Outside the Not So Big House: Creating the Landscape of Home (Hardcover)

~ (Author), (Author)
Key Phrases: entertainment terrace, lawn panel, framed openings, Landscape of Stone, Parallel Paths, Terraces of Grass (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

There are gardening books that tell us what to plant and where. And there are architectural design books that tell us how our homes should look. But never the twain seem to meet. At least not until recently, when the two spaces -- home and garden -- wed harmoniously in the new book, "Outside the Not So Big House" by Sarah Susanka and Julie Moir Messervy.
-- NINA A. KOZIOL, The Chicago Tribune

This beautiful book combines the best qualities of coffee-table attractiveness and excellent advice. It pairs Susanka - author of previous "Not So Big House" books, which emphasize the trend toward smaller homes - and noted landscape and garden designer Julie Moir Messervy. They label their landscaping concept "opening up the relationship of indoors and out," and encourage readers to make the most of each.
--JUDY LOWE, Christian Science Monitor

"Outside the Not So Big House" by Julie Moir Messervy and Sarah Susanka deals with landscaping, planting and hard-scaping everything from entrances to pathways, arbors, patios and streetscapes to make the most of tight spaces. Planting sketches, lush photographs and specific problem-solving advice make it a handy reference, complete with plant names and diagrams. It's a pretty coffee-table topper, too.
--JOY CRAFT, Cincinnati Enquirer

The premise of this book is that home landscaping should be special to bring out the residence's best features (or hide its drawbacks). On my scale of one to 10, this outstanding new book rates a solid 10.
--ROBERT J. BRUSS, Miami Herald

With its plentiful photos and plans, this beautiful book is a useful tool for learning to look at the familiar in new ways.
- JARRETT SMITH Minneapolis Star Tribune

In 'Outside the Not So Big House, ' the authors describe many ways, both large and small, of connecting a house intimately to its land.
--ANNE RAVER, The New York Times
"This perfect collaboration between the talented and articulate Julie Moir Messervy and Sarah Susanka proves what a huge pleasure the landscape of a 'not so big' house can be. A must read..."
--Tom Christopher, columnist, "House & Garden "magazine
"Sarah Susanka and Julie Moir Messervy's clearly written text offers practical advice for designing indoor-outdoor spaces that respond to modern lifestyles. They reveal secrets for achieving the ideal combination of architecture and nature in the home and in the garden."
--James A. van Sweden, Fellow, American Society of Landscape Architects and author of "Architecture in the Garden"

Product Description

In this groundbreaking book, noted landscape designer and award-winning writer Julie Moir Messervy and bestselling author Sarah Susanka reveal how to bring house and garden into perfect harmony. After all, who doesn't yearn for a landscape that is as well designed as the interior of their home? In "Outside the Not So Big House," Julie and Sarah teach you everything you need to know about the design concepts essential to extending your home beyond its four walls.
Lushly photographed and illustrated with vivid drawings, "Outside the Not So Big House" explores how to build pathways and journeys in your gardens; how to make the most of your site; how to use details to bring it all together. Twenty homes from across the country aptly illustrate these easy-to-grasp design ideas. Fans of Sarah's previous Not So Big books will be pleased to discover not only Julie's clear, concise prose but also a new vision for creating home.

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Product Details Hardcover: 210 pages Publisher: Taunton Press (February 7, 2006) Language: English ISBN-10: 1561587346 ISBN-13: 978-1561587346 Product Dimensions: 10.1 x 10 x 1 inches Shipping Weight: 2.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies) Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews) Amazon.com Sales Rank: #259,050 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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More About the Authors

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Julie Moir Messervy

Grey Crawford

Sarah Susanka

Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Surprise Me!

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Inside This Book (learn more)

Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
entertainment terrace, lawn panel, framed openings

Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Landscape of Stone, Parallel Paths, Terraces of Grass, Easy Living, The Attraction of Opposites, The Territory of Home, Garden of Earthly Delights, Mount Mansfield, Playing Up the Corners, San Francisco Bay

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Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Surprise Me!

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Citations (learn more)

1 book cites this book:

• Designing the New Kitchen Garden: An American Potager Handbook by Jennifer Bartley in Front Matter

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What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?

