Customer Reviews

Quick Decorating Ideas Under $20: The Budget Decorator's Bible

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Unfortunately, I recently bought this book, sight unseen. If I had seen the book priced at 10 cents at a yard sale, I would NOT have purchased it. If I could give the book a rating of minus 10 stars, I would gladly do so. As an avid artist and craftsperson, my personal art/craft library contains 268 books, and this is the worst book in my collection. Chapters 1 through 9 contain 98 pages, 10 of which are BLANK, with just the word "Notes" at the top of each page. The book contains NO ILLUSTRATIONS or PHOTOS. The 88 pages that are not blank mainly contain just "lists" of tired, old, and obvious ideas for decorating "on the cheap," e.g., use old blankets for pillow covers; make stencils from cardboard; use sheets to make curtains; hang LOTS of baskets; etc. The book is redundant, e.g., in at least 3 places, readers are told to "buy plants" or "get cuttings and grow plants" with which to decorate. Instructions, when given, are unclear or somewhat "iffy": Readers are told they can make a clock, by buying a pre-cut round of wood and marking the center just by "drawing two lines." That method works great with squares, but not with circles. Chapter 3 advises readers to "Use old flannel or oxford shirts to recover a chair seat. Button up the shirt, and then cut the material so the buttons run up the middle of the seat." Sit on buttons?! Can you spell O-U-C-H?! Every chapter that I read contained errors (typos; spacing; grammar). There is no index, so even if a reader happens to find something worthwhile, but forgets to bookmark it, they might be very hard-pressed to find it again. Most, if not all, of the information in this book is readily available elsewhere, i.e., in hundreds of art, craft, and decorating books and magazines, as well as from free, or mostly free, resources, such as libraries, the Internet, and TV programs on HGTV, TLC, Discovery, and Oxygen, just to name a few. I give this book 2 "thumbs down"!

This is a terrific, easy to read book with hundreds of simple to do, "why didn't I think of that?" ideas! Many of the projects can be done with things you already have around the house (especially if you have a hard time throwing things out).

Kathleen Wilson's creativity is contagious - just reading her book gets your own imagination working. I often found myself not reading, but daydreaming, thinking about what I could do, and what I could use. And this was her intention - not just to copy her ideas, but to have the reader build on those to develop their own.

My only dilemma is where to start, as there are so many ideas and projects that I want to try NOW (although the author says to start with organizing and reducing the clutter - a dilemma in itself!); and my house just isn't big enough to accommodate all the wonderful ideas in this book that I'd like to use.

I highly recommend this book to anyone looking for inspiration!

Ideas, Ideas and more Ideas. This is what Kathleen Wilson's new book, "Quick Decorating Ideas Under $20: The Budget Decorator's Bible" is all about. She has taken her obvious expertise and imagination and turned it into a gold mine for anyone that wants to decorate their home on a challenged budget.

This easy reading "Decorator's Bible" has literally hundreds of tips and suggestions for every room in the house and outdoors too. Kathleen not only talks about your walls, but also floors, ceilings, windows, cabinets, furniture and all the other nooks and crannies in your house. Her ideas are simple and most can be done with supplies you already have around the house.

Kathleen has a unique ability to spark your imagination and creativity. Anyone reading this book will find themselves looking for ways to put these ideas to work in their homes.

You certainly don't have to have a tight budget to use and enjoy "Quick Decorating Ideas Under $20: The Budget Decorator's Bible". I would recommend it for everyone that would like to add the personal touch to their home.

The ideas are creative and do-able at such low cost with stuff that you can find around the house. They are wonderful and though many people have money, why waste the money when you can do it for less? Then you can do more or save the money for something that you cant get cheaply. I think Kathleen has done a great job with the book. I have a creative mind myself and am a student of design. I have to thank Kathleen for giving me more great ideas to do around the house without spending too much money.

I loved this book! I had so much great STUFF in my house, I didn't understand why it didn't look good but it certainly didn't. A few hours devoted to this book and a few quick passes through my house made all the difference and my friends wanted to know what decorator I hired! This book had very simple, easy to complete, ideas that I never would have thought of. Just a few changes here and there and I live in a designer's dream home! All of my friends have bought the book now (I won't give mine away! I refer to it often!) and their houses are transformed too! I recommend this book to anyone who lives in a home and wants it to look nice. This is a must-have! And what a great gift for newlyweds and anyone going out on their own!

This is great book for those of us that are both challenged for ideas and money. What I like most is how easy the ideas are to actually do. I, like a lot of women, want my house to look nice and still reflect my personality. This book is such a great help. I always thought that decorating well would cost so much that I never really wanted to attempt it. I now have so many ideas that I can't wait to get started and I don't have to feel guilty about using money I can't really afford. The author was right, this really is the budget decorators bible.

...I not only own this book, but am a loyal fan of The Budget Decorator and belong to her online newsletter and have taken her workshop. It seems to me this reader bought this book when it wasn't what she was really looking for. This book is full of great ideas and inspiration, the fact that it doesn't have photos just leaves more room for great ideas! As another reviewer mentioned, the author is trying to help us find our own inspiration!!! As for the note pages, I welcomed them as a way to keep the ideas I liked in focus...and while I saw one typo in the book, it was certainly not to the degree this reviewer claimed. Nothing in this book is redundant or tired, and if the reviewer from Glendale thinks she can find all these ideas for free on cable tv shows...well than that just tells me the author knows what we want, and I think she has given it to us! (And frankly, I'd have to watch tv 25 hours a day to find this many great ideas!)

Great book with excellent bulleted ideas for every room in your house...it will make you rethink all the money you have wasted through the years decorating your home, and shows you how to create a space that is special to you and your family...

This book is a terrific resource, even if you're not a budget. Wilson's book is chock-full of simple, creative ideas to make your home a stylish reflection of your personality, without spending a fortune. I've gotten many complements on my "new furniture" - which is really just my old furniture slipcovered with some inexpensive sheets following Wilson's easy instructions.

I agree with the person who complained about how many blank pages there are in this book. Most of these ideas have been dispensed before, by better writer and decorators than this author. However, what caused this book to get one star in my eyes was the complete and utter disregard for punctuation rules- every third sentence ended with an exclamation mark. Trite ideas dispensed by a trite writer.

This book is quick and easy to read and full of great decorating ideas. I have always tried to decorate frugally and would continue to do so even if I won the lottery. It's a real challenge to "beat the system" and this book is by a woman after my own heart! I'll keep it on my reference shelf.