Although Shea McGee goes into great detail about her design process and how to style each room, I thought that this book is really for people who own houses rather than apartments. The pictures were beautiful and inspirational if you like a contemporary farmhouse aesthetic but it’s not designed for small spaces!

However, like many of the other reviewers, I think that the Style Guide at the back is very practical and useful.

I received this free ebook from NetGalley in return for an honest review.

I was not familiar with Studio McGee before looking at this book, though apparently they are well-known online. However the style of the decor was certainly already familiar. The book is 400+ pages of beautiful design inspiration, primarily neutral palettes and contemporary/traditional styles. The designer uses alot of organic materials, like stone, wood, and natural fibers. I think, however, that for many readers the design style will already feel on the cusp of outdated, perhaps simply because it is so very popular and widely disseminated on instagram and pinterest. The white or blue kitchens with gold (or brass) hardware, the modern farmhouse-style wrought-iron light fixtures, the layered beige fabrics, and so on. These design elements are already starting to feel like the new normal, and--although certainly very elevated (and expensive, I'm sure!)--they are generic enough that they start to feel like the luxury end of builder-grade, rather than bespoke designs created for a particular client. That said, it is a beautiful book, visually speaking. The photography or the rooms, views, and detail shots of textures and fixtures are lovely. There are some unique and distinctive pieces included (loved the wooden chair on p. 222, the rare use of wallpaper on p. 245, the black and white tiles on p. 350). Overall, I would say the book feels more like elegant staging portfolio, demonstrating the work you'd do to sell a luxury home (with a generic, neutral buyer in mind) than projects done for particular clients. I found the guides at the end on fabrics, rugs, furniture/lighting/shelf styling, and mixing materials to be the most useful textual information. Individual chapters just have a brief intro and surface thoughts from Shea McGee, but are more like a visual portfolio of generic examples than actual storytelling around the origin, problems, goals of each design project.

My thanks to Harper Horizon for providing an advance digital copy of this book for review. I think it would make a good coffee table book for new homeowners interested in curating a similar neutral style as McGee.
3.5/5

Beautiful designs and photographs. However, I wish that more information was provided like which paint colors are depicted, sourcing locations for items, etc.

If you like contemporary transitional style - fresh open design and decor - you'll enjoy this book of photos. It's so much more than beautiful visuals, but that's what attracts us to decor, isn't it?

You'll find instructions for how to begin a design process, how to choose the major components that make your space feel like home. And you'll find details, from layout to lighting to accessories - including trendy paint colors and other choices that make a home seem refreshing, modern, and livable.

Whether you're a designer confirming current American trends, a novice homeowner staring at a blank space and wondering what you got yourself into, or someone who loves beautiful coffee table books, you'll enjoy this.

Thank You to NetGalley for this free e-digital. I thoroughly enjoyed this book. The pictures were stunning inspiration. Although many items may not be in my price point, I feel the inspiration and could find something similar. Each space is amazing and carefully curated. I love that at the end of the book, the author explains fabrics, scale, tone, and pattern mixing, pillows, rugs, and other chaptered style guides. I also liked the furniture placement maps, color selection, coffee table styling, and artwork placement.

I think that this book was good for the style of book. The photos were beautiful, and made the houses all look gorgeous. The actual text was pretty boring, and I was slowly going mad by how often she would talk about her old, sad, small apartment with secondhand Ikea furniture from before she got all the Utah/Napa Valley design money. So if you just want to look at nice photos and not read, I would recommend.

Beautiful! I’ve always loved Studio McGee’s style and designs! I even have their other books that they have released. So when I saw this was being released I HAD to get it! There are beautiful ideas and concepts. The pictures are breathtaking! It would be a perfect addition to a home design collection, coffee table book or a house warming gift!

"Have courage in your vision, embrace the process, and relish the art of making a house feel like home."

McGee certainly embraces the colors white and beige, and strenuously avoids anything that "pops." And, while it's true that her rooms are lovely, soothing, relaxing, and calming, they're also a little boring. There's such a sameness to all the photos, it's hard to tell one from another in these high end houses that lack charm and individuality.

This is definitely not my style, but it's a beautiful book, and there's a very nice how-to section at the end.

Oh my goodness, I’m so tired of these books. This is an enormous book but it’s yet another decorating book for the rich white woman, modern “farmhouse” (have these people honestly never been to a farm?), all white and beige aesthetic. I find these houses unforgivably generic, boring, sad and uninspired. If it’s your style (and clearly it is still that of many people), this book will be yet another good resource for designing and decorating it.

I read a temporary digital copy of this book for review.

I absolutely loved reading this book. I was completely drawn into the topic and could not stop reading it.