	61% buy the item featured on this page: Outside the Not So Big House: Creating the Landscape of Home 3.3 out of 5 stars (19) $23.07
	13% buy Not So Big Remodeling: Tailoring Your Home for the Way You Really Live 4.8 out of 5 stars (8) $21.12
	11% buy Inside the Not So Big House: Discovering the Details That Bring a Home to Life (Susanka) 4.6 out of 5 stars (23) $14.93
	9% buy The Not So Big House: A Blueprint for the Way We Really Live (Susanka) 4.1 out of 5 stars (154)

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Customer Reviews

19 Reviews 5 star:  (8) 4 star:  (2) 3 star:  (2) 2 star:  (2) 1 star:  (5)           Average Customer Review 3.3 out of 5 stars (19 customer reviews)		Share your thoughts with other customers:
Most Helpful Customer Reviews 63 of 63 people found the following review helpful: 4.0 out of 5 stars Many ideas for designing small areas near small houses, July 14, 2006 By  Michael Bond (Shawnee, OK United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)    (4.5 Stars) I can see from the other reviews that there exist a wide range of opinions about this book. I fall on the high side, I suppose. I enjoyed the large number of photos and ideas for landscaping small areas - spots even - in the yard around a smaller home. One, rather unreal aspect was that, most of the homes pictured are modern homes with interesting custom architecture. Some of us live in simple ranch-styles (boxes). Julie's training and interest in architecture does come through, but I did not find it distracting. In fact, I found the emphasis on the relationship between the interior design of the home and landscape as seen from inside very useful. Most landscaping books present only the view TOWARD the house, not FROM it. I got several good ideas from this book and learned a bit about design. 68 of 74 people found the following review helpful: 5.0 out of 5 stars An in-depth guide to creating harmony in one's house and garden, February 9, 2006 By  Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews The collaboration of gardening expert and award-winning writer Julie Moir Messervy and residential architecture expert Sarah Susanka, Outside The Not So Big House: Creating The Landscape Of Home is an in-depth guide to creating harmony in one's house and garden. Detailed diagrams and full-color photography illustrate this highly accessible introduction to design concepts; chapters cover how to play off the habitat of the home, how to instill elements of smooth flow and pleasing aesthetics, working elements of nature into personal design, and much more. Outside The Not So Big House is not written as a handyman's how-to book, and does not delve extensively into the mechanics of how to construct and install garden furnishings, or how to plant, grow, water, and protect vegetation; it focuses on learning and applying elements of style to home and garden landscapes, with a wealth of examples for vivid illustration. An excellent inspirational source for gardeners and landscapers seeking to broaden their grasp of appealing designs, Outside The Not So Big House is very strongly recommended reading. 52 of 58 people found the following review helpful: 5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful and useful, March 22, 2006 By  M Reilly - See all my reviews I think the previous reviewer missed the point of this book. The authors are not trying to show "how to place landscaping for the greatest impact" but how to connect the house to its surrounding landscape, and how to use the concepts outlined in the other Not So Big books to shape the garden and landscape. The examples used ARE beautiful, as they should be - they inspire me to do something equally beautiful and extraordinary with my own space, with or without spending a large chunk of cash. If you understand that it's not about the content, but the underlying principles that are being used to shape the space, you can appreciate the beauty, form, and creativity of the spaces shown.		Ad feedback   Most Recent Customer Reviews 5.0 out of 5 stars Outside the Not So Big House This is a remarkable book. Written with deep insights and very practical as we are eager to include our outside in our inside. Published 1 month ago by Doc Rocket White Bear 1.0 out of 5 stars Not-So-Big out of gas The Not-So-Big franchise has run out of gas. I thought the first three books were helpful. This is no better than your average article on landscaping from a home magazine. Read more Published 9 months ago by Glaucon 5.0 out of 5 stars ideas to inspire My husband and I purchased this book to get ideas for a new home. We want to "bring the outdoors in," and this book is full of ideas to do just that. Published 11 months ago by J. R. Bennett 1.0 out of 5 stars Rip Off: Subset of "Inside & Outside the Not So Big House" Rip off. "Outside the Not So Big House" is just a copy of the second half of the "Inside and Outside the Not So Big House". I'm not just talking about a picture here or there. Read more Published 12 months ago by N. D. Cernadas 5.0 out of 5 stars Great Idea Book I am an interior designer and thought this book was great for exterior ideas. I highly recommend it. Published 13 months ago by Abstract Thinker 3.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful book, but Not So Big - Not It is a beautiful book that is well written and illustrated. So I'll give it 3 stars. But I don't believe it belongs in the Not So Big series. Read more Published 18 months ago by Holly D. 1.0 out of 5 stars Disappointing for a "Not So Big House" fan I agree with many of the poor reviews by fellow "Not So Big House" thinkers. I was very, very disappointed by the lack of practical information and very few useful principles for... Read more Published 20 months ago by L. Avila 4.0 out of 5 stars You can have a million-dollar view from your home Prerequisites: You have a house with some space for plants. Pros: if you wanna block your not so eye-entertaining neighborhood. Read more Published 21 months ago by -Celine- 5.0 out of 5 stars A good gardening ideas book for both design professionals and ordinary gardeners A house and its garden are different parts of the same overall design. Bestselling author Sarah Susanka and acclaimed landscape designer and award-winning writer Julie Moir... Read more Published 22 months ago by Gang Chen 2.0 out of 5 stars The Rather Big 'Not So Big" I come away with the feeling that Sarah was lead astray when this book was in development. Many of the houses in previous books in the 'Not So Big' series have been... Read more Published on March 29, 2007 by ubi_est_veritas Search Customer Reviews Only search this product's reviews

