The New Design Rules: How to Decorate and Renovate, from Start to Finish: An Interior Design Book

by Emily Henderson

From the author of the New York Times bestseller Styled , here is Emily Henderson's masterclass on interior design.
 
“An approachable guide for anyone who is looking for tools and resources to create a home that speaks to who they are and what they love.”—Joanna Gaines

Whether you’re embarking on a weekend refresh or complete renovation, interior designer Emily Henderson wants you to take risks with your home design without experiencing regret. In this visually driven decorating bible punctuated with photographs from real homes and colorful illustrations, she takes you through her entire process, including every single decision she makes when it comes to picking paint, arranging furniture, hanging window treatments, and deciding on lighting fixtures. You'll also learn when to hire a contractor versus an architect versus a handyperson, all the materials to consider (and why you might want to skip those marble countertops), proper measurements of the elements in each room, and so much more. By the end of the book, you'll feel more confident when it comes to visualizing the home of your dreams, and you'll finally know how to make it happen.

Genres: Nonfiction, Design, Interior Design, Architecture, Reference, Art, Adult

336 pages, Hardcover

Published May 10, 2022

Reviews

[Diz · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a good introductory level renovation and interior design book. It teaches you a lot of the vocabulary for elements of design. It also includes a lot of photos of interiors, so you can get some inspirations for your own spaces. Since this book focuses on basics, experienced interior designers might not find much of value here other than the photographs.

[Bobbiann Markle · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a beautiful book with gorgeous photos of real houses (not houses of the fabulously wealthy). Part 1 is Learn the Language and explains and defines lots of terms like window parts, different window treatments, flooring, appliances, etc. Part 2 has a chapter for each kind of room in a typical house and the design considerations of each, including common solutions as well as reasons you might want to do things differently. This book would be helpful for a new construction, a complete renovation, and even minor redecorating.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice basic primer

This is a great basic introduction for beginning design students or those embarking on a renovation project. Becoming familiar with terminology is key for success in those areas. Photos are, understandably, more to illustrate said terms rather than a great source of inspiration though. I don’t think the title is particularly apt, this is not a “how-to” book IMO so much as a general reference on construction and design by room.

[Jillian Eliza · Rating 3 out of 5]

Love Emily Henderson. I follow her blog, so a lot of the information was familiar to me already. Beautiful photos.

[Katie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Invaluable for those who might be just starting out into the home owning world.

Only OK if you've been here for a minute.

[Allison · Rating 2 out of 5]

Hard to review this book because I am so much not the intended audience (rich people). I think the tone is better than her first book, and it's definitely more streamlined in what it's try to achieve, but it's just barely skimming the surface on everything! The second half of the book goes room-by-room with tips on decorating for each and there are maybe five pages max for each kind of room? I don't know, I just thought there wasn't a lot THERE with this book.

[BrontëKas · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Know the rules, but please creatively break them.”

This book is all about the language of design and home renovation. Emily Henderson defines her terms (the different types of sinks, cabinetry, fireplaces, etc) and then gives the rules (layout, rug size, table shape, and so on). All with gorgeous photography. I was inspired and will definitely reference this one during our next project!

[Betsy Gant · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love this! Definitely returning to for inspo

[Kwoomac · Rating 4 out of 5]

Emily Henderson delivers on her goal of explaining decorating/renovating from start to finish. Particularly helpful with ideas about kitchen design. Accompanied by beautiful photos.

[Jackie Sunday · Rating 4 out of 5]

The beauty of this book is that it showcases everything in a house – not just one part. It’s organized well with beautiful photos and descriptions. It a collection of what’s new and gives the reader ideas of what they might consider changing to update their homes.

Renovating a home can be intimidating with all sorts of materials and styles offered. Sadly, mistakes are costly. This is a book that can help with visualizing a project and knowing what options may be available so better questions can be asked before starting a project.

It’s basic but gives readers what to look for with remodels for every room in the house: kitchen, bathroom, living rooms, dining room, bedroom, home office and utility rooms. She gives the reader ideas for windows and doors, furniture, textiles and upholstery, hard finishes and flooring, cabinets, fireplace, wall finishings and lighting.

The book doesn’t address everything such buying a single or double sink in the kitchen and having one or two dishwashers installed. However, it’s a good reference giving homeowners all sorts of ideas. It’s like watching several episodes of HGTV Renovation Series and thinking: we need to do that.

It would also make a nice gift for a homeowner who may just want to glance through and imagine all the possibilities

[Laura Haske · Rating 3 out of 5]

The photography is beautiful. The text was helpful but not "new." It presented standard design concepts. I think Emily's styling book is more helpful in understanding how to make things beautiful. This is more of a practical guide on room-by-room finish options.

[V · Rating 5 out of 5]

I actually read all this book, and loved the design tips, as well as all the photographs. In an effort to use my phone less, I checked this out from the library instead of getting inspiration from google searches. Much more satisfying!

[Laura Marie · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is beautiful. The interior photography is stunning. However I am not the target audience for this book. I thought this book would be a more in depth guide to decorate and renovate from start to finish- as noted on the cover… however it was a very beginner guide, most of the book explaining very typical terms and a few tidbits of “hot tips” that brought a tiny bit more information. I am an interior designer so maybe this book would be better for a homeowner or someone just starting out. I also was disappointed that the majority or at least a large number of the interiors were done by other designers, and not her or her firm… I thought that if they were being published it should be obvious that the work was labeled by that designers firm and name, not just a side note. There are also no new design rules, and hardly any standard design rules given. I read in her acknowledgements that the book started as a 900 page book submission, I would actually be really interested in what was cut because I know it must be more what she was hoping to teach from start to finish than what this book was; which was more of a dictionary with beautiful interior photography.

