Color -- perhaps no other aspect of interior decorating is as exciting, affordable, expressive, or rewarding. Or intimidating. How many of us ever follow our impulse to paint the dining room bright blue, or to slipcover the sofa in a boldly patterned print? This new volume from the editors of House Beautiful is filled with enough information, advice, and examples from designers, architects, and homeowners to inspire just thc right degree of decorating confidence. The first step is understanding what color is and how it can be incorporated in every scheme, large and small, for every room of the house. More than 140 beautiful color photographs, profiling homes throughout the country, illustrate the full spectrum, from saturated jewel tones and the lovely pastel tints that can be derived from them, to the soft and soothing tones that take their cue from nature. The dramatic pairings of lights and darks that have become design classics are explored, as well as rooms done entirely in tones of white. The second part of the book is devoted to ideas for using these colors and color combinations -- painted surfaces, fabrics, and those all-important finishing touches that truly bring a room to life, from pillows to lamps to personal collections. House Beautiful Color will surely make you think and feel differently about color. It's a subject that never has to be daunting again.
Although this book was published in 1993 it still offers useful information about the use of colour in interior decoration. Chapters such as Naturals, Lights and Darks, and Painted Surfaces offer insight into how certain colours achieve a paticular ambience as well as how different textures can affect a single colour and so on. The photos accompanying the text are attractive. They depict spaces that are not "over-the-top" but practical.