Looking to change the look of your home? The best design and reno books by Karl Lohnes, Canada AM's design expert

  4/13/2015 |   SHARE
Posted in Home Owners by Vanguard Realty | Back to Main Blog Page

Whether taking on a renovation project of your own, hiring a professional or planning to redecorate this spring, I found some of the most helpful and informative books on the market. Most of these books are new and a few are favourite classics that are tried and true.

Black & Decker The Complete Guide To Bathrooms, Cool Springs Press

Inspiring ideas and room layouts, lots of picture-by-picture how to's and this edition has an extra chapter dedicated to Universal Design for bathrooms. This book is for the handy do-it-yourself type and for those that want to be able to speak a language of renovation with their contractor throughout the process.

Kitchen

NKBA Kitchen and Bathroom Planning Guidelines with Access Standard

Get advice on trends forecasted for kitchens and bathrooms; this book is for practical homeowners who appreciate the design process; knowing not only cabinet and countertop trends, but the building and code guidelines to ensure a successful kitchen (or bathroom) renovation.

House Beautiful Kitchens: Creating a Beautiful Kitchen of Your Own

A huge array of kitchen styles from famous designers allows the reader to soak up hundreds of inspiring design ideas. There is a section in the book called 'Stalking The Look' where alternative products are suggested in order to help you borrow the ideas in a more affordable and obtainable manner. This book is less hands-on practicality and more about discovering inspiration for decor, style, colour, etc for your new kitchen.

Choosing colours and decor

Farrow & Ball Decorating with Colour by Ros Byam Shaw

Pure inspiration for using various tones and bold colours when painting your home. Examples throughout the book are of actual fantastic homes from around the world. This book is not afraid to encourage readers to use rich colours on not only walls, but trims too. Great advice and inspiration for mixing unexpected colour combinations that are sure to add a custom colour look in your home.

Decorating

Pretty Prudent Home: Your Ultimate Guide To creating A Beautiful Family Home

This book brings both inspirational decorating and the hands-on approach to help create beautiful spaces whether you have a lot of money or not. Great tips, easy ideas and some invaluable decor lessons to be had in this book.

Colours

A Colourful Home: Create Lively Palettes For Every Room

The author takes the simplest elements from nature and turns those ideas and colours into beautiful rooms. Bright confetti can inspire a multi-tiled wall of bright tile in a bathroom or autumn leaves can inspire a golden-toned family room retreat. From fabric to paint to wallpaper (and more), you will be inspired to incorporate colour into your next decorating project.

Decorating

Domino: The Book of Decorating

This is one of the best decorating books on the market; chalked full of decor tips, rules and ideas, plus stylist tricks to help finish off a room in style. All the information comes from seasoned decorating magazine editors and stylists; giving practical and stylish advice.

Kelly Hoppen Style: The Golden Rules Of Design

World famous interior designer Kelly Hoppen teaches the reader about potential space and how to use a room; then fills that room with over the top inspiring decor. Kelly provides a checklist of her golden rules of design which help the reader make valuable decisions when decorating.

Basement

Design Ideas for Basements, 2nd Edition by Wayne Kalyn

This book not only offers expert advice on tackling the practical side of renovating a basement (mould, heating, permits), but it also gives hundreds of stylish ideas for the space and shows us how to turn it into what feels like a natural extension of the rest of the house. If thinking of renovating your basement, then this is the best 'under $20' you can spend!

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