentwood and also the home of Brian Grazer. Admittedly, some of the homes featured in the book are more staid examples of his work, and not as youthful and fresh as some of his interiors, but lovely and classic nonetheless. For pure Michael S. Smith eye candy, check out Cindy's new Malibu beach home, featured in Elle Decor (March 2006, I believe). Sheer design perfection!

This book is perfect for the advanced home owner or individuals who have developed a mature and sophisticated style. I find myself returning again and again to the advice of Michael Smith. The more I know about design the more I appreciate his unstructured yet very elegant and extremely discerning method of putting a home together. A terrific resource from a very talented designer!!!

I love this book. It's another winner from Diane Saeks. It is gorgeous to look at and highly informative. The interiors are classic and timeless...immaculately constructed. Be they super smart traditional interiors or art filled modern rooms, they convey warmth and intelligence. The resource guide is invaluable. Ms. Saeks writing style is polished and informed as always. I find this book to be a great professional resource...five stars.

Finally a designer who gives his own original ideas to space. I love the way he makes rooms come together. His approach is always fresh and always new.

I like this book for inspiration. It is not a how-to book, but I wasn't looking for that.

The Images in Elements of Style are breathtaking, and the writing quite entertaining. An excellent choice for anyone who is a fan of Michael Smith. A wonderful book to display, or reference for inspiration.

So many designers seem to have a style that they like and that they repeat over and over in their clients houses. This is not the case with Michael Smith's houses illustrated here. One house will have the elegance that you would expect of a London town house. The next will have a rustic style more in keeping with the traditions of the American West.

Of course his budget exceeds that which most of us have. In one case he was thinking of a Portuguese quinta (a traditional manor house), so he flew to Lisbon to get some ideas. I can't say that I did anything like that when I was decorating.

The book itself is beautifully illustrated, with high quality printing using a matte finish paper that shows off the pictures very well without the glare of magazine glossy. The pictures were obviously made in rooms that were carefully prepared. There's not a dirty sock in sight, and I can just imagine what some of the rooms would look like after a five year old boys birthday party.

MICHAEL SMITH IS ONE OF THE BEST AMERICAN DESIGNERS PRACTICING TODAY AND IT SHOWS IN THIS BEAUTIFULLY PHOTOGRAPHED BOOK...EVERYTHING ABOUT THE TEXT, THE WAY IT IS WRITTEN AND HOW IT LEADS YOU THROUGH THE BOOK, IS FIRST RATE.....I WOULD HIGHLY RECOMMEND THIS BOOK FOR WHAT WILL EVENTUALLY BE HISTORICAL INTERIORS; AND ITS DESIGNER, WHO WILL BE IN THE YEARS AHEAD THOUGHT OF AS A GREAT, GREAT DECORATOR... MR SMITH KNOWS HOW TO PUT ATMOSPHERE INTO A ROOM......

This book was a terrible disappointment. I was looking for ideas I could use. I hoped the author would talk to me about what I could do in my own home. I was hoping for some commentary with the pictures. I was expecting something much more specific and focused from this book, but alas, there was nothing.

This book is minimally instructional. I read it carefully and then looked through it again two more times to see if there was a single design principle or piece of advice I could come away with. There was NOT ONE piece of information I could use!

Michael Smith must be very busy because I don't think he put much time into this.

A terrible waste of my money!!!