Customer Reviews

Pottery Barn Living Rooms (Pottery Barn Design Library)

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(9)

 

 

I think if you read other reviews of this book, you will find that people either love or hate the pottery barn style. Didn't Friends make fun of this style in one of their episodes? Well, I happen to be one of those people who really likes the pottery barn style. To me, it mixes a lot of old and unique with new, fresh pieces. It also reminds me a lot of IKEA and other ideas found in their catalogues. I did read some of the other comments in the previous reviews and was surprised that some people commented that you could not learn anything from this and just buy the PB catalogues. Hmmm... was I missing something here or did we just not pick up the same book? I felt the PB book was extremely helpful by explaining color palettes (completementary color schemes), lighting schemes, achieving winter, summer, and spring looks all within the same room, and bringing old stuff that you have in your attic or garage into your living areas.
The minute I opened the book, I dogeared at least seven different ideas to use for later - you see, we just bought a brand new house and I have this big, open white box that I have no idea where to start decorating. This book, which IS my style, helped me to focus my ideas and gave me a huge jump-off point for my projects. For instance, just look at the cover of this book and the arrangment of several pictures in black frames on a uniform shelf. I copied that idea for the mantle over my fireplace with five different sized framed pictures I already had, but I had always hung on the walls in a very boring way. It seemed "fresh" to me...

Now, if you like modern, art-deco, and extremely unique living spaces - well, perhaps this book and other PB installments aren't for you. To me, PB reminds me of cozy, chic cottage style that is popular among Young Urbans. I'm in my late twenties, a mom of two young children with a large suburban house to decorate - it's my style.

So good luck and I hope I offered you a direction to go in..

I have read/used three of the Pottery Barn books listed in order of my opinion of them: Baths, Living Rooms, and Bedrooms. Baths was very good, with beautiful photographs, interesting and innovative ideas, and some useful design advice. Most of the book provided a several page showcase for an individual bath with discussion of what made it special.

Living rooms was OK. It's content was more canned, but it still had some inspiration and enough ideas that were useful that although I would not put it amongst the best such books, it was worth an hour or two to browse.

Bedrooms hit the bottom of the list for me. The content seemed especially canned. The ideas were not fully developed and most of them appeared to me more appropriate to someone's first apartment than an established home (so it just needs the right audience?). Lot's of the pictures involved just using eclectic pieces and did not involve actually developing a decorative theme.

I received a copy of the Living Rooms book for Christmas and found it not just great to look at, but full of really useful ideas. I love to change around the furniture in my home, and give the rooms a new look, and this book is full of terrific decorating tips. Unlike lots of other interior design books, which can be a lot of fluff, the text is worth reading and the photos really show you how to make beautiful rooms (without assuming you've got endless time and money.)
I hadn't really considered myself a Pottery Barn fan before, but I certainly am now. I ended up buying the Bathrooms book, too, and it's just as good. I definitely recommend this book!

With the purchase of our home several months ago, I've been thinking about what to do with our living room - how should I spruce it up and give an updated look without spending tons of money. Not wanting to rush into things, I've looked through many books and magazines, mulling many ideas from paint colors, furniture, how to decorate walls, should the room have a certain theme, etc. While many of the books and magazines had great ideas, none of the ideas felt just right. And then I came upon the Pottery Barn Living Rooms book. WOW! The 'look' that I'd been searching for was now laid out in perfect fashion. This book has helped me to pick colors (for walls and window treatments) and has helped me decorate with things (pictures, vases, etc) that I already had but thought they were outdated and out of style. I love this book. This book has pointed me in the right direction and though I'm still not finished decorating, I have much more of an idea of what I want to do.

This is a nice book with lots of ideas for decorating, arranging furniture, and colors. After reading it, I definately had a better idea of what to do with my own home.

What a fabulous book. Not only is it gorgeous to look at, but it has so many easy, practical ideas. I have always loved the PB style and I now look forward to achieving it in my own home without spending a lot of money. Well worth the purchase!

A mom on the go with 2 rug rats cruising the house, I don't have much time for anything except keeping my life afloat. SO, its so nice to have an expert like Pottery Barn show you how to make your home look great and to keep things simple! I don't have a great talent for decorating, but I know what I like when I see it. LIVING ROOMS definately connected for me. The book is great; whether it's something simple like arranging pillows on a sofa, creating a nice ambiance through lighting, paint color ideas, or ideas for organizing, this book was very very helpful.

Recently purchased this book, and then purchased the other two books, Bathrooms and Bedrooms. These are wonderful books, full of great new ideas. Pottery Barn has always been inspirational, but they take it to a whole new level with these books. I found them really helpful - they took me throught the key concepts in decorating and styling, and I've learned a lot from each of these high-quality books.

Goodness gracious, who would have thought that an old trunk I had in the basement could actually be used in my living room? Well, when I saw some of the ideas in this book - decorating with 'throw away' old stuff - re-decorating our great room took on a whole new meaning. Another idea I got from this book was to use an old picture frame over the fireplace (see page 71)...who would have geussed? Anyway, this is an excellent book which shows you how to use 'old stuff' in new ways. Definately a fresh approach...which is refreshing.

I love this book. This is a all-in-one book and features almost everything I need to make my home beautiful. From colors, to lighting, windows and window treatments, decorating and ideas even for setting ambiance for parties. This book is utilitarian, yet still helps you dream about all the possibilities. My life is very busy, yet this book helps me to make my home relaxing, elegant, and comfortable.