[Gaby · Rating 2 out of 5]

Skip it. The way the book is marketed is that it will help you in your renos and guide you on how to break the rules. I didn’t find that many tips on rules to break. There are areas with key measurements which will help you in space planning and arranging but none when it comes to the most cumbersome room in the house to design, the kitchen.

The pictures I also did not find to be new content nor inspirational. I have gotten better information by reading her blog, I would skip buying the book.. for 30eur I feel a little cheated.

[Nichola · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first half of this book is great for anyone planning a project big or small. It literally teaches you the vocabulary of each part of a room and piece of furniture, so you can ask for what you want. It seemed like the stuff that everyone knows except you, so you can talk to people who want to help you get stuff done. The second half I didn't care for- rules-ish but each one had a range or a caveat and I think style is so personal you may still not end up with what you want. But still useful to see how the terms and concepts of the first part are applied.

[Kristina Seleshanko · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is fluff. Lots of nice photos, but no depth. There are no new design rules presented...not even many design rules, period. Most of the book presents things like popular sink styles, popular couch styles, etc. that you could easily discover in a home improvement center, magazine, or design blog. The way this book was promoted, I thought it would give real guidelines to help me feel more confident designing rooms. But it doesn't do this at all. And soooo much is left out. For example, there is no real discussion about color choices.

[Tracy]

Really detailed breakdown of options and terminology for most home decorating elements, like the types of sinks and window treatments and tile patterns that are commonly used. Has many photo examples by a variety of designers (though some are relatively small) -- I wouldn't call this an inspiration book as much as a design encyclopedia, almost. It had a helpful (though brief) section about what types of professionals to hire for different types of renovation projects and what to expect in terms of rates.

[Cait · Rating 2 out of 5]

I genuinely don't know what audience this book was for- on the one hand, it talks about extensive renovation, but barely brushes the surface of the designing inherent in taking down walls. On the other hand, it doesn't give much more depth in the decorating sections.
The pictures are great, the spaces are lovely, but the words are just filler- too many for a coffee table book, not enough to actually convey information.

[Frances · Rating 4 out of 5]

An extremely high level overview of what to BEGIN to think about for renovations. Much lighter on the design side (which makes sense - she’s already written that book) and instead focused on the logistics and planning for the major components of a room-specific renovation. The vocabulary lessons are good but basic - this is primarily an additive resource, not your main text of study when redoing your home.

[Kim Veach · Rating 2 out of 5]

I had hoped to get good information from this book, but it felt more like an introduction to design. The author only discussed topics from her high-end point of view. For example, her flooring options were hardwood, tile, or stone. There was no mention of vinyl or carpet. I didn't see many "new" rules. For a book that was supposed to help you "renovate, from start to finish," it left me wanting much more.

[Katie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I bought this book for two reasons: it’s color and size would look great in my living room under a plant, and secondly, because I want to know more about home design. This book is half learning the language/101, and half examples of design and aesthetic rules of thumb. This book would be great for anyone building and decorating a home for the first time, or to understand design in a 101 way.

[Mandy Crumb · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not sure who the audience is for Henderson's newest book. The information inside is all easily findable on Google and there are no insider secrets or tips. It's simply her very edited opinion with beautiful photos.
Reading it made me feel like I had the Cliff Notes version and was missing things. Disappointed.

[Camryn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gorgeous pictures and design ideas. However, I didn't find this as functionally practical and informative as her first book. Her blog is an absolute treasure of How To's and actual interior design rules, and her first book followed a very similar format. Not sure why this one strayed from such an effective format, but even so, Emily Henderson knows how to nail photo examples.

[Lisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

I guess I'm not that interested in decorating -- or the text/photos were too small to engage me.

Was looking for self-renovation tips -- but it's more of a look-at-the-finished product kind of book.

[Laronda Blessing · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very helpful. I can see how this would be a useful resource when planning a home remodel and plan to refer to it when we get to that point with our kitchen. Plenty of gorgeous home photos to drool over.

[Melissa Nunez · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think if you read her blog, this is going to feel very similar. I would have loved more specific, close up pictures of things (like the curtains or toe kicks) but I realize that doesn't look as beautiful in a book.

[Jill Blevins · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very light in tone and subject matter. Isn't that exactly what you want to have when deciding these very stressful design questions? If all you want to do is remodel your own home, you can't get better than this. So breezy - you gain confidence just leafing through the pages.

[Angie Walters · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a must read for anyone looking to learn more about how to decorate or renovate their home. It is an up to date book on current trends and the process of renovating. I really enjoyed reading this book.

[Melissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

This had some useful information, but I was looking for one more layer.

For example, Emily lays out the different types of wall coverings, but how do you choose the best color?

She shows us the different types of lighting and the heights in which to hang them, but how do you hang them? Tips?

[Amberly Curtis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun, easy, beautiful design book. She lays out basics of many design categories and talks you through all options - pros, cons, considerations. I'm not remodeling or building right now and still enjoyed it!