Monica Pedersen Make It Beautiful: Designs and Ideas for Entertaining at Home [Hardcover]

Monica Pedersen (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 8, 2012

Lavishly illustrated and full of practical home-entertaining know-how, this book will appeal to everyone from first-time hosts to seasoned party-throwers. Author, designer, and HGTV host Monica Pederson will inspire and teach readers how to entertain at home with her exclusive insider tips. Her book shows readers how to create beautiful, innovative parties for a range of occasions and budgets.

Monica Pedersen Make it Beautiful is a step-by-step guide featuring simple, must-know party planning secrets, in addition to social etiquette tips and how to dress for each event. Pedersen explains how readers can work with what they have in their home when planning a party, taking direction from their very own interiors and generating creative ideas.

In 10 gorgeous chapters, Pedersen presents 10 separate parties--each for its own occasion and with its own themes--using her accessible approach and distinctive style to set the tone. For each party, Pedersen assembles a presentation board the same way she would for a design client, with dazzling sample fabrics, flowers, colors, renderings, descriptions, invitations and party favors. Each chapter will also feature sample menus from some of the nation’s top celebrity chefs, including the Wynn Hotel’s Paul Bartolotta and Top Chef's All-Star Fabio Viviani. Mike Ditka of Chicago Bears fame and owner of Chicago's fabled Ditkas Restaurant, even provides a special Super Bowl menu. Also included are exclusive wine pairings from Napa Valley’s Rutherford Hill Winery, to round out this reader-friendly guide to all-around entertaining.

Pedersen, a former fashion model and popular HGTV host who appears regularly on the Today Show and Live with Kelly & Regis, will feature prominently throughout this inspirational, do-it-yourself party-planning book. Using her mother’s fabulous parties as inspiration, Pedersen offers up her personal take on entertaining--the same know-how that’s made her one of the go-to designer-hosts on HGTV--by pairing old traditions with new opportunities This book is sure to become the go-to guide for those who want to host stylish and beautiful events in their own homes.

Editorial Reviews

Review

PRAISE FOR MONICA PEDERSEN:

"A radiant, high-energy mistress of ceremonies." —Joyce Wadler, New York Times

"Monica Pedersen...has made her passion for home design into a remarkable and respected career." —Stacy Flannery, Sheridan Road

"Very lovely and endlessly funny...We love how cool [Monica Pedersen] stays under pressure to get a home ready for market with only $2,000. And we totally respect the way she adds graphic punches to her rooms, making them not just salable but also livable." —Apartment Therapy

"[Monica Pedersen] shows homeowners how to maximize their living space and beautify their homes." —Jae-Ha Kim, Chicago Tribune

"Want your own bedroom haven? Master Bedroom designer Monica Pedersen from HGTV’s Designed to Sell advises: 'Invest in elegant, luxurious fabrics. And if you’ve always dreamt of solid white bedding or a dramatic canopy, then go for it.'" —Domino magazine

"Monica Pedersen has certainly made a name for herself in the high-end design world. You might recognize this stunning, bubbly blonde from HGTV, where she stars on Designed to Sell and hosts the cable network’s Dream Home Giveaway 2011." —Vegas Magazine

"When designer and television host Monica Pedersen isn’t helping home sellers...on HGTV’s Designed to Sell, she puts her style savvy to work on a variety of other projects here in hometown Chicago." —Chicago Collection

"Some truly amazing ideas and a total inspiration for anyone looking to do a little something special at their next gathering!" —Carmen Christensen, Time2Design

"Make It Beautiful offers both design that will make you wish you were living in the pages as well as simple steps that people can implement for their own gatherings." —Maris Callahan, My Daily Find Chicago

About the Author

Monica Pedersen’s work as an interior design expert and television host can be seen on HGTV’s Designed to Sell, Bang for Your Buck, Showdown, and Dream Home. Her writing has been featured in Redbook, USA Today and The Washington Post.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 192 pages
• Publisher: Agate Midway (May 8, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1572841281
• ISBN-13: 978-1572841284
• Product Dimensions: 8.7 x 0.7 x 11 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #833,855 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful

1.0 out of 5 stars A Waste Of Time and Money. May 3, 2013

By Ann deVries

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

This book was not what I expected and I did not find it to be very useful. From the description, I thought this book would have ideas and photographs that would serve as a "how-to" for entertaining at home. I thought photos and text would concentrate on this topic. I was wrong.

This book read more like a self-indulgent exercise in demonstrating how fabulous the author, her family and her friends are. Yes, there were a few photographs of decorating ideas, but there were even more photographs of the author, her family and her friends. Every chapter was a party theme and every chapter was full of these people in various poses, sometimes in the party setting, but more often simply in isolated portraits. But hey, these people are so fabulous and so wonderful, that I will love seeing them mug and smile for the camera and I will be happy to pay money to do so.

