26 of 28 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Twisted Sister, November 15, 2009
This review is from: Sister Parish Design: On Decorating (Hardcover)
The title of the book refers to the name of a fabric and wallpaper company, not to the work of legendary designer Mrs Henry "Sister" Parish, II. The authors, one the grand-daughter of, and the other, the former assistant to, the late decorator, developed this book as a clever promotion for their business venture, Sister Parish Design. With contributions from 25 decorators, including Albert Hadley and Bunny Williams, and magazine editiors, such as Mitchell Owens and Carolyn Englefield, various comments are grouped together in chapters and sub-chapters as a chatty how-to book of sorts, for lack of a better description.
There is a Forward by Albert Hadley and an Introduction in three parts by each of the authors and the illustrator. The chapters are Our Rooms, Beginnings, Elements, Furniture, Color, Materials & Textures, Collections, Outdoor Rooms, and The Courage to Decorate. A section titled Recommended Reading lists two pages of books on interior design. The section, Contributors, gives a very brief and vague 3 or 4 line c.v. on the designers and editors. A one page Acknowledgement thanks those who helped with the book, ending with the woman they only refer to as Sister, who provided the inspiration, they say.
The watercolor illustrations are an odd sort by Mita Corsini Bland, wife of popular Manhattan art and antiques dealer Gerald Bland. Similar in style to those by the late interior designer Mark Hampton, they lack the benefit of his understanding of what best to show, however. Most are not illustrations of Mrs Parish's work, but rather a somewhat muddy assortment of the contributors' work. They apprear to be largely taken from snapshots because only details or corners of rooms are shown. The benefits of using drawings instead of photographs were not generally exploited here. The exception is the dustjacket, with the fabric on a prominent bergere in Mrs Parish's living room changed from her trademark chintz to a blue & white print from the authors' fabric line!
There are many typos and inaccuracies, too numerous and perhaps too tedious to list here. There has been some criticism that many of the contributors had never even met Sister Parish. But this reviewer does not agree; I never met the 16th century architect Andrea Palladio, but he has been a great inspiration to me!
This is not a bad book, and generally rather attractive. But many will be disappointed in most aspects of content. All except the most devoted fans of Sister Parish should just wait until the book is further discounted. The definitive book on Sister Parish remains to be written.
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8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A little bit of heaven....., November 16, 2009
This review is from: Sister Parish Design: On Decorating (Hardcover)
If you could only have one book on design, this should be your choice. What a delight to sink into! This book reads like a novel, yet, one has the ability to jump from area to area, and not lose track. I found it to be inspiring, like coming home after a vacation, and seeing familiar sights in a new light.
Without a hint of aloofness, the message given is to follow and trust your instincts, enjoy your home or space, yet helps by pointing out some basic proportions, etc. This is an energizing book that can be referenced again and again, or simply read for the pure pleasure of it!
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
More than a disappointment, March 30, 2010
This review is from: Sister Parish Design: On Decorating (Hardcover)
This is a book that really does not add anything to a knowledge of Mrs. Parish's design "philosophy". I believe that she was a brilliant but totally intuitive
designer who had a very good eye. The visual presentation of this book is washed-out, pale, and faded -- like the amateurish watercolor illustrations by a Ms. Bland (!). Some of the watercolors are painted from well-known photographs (Mrs. Astor's library by Mr. Hadley, p.122). Wouldn't it have been better to show the vibrant red scheme in a photograph? And what of the terrible "bar set up on an antique desk"on p. 14? Why is this awful sketch in the book? Mrs. Parrish's memory certainly deserves something better
than this mish-mash!
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