At Home with Laurie Ann
By: Laurie Ann McMillin Ray
Published: February 10, 2010
Format: Hardcover, 224 pages
ISBN-10: 0984074805
ISBN-13: 978-0984074808
Publisher: Laurie Ann Publishing Inc.
"Whether you seek an all-out overhaul or a visual shake-up of your home, you'll begin in the same place - with your taste, your needs and your dreams", writes interior designer and owner of several decorating stores, Laurie Ann McMillin Ray, in her practical and easy to understand book At Home with Laurie Ann. The author shares ideas to transform any house into a home that reflects its owner's personal style, while decorating on a limited budget.
Laurie Ann McMillin Ray began her decorating career by designing interiors for her home builder father. Her twenty-five years of experience in home decorating are very much in evidence in the book. Because of her understanding that people have widely diverse tastes, families, and budgets, Laurie Ann provides the design tools necessary to create your own home decorating style that suits your individual needs. Whether you are a first time home buyer, a long term owner, or anywhere in between, the author shares secrets that anyone can use successfully to create their own dream home. Laurie Ann invites the homeowner to utilize existing furniture, fabric, and dashes of color in new and interesting ways to put your own personal stamp on each room.
Laurie Ann McMillin Ray (photo left) invites people to discover their own personal style and to have their home reflect their personal space. The author provides a guide to helping your creative side shine through, even if you have always believed that you have no design skill. Laurie Ann doesn't believe that everyone needs to hire expensive interior decorators. With her lavishly illustrated book as an inspiration, the author believes that anyone can create exciting and eye catching designs, on a very tiny budget. The author sets out the basics of interior design in language that anyone can understand, and suggests that a person look at familiar rooms with new eyes. By simply rearranging the furniture, in patterns never thought of before, the home owner can open their mind to endless new possibilities.
For me, the power of the book is the practical and simple format for home decorating that Laurie Ann McMillin Ray recommends to her readers. Unlike many books on room design, this book is not all about the author. Instead, the author makes a point of having the home owner create their own look, that suits their family's tastes and lifestyle. The book contains a very handy checklist to help determine what your personal goals for the design are, and what matters most to the reader. The abundant full color photos of various interior looks provide a visual guide to thinking in new ways, and letting your creativity flow through every room in the house, and the yard and garden outside. Laurie Ann even provides tips for making the holiday seasons special, and adds a few tasty recipes to satisfy the hungry home designer.
I highly recommend the very easy to use and approachable book At Home with Laurie Ann by Laurie Ann McMillin Ray, to anyone seeking a clear guide to creating a visually stunning look on a limited budget. Instead of being told to throw everything out or buy entirely new furniture, Laurie Ann suggests a more realistic an budget conscious method. She recommends using what already exists in the way of furniture and fabric, and letting your individual style and taste through the end result. By thinking of ways to mix and match, and deepen the textures, a beautiful and eclectic look can be created by anyone.
Read the indispensable guide to low cost home interior design At Home with Laurie Ann by Laurie Ann McMillin Ray, and make your house into a dream home that fits your personal style and taste. With just a few hints from this wonderful book, anyone can create looks that match those of an expensive interior decorator, at a tiny fraction of the cost. Read this book and turn every room of your home into what you truly wish it to be for you and your family.
