From Publishers Weekly
Garrity’s Atchinson, Kansas, home furnishings and accessories store gives this book its title, and its aesthetic—which also draws on G. Diebolt’s (Garrity’s fabrics store) and Garrity’s (furniture and antiques). The three stores sell $4 million worth of goods every year, and it’s easy to see why: Garrity has found a gentle and pleasing way of infusing 18th-century Americana into Martha Stewart-like simple-fussiness, producing more conservative and more blocky rooms that nevertheless feel grounded and harmonized, like Restoration Hardware à la Ben Franklin. (There’s some irony to this, since Kansas was not even a twinkle in the 13th-colony Franklin’s eye.) The book is divided into space-and-arrangement-based chapters ("The Garden Room"; "A Gracious Setting") where Garrity gives forthright opinions on how to actualize one’s design ideas without relying on rules ("I have a soft spot for pretty table lamps and chandeliers"). Two-page spreads focus on individual elements: centerpieces, napkins, pillows, bedside tables, "a lady’s desk" and much more. The book’s more than 100 gracious color photos are of friends’ interiors, decorated with Garrity’s goods but arranged to suit their own needs. Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Book Description
In this handsome and accessible guide, popular decorating expert Mary Carol Garrity offers tips and ideas for re-creating her classic, relaxed style in the reader's own home.
From the Publisher
Mary Carol Garrity is a known and acknowledged design voice with a welcoming and achievable approach to home decor. Like the customers who flock to her stores in Atchison, Kansas, from hundreds of miles around, thousands of readers respond to her classic yet comfortable style. In NELL HILL’S DECORATING SECRETS, Mary Carol brings her wealth of experience to the task of bringing a home to life, addressing such questions as how to find or create a beautiful centerpiece, how to best update a room without spending a fortune, how to bring character to a small bathroom, how to display a collection, and ways to dress a bed. Her practical decorating ideas—far removed from the realms of highbrow magazines and expensive designers—complement the way most people like to decorate and live.
Nell Hill's Decorating Secrets: Easy and Inspiring Ways to Bring Style Into Your Home SYNOPSIS
Nell Hill's, Mary Carol Garrity's home furnishings and accessories store in Atchison, Kansas, has become something of a legend to thousands of loyal shoppers. Here, and at her two other stores, G. Diebolt's and Garrity's, Mary Carol combines furniture and fabrics, pillows and plates, lamps and mirrors with a flair and imagination that are the essence of the "Nell Hill's look," one that is stylish, innovative, and, best of all, easy to achieve.
In Nell Hill's Decorating Secrets, Mary Carol shares the many insights and ideas behind her approach, gathered over years of talking with shoppers and friends. She reveals her tips and secrets on everything from personalizing a collection to creating a striking centerpiece to choosing the right lighting. Also included are the following:
Quick ways to make your front door as inviting as the rest of your home.
Simple tricks to give new life to a sofa or armchair.
Imaginative approaches to "creating" and displaying art.
Little touches that dress up a plain room.
Steps to make choosing the right fabrics and colors easier.
Novel solutions for window treatments.
Three ways to dress a bed, use candles, and decorate a mantel.
The real secret behind the Nell Hill's look is that it is both inspiring and accessible. With the aid of Decorating Secrets, you can make over an entire room or add the perfect finishing touches to a table setting.
Art & Photography
Book Info
