Home and Garden Recent Picks
April/May 2009
The title-underlined links will take you directly to our catalogue.
Some featured items are linked via a book cover to enable you to read more reviews.
Small spaces : maximizing limited spaces for living, Elizabeth Wilhide.
"Increasingly, living in a smaller space is a positive choice for many of us for all sorts of reasons that are simply not to do with keeping the mortgage manageable. But to make the most of the space at your disposal, when you haven’t got a great deal of room to play with, requires careful consideration and sometimes, a special approach or sideways leap. Small Spaces guides you through the thought processes involved. Design strategies; Through planning and assessment will help you ensure your home functions smoothly and efficiently and accommodates the way you want to live. Clever ideas will win you more usable floor area and better special quality. Style; In terms of decoration and furnishing, there are many tried and tested ways to make a small space appear bigger without compromising your personal sense of style. Room by room; Practical, covetable achievable ideas to help you with every aspect of living you need to fit into your home, from bathrooms to home offices, including good-looking storage that will streamline a multitude of possessions." (Book Cover)
Small and chic : high style for small spaces, Bridget Vranckx.
"A must-have for all urbanites, this valuable survey of the latest in small-scale apartment and loft design features the best examples of smart and chic urban living from the most fashionable cities around the world. Full of beautiful color photographs and helpful floor plans, this book is a remarkable showcase of how small-scale efficiency and thoughtful design can overcome the constraints of a tiny setting. The latest design trends and creative ideas shown here will be an inspiration to anyone looking to turn a small space into a comfortable and modern home." (Book Cover)
Matthew Haly's book of upholstery : projects, tips, tricks, and techniques, Matthew Haly with Kathleen Hackett.
"That inexpensive flea-market find seemed great until you discovered how much it would cost to have it reupholstered. Haly the- go-to upholsterer to Manhattan’s interior design crowd – shares his craft: all the details, secrets and tips to help you restore the original beauty to a haggard piece of furniture with your own hands – and put the savings into the fabric which will make you swoon! Upholstering can be challenging, so Haly has provided straight forward projects to help you build the skills every upholsterer needs – from determining how much fabric you will need for the job to adding just the right trims and finishes. With projects ranging from a handsome bolster, casual floor cushion, and floor length curtains to a multi-purpose folding screen, refined headboard, and fully slip-covered dining room chair, both the novice and seasoned sewers will find inspiration." (Book flap)
The vintage home : clever finds and faded treasures for today's chic living, Judith Wilson.
"Vintage style has enduring charm. Its shabby chic, bohemian kook is a great contrast to modern white interiors furnished with identikit high-street buys. Choosing vintage makes good sense. It’s a conscience-salving eco choice that makes recycling fun as well as stylish. Next comes an exploration of Vintage styles five key looks- Country vintage, boudoir vintage, retro vintage, urban vintage and modern vintage. Putting the look together involves a combination of sifting through what you have got and some leg work too. After the groundwork comes a careful look at each room of the house. Perhaps you want a genuine vintage kitchen with recycled 1950s units, or a clean cut modern living room with just a quirky old lamp base and a couple of vintage cushions. Vintage Home shows, whichever room you are decorating, vintage style will make it truly individual." (Book Cover)
Interiors by design : advice and inspiration from the professionals, by Ros Byam Shaw ; with photography by Christopher Drake.
"Anyone who's ever covered their walls in paint samples or pondered over lighting schemes will know that being your own interior designer is not as easy as it sounds, Luckily, help is at hand with" Interiors by Design”. Getting started, the first section of the book, guides you expertly through the creative process, showing how to draw up the all important design brief of what you want to achieve from your space, both practically and aesthetically. Complete Schemes and the Rooms then present over 30 interiors, selected from the most stylish homes around the World. For each, Ros explores the creative process that went into each room. Practical expertise is imparted throughout, as the professionals reveal the tricks of the trade." (Book jacket)
Growing your own heirloom vegetables : bringing CO2 down to earth by Clive Blazey
"A gardener's ecological guide to growing heirloom vegetables and articulates related matters such as climate change, organics and the positive effect that growing your own food has on reducing carbon emissions." (Provided by publisher)
True green home : 100 ideas to help you create a greener home, by Kim McKay and Jenny Bonnin.
"Whether you own your own home or rent, live in a house or apartment, or are building or renovating, there are many things you can do to help improve the health of our planet. The 100 tips in True Green Home will give you all the inspiration and guidance you need to create a beautiful home, save money and reduce your carbon footprint. This is the fourth book from the Clean Up Australia team."
The thrifty gardener, Alys Fowler ; photography by Simon Wheeler.
"Gardening is something you do, not something you buy. You don’t have to spend money to have a great garden. Slow gardening like slow food, is about taking time to savour. It’s the process, not the sudden transformation that matters. When you build a little, dig a bit, plant a little, harvest often and most importantly don’t try to do it all at once, nature will work with you. For this is gardening that won’t cost the earth." (Book jacket)
100 best native plants for New Zealand gardens, Fiona Eadie.
"Since its first publication, this book has been an indispensable guide for gardeners wishing to use New Zealand native plants. Now extensively revised, it features inspirational and practical advice on 100 species which are easy to grow and maintain, across a variety of climates."
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