[.ca] Debbie Travis' Painted House: More than 35 Quick and ... (ISBN 0609808168)

From Amazon.com:
Believing that wonderful paint effects need not entail the many complications of oil-based materials, acclaimed painted-finishes expert Debbie Travis has developed easy step-by-step methods for terrific-looking treatments, all achieved with water-based supplies. With large, beautiful photos, clear instructions, and well-chosen colors, she demonstrates 35 different finishes for walls and floors (textured, patterned, and stone types) and for furniture, trim, and accessories (antique and specialty, metallic, and stenciling methods), plus four "master techniques" (colorwashing, ragging, sponging, and dragging). Travis also gives careful attention to getting started, which she believes intimidates people even more than learning the actual techniques. She explains how to find inspiration, choose a style appropriate to your own tastes, and select colors. Even the most timid of amateur decorators should be able to handle most of the techniques presented in Debbie Travis's Painted House.

Where to put the lamp? Paint it on the wall...:
OK to be fair this book teaches different painting techniques successfully. But throughout the examples it seems like they HAVE to paint everything possible. Rather than put a real plant in a room, they paint one onto a wall. Rather than install a tile floor or brick wall, they paint fake ones in. It all just has sort of a comical feel when finished. If you flip through a Pottery Barn catalog and consider that tasteful, then these designs leave alot to be desired. Buy this book for technique, but consider others for inspiration.

Use the book how it was intended...:
This book wasn't intended to make everyone happy with Debbie's color choices or furniture selections, it's intended to teach you painting techniques and preparation, which it does, beautifully. Debbie is fearless and very adventurous when it comes to painting and re-decorating, her colors don't have to suit you, but all of us decorating fanatics can definitely glean some helpful hints from her trial and error in technique.

Ugly rooms and ugly color:
I find the rooms in this book to be so overdone that it is painful! Tacky, dated interiors and poor color choices. Just plain messy and often ugly! Don't waste your money on this dated book!

I expected more...:
I was looking for a design idea for my house and I got a quick overview of detailed techniques. I didn't get a good idea of all of the techniques to use on a floor, what I'd need for vinyl..It is alright to look through.

Great book, easy read.:
You don't need to know anything about decoration to enjoy this book. I bought it as a gift for my wife and I ended up enjoying it as much as she did. Most of the techniques used by Debbie on her show are illustrated here in full color. There is an interesting section about the materials used also, with lots of information I didn't know.