Mary Emmerling's Smart Decorating: Inexpensive Projects for Every Room of the House

Decorating with style and creativity -- no matter what challenges real life may bring -- is a Mary Emmerling trademark. In her last book,Mary Emmerling's Quick Decorating, she proved that beautiful rooms could be put together in hours and even minutes; now she brings the same ingenuity and panache to decorating on a budget inMary Emmerling's Smart Decorating. The secret of her system for avoiding expense is keeping the big-ticket furnishings simple, focusing instead on the movable feasts of accessories and flowers, pictures and fabrics. It is a strategy that works every time. Hundreds of full-color photographs present ideas from which any home decorator can draw inspiration or improvise. Chapters are organized by price, from "Pennies" (using produce and fresh flowers placed in interesting "found" containers, for example) to "Dollars" (such as covering books with a uniform paper to create an instant library) to "Bigger Bucks" (a vintage tablecloth artfully hung as a contemporary window treatment). In addition to ideas for every room of the house, Mary offers strategies for shopping smart, salvaging old pieces, incorporating objects from nature into a decorating scheme, and creating new uses for everyday objects, as well as a directory to her favorite home stores and antiques shops. Throughout, Mary's inimitable approach makes decorating itself fresh and fun. Perfect for the beginner and seasoned decorator alike,Mary Emmerling's Smart Decoratingis an invaluable resource for finding great style without great expense.