I've got a great decorating book for you that just came out today. Full-disclosure, I happen to think the author is pretty swell, too, but that's not the reason for my post. Elizabeth Mayhew manages to break down decorating into styling solutions for your home page-by-page in a book called Flip! For Decorating. It's rather genius, actually, because it takes the fear out of the millions of decorating possibilities out there by laying out simple solutions for everything from how to choose color to how to decide on the right dining chair. She even walks you through window treatments — which I personally find to be the bane of decorating (I hate all the measuring involved!).
When I worked with Elizabeth at Real Simple, she had a way of making a room overhaul look as simple as icing a cupcake. One thing I love about Elizabeth is she's been working as a decorating editor long enough to know what works. Ask her what her favorite red paint color is and she'll respond right off the top of her head. I know because I used to sit in her office with my notebook jotting down random tips that would come out of her mouth. That's the beauty of this book — she's letting everyone in on her favorites. What a treat. Here are just a few Elizabeth tips from "Flip! For Decorating." I promise this book is a worthwhile guide for anyone looking for useful decorating help, both practical + inspiring.
a few favorite tips from the book:
1. to make a window appear taller mount the curtain rod 8 inches above the top of the window trim and let the curtain fall from the rod to the floor
2. when you're hanging a group of pictures in a cluster, find a book with a binding that's the same width or height as the distance you desire between the frames — use the book as a guide to evenly space out the pictures
3. and Elizabeth's favorite red: Benjamin Moore million dollar red #2003-10
{all photography by annie schlechter}
