[.ca] Carolyne Roehm's Fall Notebook (ISBN 006019412X)

From Amazon.com:
"Autumn is a season that lures us indoors, and shifts our focus from the garden, the pool, or the beach to the home." The magic and mystique of the fall season are splendidly captured in Carolyn Roehm's Fall Notebook: Garden, Hearth, Tradition, Home, a collection of recipes, crafts, entertainment tips, and garden projects. In her introduction to the book, Roehm--former fashion designer turned author--writes, As a gardener, I feel a certain sadness as I am forced to break a bond that I have spent the spring and summer nurturing. Although it is easy for one to become nostalgic during this time, it is necessary to move forward because it is crucial to prepare for the long winter that lies ahead ... although those beautiful blooms are a long way off and we must put our garden to bed, we shift to a new buzz of life that is brought about by the gathering of family and friends under one roof for the holidays. Arranged by individual plants--dahlias and chrysanthemums can be counted on for their late-fall showiness--as well as specific projects and festivities, including Halloween, bulb planting, and Thanksgiving, each chapter offers a host of ideas for savoring autumn's flavor through arts and crafts projects, practical gardening tips, succulent recipes, and creative entertaining advice. Celebrate Turkey day in style with elegant place cards--easily created with a rubber stamp and ecru stationary--that compliment lemon leaf, eucalyptus berry, and autumn-hued rose table arrangements, while a menu of poisson with rosemary and sage, potato and parsnip purée, and pumpkin soufflé--all clearly spelled out in Roehm's meticulous recipes--would make any family thankful. With full-color photographs, pockets for storing ideas and graph paper for planning--not to mention useful lists to help you organize events and gardening chores--the Fall Notebook is as glorious to look at as it is practical to use.

The book is absolutely stunning with great ideas:
From cover to cover, this book is full of wonderful photos, entertaining ideas, and easy-to-make food items. She is a master at creating wonderful, easy-to-copy flower arraingements with flowers that you can find locally. It is a treasure to have and it would make a great gift for someone who loves gardening or enjoys making their house a home.

More a look at a socialite's lifestyle:
As is true with all four books in this series, this "notebook" is beautifully photographed. Ms. Roehm's series does not offer much depth in any of the "categories" covered in the book-- gardening, hearth (whatever that is), etc. but does demonstrate her truly beautiful design sense, especially in floral arranging. The spiral-bound format, including pockets for the reader's own clippings, and the many blank pages for the reader's own notes are more gimmicky than helpful, and take up lots of space in an already "lightweight" effort. Unlike the Martha Stewart books, against which these are positioned, Ms. Roehm's books do not offer the detailed "how-to" approach of Ms. Stewart's excrutiatingly detailed tomes, but are more a peek into Ms. Roehm's perfectionist lifestyle, which is very entertaining in itself. With many, many references to her home, affectedly titled "Weatherstone", Ms. Roehm's books are more a "season" in the life of a newly monied socialite than an expert's teachings. However, all said, Ms. Roehm's text demonstrates a quick wit and a somewhat self-deprecating style, which when combined with the almost desperate desire to impress the reader with the elegance of 'ole "Weatherstone", makes one see her as a charming, insecure, vulnerable, and very talented woman. The four "notebooks" left me wanting to see more photographs of her exquisite designs, less from her as an "expert", and gave me the impression that I would like to learn more about her journey post-divorce from Henry Kravis, and post-clothing design business. An expert she ain't, but an interesting woman, most certainly.

Inattention to Detail:
This book is such a disappointment. It appears to have all the components of a lovely design book, but the lack of attention to detail and dearth of anything new throughout makes it seem like a pale Martha Stewart wanna-be. Look, for example, at the carved pumpkins. First, 'carving pumpkins' is presented as a fresh way to celebrate the season--is there anyone who doesn't know about pumpkin carving? Look at the photo carefully. The black marker with which someone used to draw the face design on has never been washed off after the pumpkin was carved! What sloppiness. This is supposed to be a standard to strive for by an arbiter of taste? This is but one example! This author simply does not have the right stuff. One gets the impression that she hasn't done, arranged, cooked or baked any of the items presented. There are many typical flower arrangements and dishes, photographed beautifully in trendy grainy style, but ultimately with far less freshness and intelligence than any issue of Victoria magazine. What a shame this "author" has nothing more than her name to offer.

Better than Martha!:
After years of searching through craft, decorating and gardening magazines and books, I finally found Martha (Stewart, that is). I never thought I could find another resource as innovative as her until I discovered Carolyn Roehm's seasons notebooks. The fall notebook is truly exciting. This is a book of inspiration, leading you to put your own spin on new ideas with halloween, thanksgiving, food, flowers, decorations and general entertaining and homekeeping. With help from the Fall Notebook, I designed the floral topiary centerpieces for my wedding. Her book also provided inspiration for the guests gifts and other personal touches. Carolyn's book does provide some recipes (great ones!) and directions, but with a notebook-style format (complete with ring binder and pockets as well as a lay-flat design) and large,gorgeous photos, this book serves as a starting point... a chance to get those creative juices flowing. You have to see it to believe it... Carolyn Roehm's got Martha beat!

Beautiful, extravagant photography:
I love Fall -- it's my favorite season, so I wanted to love this book. I wasn't disappointed! The photos are sumptuous and gorgeous; the recipes are yummy and inspire thoughts of running straight to the kitchen; and the information about the flowers was truly informative. If you love Fall, you'll love this book.