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 210 pages
• Publisher: Taunton Press (February 7, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1561587346
• ISBN-13: 978-1561587346
• Product Dimensions: 10.1 x 10 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #259,050 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

63 of 63 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Many ideas for designing small areas near small houses, July 14, 2006

By	Michael Bond (Shawnee, OK United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

(4.5 Stars) I can see from the other reviews that there exist a wide range of opinions about this book. I fall on the high side, I suppose. I enjoyed the large number of photos and ideas for landscaping small areas - spots even - in the yard around a smaller home.

One, rather unreal aspect was that, most of the homes pictured are modern homes with interesting custom architecture. Some of us live in simple ranch-styles (boxes).

Julie's training and interest in architecture does come through, but I did not find it distracting. In fact, I found the emphasis on the relationship between the interior design of the home and landscape as seen from inside very useful. Most landscaping books present only the view TOWARD the house, not FROM it.

I got several good ideas from this book and learned a bit about design.

68 of 74 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An in-depth guide to creating harmony in one's house and garden, February 9, 2006

By	Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

The collaboration of gardening expert and award-winning writer Julie Moir Messervy and residential architecture expert Sarah Susanka, Outside The Not So Big House: Creating The Landscape Of Home is an in-depth guide to creating harmony in one's house and garden. Detailed diagrams and full-color photography illustrate this highly accessible introduction to design concepts; chapters cover how to play off the habitat of the home, how to instill elements of smooth flow and pleasing aesthetics, working elements of nature into personal design, and much more. Outside The Not So Big House is not written as a handyman's how-to book, and does not delve extensively into the mechanics of how to construct and install garden furnishings, or how to plant, grow, water, and protect vegetation; it focuses on learning and applying elements of style to home and garden landscapes, with a wealth of examples for vivid illustration. An excellent inspirational source for gardeners and landscapers seeking to broaden their grasp of appealing designs, Outside The Not So Big House is very strongly recommended reading.

52 of 58 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful and useful, March 22, 2006

By	M Reilly - See all my reviews

I think the previous reviewer missed the point of this book. The authors are not trying to show "how to place landscaping for the greatest impact" but how to connect the house to its surrounding landscape, and how to use the concepts outlined in the other Not So Big books to shape the garden and landscape. The examples used ARE beautiful, as they should be - they inspire me to do something equally beautiful and extraordinary with my own space, with or without spending a large chunk of cash.

If you understand that it's not about the content, but the underlying principles that are being used to shape the space, you can appreciate the beauty, form, and creativity of the spaces shown.