Book Review: Better Homes and Gardens New Decorating Book

Posted by Rhonda Greene on Dec 1, 2011 in Inspiration | 1 comment

Tweet

I’ve had a subscription to Better Homes and Gardens for over 10 years now.  (Yes, I am one of those crazy magazine hoarders who has hauled boxes of them from apartment to apartment, always refusing to part with a single issue.  Not with all magazines, but always with BHG!)  Every time a new issue arrives, the first thing I do before I read a single word of the text is leaf through and ogle the pictures of houses and rooms that I wish were mine.  To me, that is the best part of the BHG-reading experience.

If the fabulous interiors are your favorite part of the magazine too, you absolutely need to grab a copy of the Better Homes and Gardens New Decorating Book, assembled by the same team that puts together the magazine.  Its 300+ pages contain thousands of pictures of rooms representing every aspect of home decor, featuring many different styles and offering helpful, real-world advice for dozens of common design problems.

The book is divided into three sections:  a room-by-room guide, whole-house tours, and a reference section called The Workroom.  From big, focal-point pieces to little details like shoe storage, from choosing a color palette to dealing with oddly-shaped rooms, from kid-friendly to upscale elegance, I found myself amazed at the depth of the book’s content.

Throughout the book are lots of helpful tips and tidbits.  I really like their “one wall, two ways” features, showing two distinctly different options for the same space.  They also show a lot of before and after photos, offering solutions including painting techniques and floor plans that will maximize your space and give it a high-impact look.

This is actually the 10th edition of the book.  The original BHG New Decorating Book dates back to 1956!  (Wouldn’t that be a fun read today??)  I remember reading a 1970s edition at length on visits to my Grandmother’s house as a child, and this update will likely stay in my permanent collection so that someday if I have grandchildren they can ooh and aah at the pretty photos as well!