What about the text and ideas about setting up for the themes? The word "pretentious" comes to mind. Yes, I am definitely going to set up a party in Fabio's restaurant and I am definitely going to jet off to shop in high end boutiques for accessories and props for the fabulous party at Fabio's. I just love hearing about all of the author's friends and family, and about how wonderful and fabulous they are. I just love all these little anecdotes about her mother's favourite tea and her mother's advice on what container to use to serve tea. And yes, that was sarcasm. I am not sure of the ratio, but there seemed to be more text about these people than there was about entertaining ideas. I was expecting a book giving me advice on entertaining, and not a personal memoir.

Some personal anecdotes can add to a book and make it interesting, as long as they don't constitute the main portion of the book.... A good author can give a brief description of a party at Fabio's, and can then demonstrate to the reader how that will translate into a party for a variety of settings and budgets. If the main purpose of a chapter seems to be to brag about the party at Fabio's, however, with little attention given to what the reader can do with the information, then the author has failed to meet the reader's expectations.

I have read other works on party and entertaining planning that focus on what the reader can do do with the information given by the author. In the best of these, the reader becomes the most important person in the book. Christopher Lowell comes to mind as someone who has mastered this ability to combine personal anecdote, specifics of a particular event, and the ways in which the reader can adapt this information to his or her own use. Monica Pedersen's book falls far short of the ideal, and I would not recommend it. I got her book for free and it was still a waste of time. Read more ›

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Not really helpful in the diy sense, more about the parties Monica has thrown May 5, 2013

By beckygardens TOP 50 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

This book might be great for someone with money.. although if one had money they would probably just hire Monica and not buy this book. I don't think the average person wanting to entertain is going to find much here.

The baby shower- she hired an artist to make a custom blackboard for the babies room, then had the event catered. The cake came from a bakery. How is this really DIY for an event? Maybe I misunderstood the thrust of this book.

There is a lot of "I did this" or "I did that" but not really how.. for example, with the graduation party, "I chose a sage green fabric." the book is more about the parties she threw and how fabulous they were, than anything that would help me throw a party. Lots of pictures of her, her friends etc, but not a lot of pictures on how to decorate or combine. And again the event was catered. Picking up a phone and calling a catering company is not and idea for entertaining at home in my world. But then, I don't feel this book was directed to my world. The graduate's mother was out "antiquing" and came upon 26 fabulous swedish chairs so Monica told her to grab them and then they could be used for later parties. Where the heck would I store 26 fabulous chairs I found while out antiquing? (BTW, I "antique" at salvation army) One nice tip was to have everyone write in a book and present it to the graduate, but that's hardly a fresh or original idea.

And so it goes for the tea, coffee, wine tasting, etc. I did this and we had a fab party. Whip up some drapes with extra fabric one has laying around, don't we all? Hang original artwork to give guests something to converse about .. yeah, don't think my kids third grade turkey hand project is going to qualify for that one. Have Fabio cater my party.. I'm on board with that one .. sigh..... in my dreams!

This book really doesn't seem to be so much an I'll help you do this, as being forced to go to a party and sit through a slide presentation of the host's "look what I did and who I did it with, I am fabulous!"

there are some recipes in the book, that are actually more helpful than the "decorating" tips. Read more ›

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Monica Makes It Seem Easy May 4, 2013

By Grandma TOP 500 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

While Monica Pedersen's style of entertaining isn't exactly my style (she presents sit-down meals, I always choose a buffet), her Monica Pedersen Make It Beautiful: Designs and Ideas for Entertaining at Home is full of unique ideas for ten different events, ranging from Tea For Two to The Perfect Wedding.

I've read several party-planning books of late and do like Monica's the best of the bunch. Unlike the book that would have the hostess acquire a full dozen fondue pots for a party featuring fondue for every course, Monica is imaginative, often centering her theme around a particular fabric. Many of the things that she does to set a stage for an event are really every bit as quick & easy as she makes them sound. For those who sew, it can take far more time to actually find the right fabric than to run up a pair of drapes or sew a few throw pillows.

Where some are all about the food for a party, Monica seems to be more about the setting, with food a bit of an afterthought. I do wish that she had included a bit more in the way of menus, though you will find recipes in the back. Pictures are a tad small in the Kindle version as it displays on iPad, but easily zoomed in on. The photos are very nicely done and give a real feel for the atmosphere that Monica creates.

Grandma's $0.02 - I bet this is gorgeous in coffee-table book size. Nice inspiration.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

2.0 out of 5 stars Oh, did you really? How fascinating...for you. May 4, 2013

By Folina-ma-fyke

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

"...quickly sewed floor-length drapes for the room with extra fabric that I had brought..."

Yeah, that's realistic for a homeowner. Just "whip up" some "luxurious" drapes. This book is more, "I'm brilliant and talented" than HOW TO Make It Beautiful. How nice for her, but not helpful.