Rooms : Creating Luxurious, Livable Spaces

Rating:
Summary: Very informative and well written
Review: This book presents a lot of great information on how to put together comfortable spaces that look good. I am surprised at the negative reviews and can only assume that the readers were looking for inpirational picutres of colorful rooms and not practical advice on decorating. I own many decorating books but this is the first one that I read cover to cover because it tells you how to place furniture, design lighting, clean up the shell of the space. . . all those practical details that other books usually ignore. My style is more eclectic and colorful than the author but I certainly think that this book will help me translate it into rooms that will be comfortable for everyone.

Rating:
Summary: Out of touch with the times
Review: This designer seems very out of touch with the times. The title talks a good game but the contents don't deliver to homeowners, including affluent ones, who want to go home and relax after work. The rooms are so refined, so perfect, so staid, so unlivable that they seem like a throwback to a decade or two ago. They certainly don't fit today, and I'm sorry I bought this.

Rating:
Summary: Any one can build a room from this fabulous book!
Review: This is the first design book I have read that has reflected my true beliefs in the serenity and geometry of good design.It maps the process of Mariette Himes Gomez designed interiors. It is written to be read by anyone and is well illustrated. Good design practices to be learned by all and not just the affluent. She not only simplifies good design with a step by step approach, but it is written so that you will enjoy reading, you don't have to be a designer to interpret what she is saying.

Rating:
Summary: Honestly, a great book from which you can learn good design
Review: To those who want learn how to create tasteful rooms, the information in this book is truly very helpful. An added bonus is that it's really beautiful to look at. Mariette Himes Gomez is a professional, and her rooms show it--no hay, cardboard, or feathers on the walls here. She finds a way to appease both audiences--those who like less and those who like more. In the end, you have the knowledge to create rooms that are well-balanced, peaceful, and that reflect your own personal style. Perhaps some consider that high-end, but I think most will consider it elegant.
Gomez doesn't tell you what you must do; she allows you to use your imagination and create what you want. She always considers her clients needs. If you want a room in which you can put up your feet, go for it-she doesn't say use the exact colors or furniture she uses. Get the table and couch you want or can afford, just be mindful of the way you arrange it. I'm shocked by the negative reviews and how unhelpful they are-as if they were written to poke fun and not help people who are considering buying the book.

Rating:
Summary: Not real homes
Review: What a silly book. It looks like the pictures were taken in hotel rooms and hotel lobbies, that's how stiff and uncomfortable these rooms look. The book isn't anything like what the title says it will be. I looked through the book one time after I got it, and I doubt I will ever open it again. I wasted my money on this one.

Rating:
Summary: Pretentious, stiff and stuffy
Review: What were they thinking? Whoever put this book together doesn't have a clue about creating luxurious, livable spaces. This book is a turnoff. I'd call this funeral home or hotel lobby design or designing to impress the ladies who lunch crowd. This book is obviously about how to spend a fortune in the process, too. Real luxury is about comfort and unpretentious ease, not necessarily money. Unfortunately, this designer does not seem to get that.

Rating:
Summary: Divine Harmony
Review: With "Rooms", Ms. Himes Gomez has become my favorite American interior designer.

To my great surprise and chagrin, I found that most reviewers held quite a harsh opinion about Ms. Himes Gomez's abilities and her book. Some went so far as to insinuate that the positive reviews were written by the the author herself. Whether or not this is true, I cannot say, but while one must acknowledge that most of the positive reviews sounded somewhat similar, it ought also be acknowledged that those interested in interior design, including magazine writers, tend to overuse a certain jargon -- and hence sound exchangeably similar. Let me cast any doubts one might have, and say from the outset, that I do not know the author, nor was I involved with the production of this book, nor do I stand to gain from its sale.

Offended by the confused, cluttered, and gaudy design schemes that comprise much of interior design today, I do not dare to imagine what the negative reviewers understanding of "luxurious", "comfortable", and "casual" may be.

Ms. Himes Gomez achieves a perfect, refreshing harmony between sparseness and ornamentation, and has the uncanny talent to know when to stop.
Her rooms are composed like paintings in an equilibrium that reminds me of Renaissance art, in which the symmetry of a balanced composition exemplifies the existence of divine intention.

Luxury, here, does not mean to drown oneself in an overstuffed sofa, but to leave the worries and stresses of everyday life behind as one enters a home and is greeted by simple and classical beauty. Every object in such a home is placed there for a reason. More importantly, the absence of an object means that it was left out for good reason. As a woman does not wear her entire jewelry collection at once, because it does not fit, it is also not sensical to fill a room with objects that do not belong there, and whose only merit is that they are pretty or valuable.

Environments affect thoughts, emotions and behavior: a temple should direct a visitor's feelings to the numinous, a university library promotes a scholar's concentration; equally, a room designed by Ms. Himes Gomez facilitates the inhabitant's ability to focus on the essential things in life. Who could ask more of a personal space?

I was surprised at how varied the "range" of Ms. Himes Gomez visual technique is: While her favorites seem to be the neutral colored designs, I learned that, when necessary, she uses bright, and engaging colors very adroitly (e.g. for a house located in the rainy Irish countryside).
Her repertoire is varied, spanning from "country" to "urban", and she realizes her superb ideas, while mainting a consistent design philosophy. I frankly do not understand how somebody can execute so many different styles and at the same time be so consistent.

I most heartily recommend this book to anybody who wants to learn from the best that interior design has to offer.

Rating:
Summary: A book for a very small segment of readers
Review: With birthday money, I indulged myself with several decorating books recently. I'm not fond of this one, and I've enjoyed reading other amazon buyers' comments. This book might appeal to a very small segment of readers who are either truly upscale and formal or snobby wanna-bes. It's about showing off "fine" furnishings instead of putting your feet up and living the typically casual American lifestyle. It's a high-end book by a high-end designer for a clientele that's either very formal or simply show-off. It's not for everyone. I'm a high-end consumer, but this book and these room designs certainly are not for me. I'd rather relax, thank you.