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Decorating Small Spaces
How to apply basic principles for enhancing small spaces.
Room-by-room details for living areas, dining spaces, kitchens, bedrooms, baths, workstations, and more.
Ideas to arrange furniture, manage clutter, create illusion, convert for several purposes, and use color, pattern and texture effectively.
Whole-house tours showcase decorating principals that work in small spaces.
Shows how color palettes unify spaces throughout a house.
Includes a room arranging kit.
192 pages, Paperback
First published January 6, 2004
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
October 16, 2017
Things I Learned: Dark paint can help a wall or ceiling recede, thus making a space appear larger. Mirrors reflect light and make a space appear larger. Opening up a floor plan, either with dividing walls, cutouts or knocking down walls altogether, will give a small room more space. Storage space can be found vertically, in unused corners and under furniture.
Comments: For some reason, I retained the information in this book better than the other design book I read ("The Apartment Book"). Actually, I found this book more helpful and realistic in its approach. The interiors represented did not all have the same "look" - each place had an individual stamp to it, from artwork and collections to color and furnishings. In that respect, it offered more variety than the previous book ("The Apartment Book").
The writing was clear, the presentation was helpful most of the time, and the book has some unique features, including a grid and templates for furnishings and accessories and architectural elements, etc. I thought that was really cool and helpful.
The book is divided into three chapters. Chapter One, "Principles," talks about design principles. Chapter Two, "Room by Room," shows how to put those principles to work in solving design and decorating challenges. Chapter Three, "Whole Houses," shows how an entire house was designed using those principles.
I would recommend this book for someone planning a DIY job, or planning a renovation or remodel to add more storage or space. This book can show you how to better use the space you have. I would also recommend it for someone with a beginning interest in design.
Comments: For some reason, I retained the information in this book better than the other design book I read ("The Apartment Book"). Actually, I found this book more helpful and realistic in its approach. The interiors represented did not all have the same "look" - each place had an individual stamp to it, from artwork and collections to color and furnishings. In that respect, it offered more variety than the previous book ("The Apartment Book").
The writing was clear, the presentation was helpful most of the time, and the book has some unique features, including a grid and templates for furnishings and accessories and architectural elements, etc. I thought that was really cool and helpful.
The book is divided into three chapters. Chapter One, "Principles," talks about design principles. Chapter Two, "Room by Room," shows how to put those principles to work in solving design and decorating challenges. Chapter Three, "Whole Houses," shows how an entire house was designed using those principles.
I would recommend this book for someone planning a DIY job, or planning a renovation or remodel to add more storage or space. This book can show you how to better use the space you have. I would also recommend it for someone with a beginning interest in design.
May 25, 2024
If you're new to designing in small spaces, this is a good prime. Yes, some of the decor is outdated and seems designed for the "maximalist." However, it has great design tips, as it should, being a Better Homes and Gardens book.
Those who own will find this more helpful than those who rent. However, there are still some great ideas that renters may take away from this book.
It was published in 2004, but it feels more like the 1980s with its style aesthetic. Times change, and we've long been stuck with the Target, farmhouse, gray-grey-depressing look. I'm not a fan of the all-gray look that has hung on for too long in both the faux farmhouse and the urban home, so if you want a more traditional and timeless look that includes color and true style, you'll get some ideas from this book.
GR is being glitchy. Finished reading on May 25, 2024
Those who own will find this more helpful than those who rent. However, there are still some great ideas that renters may take away from this book.
It was published in 2004, but it feels more like the 1980s with its style aesthetic. Times change, and we've long been stuck with the Target, farmhouse, gray-grey-depressing look. I'm not a fan of the all-gray look that has hung on for too long in both the faux farmhouse and the urban home, so if you want a more traditional and timeless look that includes color and true style, you'll get some ideas from this book.
GR is being glitchy. Finished reading on May 25, 2024
July 21, 2022
Wow, a guide to decorating small spaces that actually tells you how to decorate small spaces? Amazing.
Perhaps the rooms look dated today, but I think they're gorgeous. The book gives important, practical advice on creating the illusion of more space, utilizing the space you have more efficiently, and stylistically unifying the rooms in your home. A lot of the specific advice isn't possible or practical for renters—most people can't simply knock down a partition wall in their rental apartment, and some can't even paint their walls—but the fundamental principles remain useful. I already plan to implement some of these techniques in my next rental. Good stuff.
Perhaps the rooms look dated today, but I think they're gorgeous. The book gives important, practical advice on creating the illusion of more space, utilizing the space you have more efficiently, and stylistically unifying the rooms in your home. A lot of the specific advice isn't possible or practical for renters—most people can't simply knock down a partition wall in their rental apartment, and some can't even paint their walls—but the fundamental principles remain useful. I already plan to implement some of these techniques in my next rental. Good stuff.
November 4, 2012
I think the book is worthwhile...even if just for the photos...in the case of those that have some concept of how to put things together or make those photos come to life. I was inspired by several pictures that I plan to implement. However there may be those who find the book is lacking in detail as to how to create some of the purposed ideas...so in that respect it may be frustrating. The book doesn't focus enough in my opinion on small spaces...as much as it does on being more organized & utilizing creative organizational methods to enhance a space. It appears that some of the rooms could be categorized as medium to large in some cases...so I deducted points for BH&G for not sticking to the main so called objective of the book. Overall I'd recommend the book though...however try finding it on sale to ease your conscience.
August 12, 2008
I didn't find this book an easy read at all. I don't feel it was really a book for utilizing space in small rooms rather a book of utilizing space in any/bigger size room/house. The book didn't have details in how to create some of the purposed ideas. The layout of the words of the book was confusing to follow. But I found some of the photos in the book inspiring. And even a few might be worth while to implement in a future house but won't work in our current house. The book offers some ways to utilize and organize un-used space more creatively. But BH&G didn't focus enough on actual small rooms to create space so for me it didn't live up to expectations.
July 7, 2012
This book was about decorating a small space within a bigger space (like a den or kitchen nook), therefore, it was not that useful to me. Some of the ideas were dated and/or not my style. I would recommend this book to an older person with more traditional taste in design/decor.
May 30, 2012
This work has a good combination of written and pictorial examples. It discusses a variety of small space sizes and goes into some detail as to the importance of using every little inch.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews