Farrow & Ball - How to Decorate: Transform your home with paint & paper

Undoubtedly a quality produced coffee-table style publication, this is more for the eye of the interior designer than your average DiYer, IMO...e.g. there are just 2 pages that tell you how to paint!If you want to understand colours and enjoy perusing the interiors of other homes, then this could be the book for you. It is not a technical manual that shows you how to decorate, just the things you need to think about in terms of colour schemes, the style you want to achieve, the environment, e.g. modern or period, how light affects colour, e.g. north or south facing etc.The picture caption detail can be hard to read in a poor light, in my experience, and the publication could benefit from a ribbon book-mark to keep your place, IMO.From the back cover:📝 ‘Transform your home with paint and paperTo celebrate the 70th anniversary of this iconic company, Joa Studholme and the Farrow & Ball creative team share their expertise to demystify the nitty-gritty of home decoration.With advice on everything from the creative potential of floor paint to how light affects colour, ‘How to Decorate’ is set to become the definitive interior design sourcebook.’📝 ‘THE FARROW & BALL DIFFERENCE’, from page 226:‘What makes Farrow & Ball different? We can all see something very special when a room has been decorated in our paint ~ there is a certain depth of colour and sophistication ~ but why is that?...’Based on FARROW & BALL products, history et al, it does include a handy table on page 222, listing the INTERIOR FINISHES with USE, SHEEN, COLOURS AVAILABLE, TIN SIZE AVAILABLE & COVERAGE notes.Page 98 ~ ‘COVERAGE’…is all about understanding how much to order based on the size of room, paint type etc. This also covers WALLPAPER by explaining:📝 ‘…The best way to work out how many rolls of wallpaper you need is to ask your paper hanger’.Alternatively, Farrow & Ball can help your estimate your requirement, although our advice is for guidance only.’ooOoo~ FARROW & BALL®~ HOW TO DECORATE~ AUTHORs: JOA STUDHOLME & CHARLOTTE COSBY~ PHOTOGRAPHY: JAMES MERRELL, ROBIN KITCHIN, JAMES BOWDEN & JUSTIN BARTON~ PUBLISHER: MITCHELL BEAZLEY~ 2016‘Printed & bound in China’ooOooThe chunky hardback tome measures around 23 cm x 26.5 cm x 2.5 cm and opens to 268 high quality, shiny finish pages. The title is embossed on the front cover and the matte shade for the spine area follows through to the main PART opening pages inside.To see if it is the style for you, the current 'LOOK INSIDE' facility above gives a good insight into the layout, including the INTRODUCTION & the CONTENTS, the latter dividing the pages into 3 main PARTS, namely:1. WHERE TO START2. THE MANUAL3. THE DIRECTORY…with each divided into various subsections.As previously mentioned, each PART opens with a matte finish set of pages that matches the across spine, lightly textured colouring on the cover.A short GLOSSARY is on page 258, followed by a list of ‘FARROW & BALL SHOWROOMS’, pages 259-261, current at the time of publication. Then follows the alphabetical INDEX, pages 262-265, italicised for captions, before the ACKNOWLEDGMENTS, on the last page, with notes about the authors & main photographer completing the book.If it does prove to be the style of book for you FARROW & BALL: RECIPES FOR DECORATING , is the companion book, published back in March 2019. FARROW & BALL: RECIPES FOR DECORATING

I already have 2 F & B books plus numerous other inspirational decorating/design books. I bought this as I am currently decorating a barn conversion and felt it might help with decisions on colour and paint type etc. I liked the book, but I would say that if you are already familiar with F & B paints and have used them plenty of times in the past and have other inspirational interiors books (including the other F & B books) then you will probably find that this book does not add too much to your knowledge. For example I use casein distemper a lot as our property is old, has old lime plaster and no damp course. The book did not deal with specialist finishes in any detailed or meaningful way - which you might expect it to as it is has a "manual" element to it. I was also looking for advice on how to deal with tall ceilings that curve up into the roof (with visible beams) and there was not a lot to help me with my dilemma here either - eg would it be best to use all one colour or a different colour for the ceiling? The F & B website actually contains a lot of help and inspiration - including suggested colour groupings. Furthermore you can call or email F & B and get specific advice for your project and their advisers are very kind and helpful. Over all I think one gets more help from those two resources than the book - hence the 3 stars. I am happy enough to have this on my shelf - it covers some of the newer F & B colours and has the odd tip I was not aware of, but I would say that the book is best for those new to F & B rather than more experienced decorators - and even then you could save some money by using other free resources out there. I hope this helps people decide whether or not to buy.

A different remit to the Ros Byam Shaw books about Farrow & Ball interiors, this is "How To Decorate" and not just drool over colour schemes. The book feels different too, more chunky in appearance. It has a formal and simple layout for colour schemes and advice about the "how to" and what effect the famously subtle gradations of tints and colours have in juxtaposition, different light conditions and types of room, hallway etc. The layout has a vintage look that recalls the Fifties or a time of parcel paper, string and cardboard labels when a seven year apprenticeship was required to become a painter and decorator. It still is??I like décor books for inspiration mostly, I am not an expert on the practical side of painting houses. However it is probably quite helpful and informative for those who seek advice and inspiration. The effect at first perusal is of a rather subdued and puritan book but a further study shows many stunning interiors, very artistic and clever with 'controlled bohemian' (not easy to control bohemian) something of a signature look. Not sure it is possible to get exact representations of colour in photos and some of the special mock ups, for the neutrals especially, make them all look a bit on the chilly side when F&B fans know they are not.

I have been renovating my first house and wanted to avoid the standard builders white in every room. Everyone's heard of farrow and ball so I started my journey by visiting a showroom and picking the brains of the very knowledgable staff.Armed with a colour chart and some samples I got the bug and raced home to purchase this book from Amazon. As we all know Amazon is usually a lot cheaper than the store price.This book is beautifully written, heaps of stunning photographs and invaluable information including how to pair colours and how to work out how many cans of paint needed for room sizes.My house is now painted and I still read this book as its just lovely.Visitors always pick it up and browse too so o will be leaving it out as a coffee table piece.If you are umming and ahhing about it, I urge you to purchase as it tells you everything and more.My only slight grumble is that a colour chart like the ones in the shops would be a welcome addition but really it's just a small grumble :)

Wer ein Buch sucht, der einem bei der Farbgestaltung helfen soll-hier ist es. Neben vielen schönen Beispielen, macht es Mut, die Wände nicht nur weiß zu streichen, sondern auch mal zu einer dunklen Farbe zu greifen. Ein wirklich tolles Buch!