This comprehensive guide to the best of three centuries of the most enduring decorating styles explains and illustrates the distinguishing characteristics from both the European and American periods, from the Baroque through to the end of the nineteenth century.

Marshall Watson’s first book reveals how to make traditional interiors fresh. Known for his meticulously researched, European-inspired style, Marshall Watson creates interiors that are rich in texture, detail, and simple luxuries. In his first book, Watson shares his finest work, demonstrating that while each of these homes is as unique as its owner, they all adhere to principles that transform a mere series of spaces into a genuine, coherent home: warmth; light; peace; comfort; balance; proportion; livability; and last but not least, appropriateness. Whether in an Italianate villa in Los Cabos or a family idyll on a Swedish island, a Gramercy Park apartment that blends shimmer and restraint, or a Newport Beach cottage warmed by walls finished in egg-yolk yellow, Watson explains how he translated each family’s lifestyle and aspirations, the house’s history, and the surrounding environment into a highly original form of elegance—and how anyone can discover his or her own. Beautifully photographed with lavish images of Watson’s work, this inspiring book is a must-have for interior design lovers.

For Alessandra Branca, living means living comfortably. Growing up in Rome, Branca was always surrounded by exquisite art and architecture. She learned early on that beauty is meant to intermingle with everyday life, and to this day her interior designs, while abiding by classical principles, comfortably accommodate her clients’ lifestyles. “You can’t just do something that looks pretty,†? she says. “It has to work.†? In this book, the designer—based in Chicago—generously reveals her step-by-step creative process, offering invaluable guidance to anyone who wants a home that is both gorgeous and livable. Beginning with her own Chicago townhouse and interweaving insights drawn from several other prominent projects, she shows how she assesses each space’s form and function, selects foundation elements, chooses furniture and lighting, and, finally, incorporates decorative elements that reflect the resident’s personality. Illustrated with 200 lush photographs, the book offers a welcomes introduction to Branca’s enchanting and livable interiors.

A fresh perspective on the work of the most important figures of classical design from the seventeenth century to the present. Classical design employs a rich language developed across twenty-five centuries and many cultures. It is a language of details understood worldwide, with its powerful vocabulary of subtle nuance and inflection. Classical Interiors: Historical and Contemporary, a spectacular presentation of the myriad varieties of classical forms, demonstrates the enduring lessons of traditional interiors for designers and architects today. Extensively illustrated essays devoted to the development of classical design, from its ancient sources through its revivals from the seventeenth century to the present day, are written by noted historians David Watkin and Carol A. Hrvol Flores and architect and designer Richard Sammons. Portfolios of contemporary projects present the award-winning work of Juan Pablo Molyneux, Studio Peregalli, Quinlan & Francis Terry, Fairfax & Sammons, Gil Schafer, Historical Concepts, Ferguson & Shamamian, Allan Greenberg, Robert A. M. Stern, and many others. Classical Interiors: Historical and Contemporary is the authoritative survey of the best of classical design.

Filled with hundreds of ideas drawn from tradition, this work is both a confident style statement for the enthusiast of English design, and a reference work for the home decorator.