Charm School: The Schumacher Guide to Traditional Decorating for Today

by Emma Bazilian, Stephanie Diaz

More than 250 rooms by iconic designers—the definitive illustrated handbook on timeless, traditional decorating for modern living

Chintz, wicker, ruffles, and skirts: Old-school decorating details are making a comeback in a fresh, new way thanks to a crop of designers putting their own unique spin on the classics. Join Schumacher, the legendary design company, for a tour of spaces that meld an appreciation for the past with an eye to the future. Incorporating many of Schumacher’s iconic textiles and wallcoverings, luminary interior designers illustrate how to breathe new life into traditional design to create chic, modern, swoon-worthy rooms to inspire and emulate. From cozy canopied beds to cheeky needlepoint pillows, it’s granny-chic for the next generation.

Charm School features rooms by contemporary icons of interior design, including Miles Redd, Celerie Kemble, and Mark D. Sikes, as well as storied decorators like Mario Buatta, Sister Parish, and Billy Baldwin.

Chapters comprise visually exuberant explorations of topics such as chintz & florals, wicker & rattan, bed hangings, skirts, decorative painting, treillage, collecting, table settings, and more.

Genres: Design

252 pages, Hardcover

Published March 8, 2023

Reviews

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a lovely interior design coffee table book featuring various elements of traditional decorating such as chintz, wicker, treillage, scallops, antique furniture, etc. It's eye candy for anyone who loves "grandmillenial" style. I like the variety of designers featured and I'm sure I'll pore over the pages anytime I need inspiration.

Calling the book a "guide to traditional decorating" doesn't seem quite accurate, though. The book is mostly photos with small captions. When I think of a decorating guidebook I imagine something more like my favorite interior design book, The Perfectly Imperfect Home: How to Decorate & Live Well by Deborah Needleman, which goes into depth about the hows and whys of decorating. I knocked one star off due to the title, to be honest. The book wasn't all I'd hoped it would be. Still, it's very nice and a pleasure to flip through.

[Sandra · Rating 4 out of 5]

Would have been 4 stars except for missing an important detail. At the end a list by page number crediting each designer and photographer to acknowledge their unique contributions of creative and intellectual property would have been most appropriate and invaluable helpful to the reader. Schumacher would no longer exist as successfully as it does today without support and loyal custom of these talented professionals.

[Marissa · Rating 1 out of 5]

A psy-op intended to make tasteless wealthy people believe they have some. Also almost made me flip from my traditional design loving ways out of sheer horror. Worth it only to deconstruct why it doesn't work (although I think that is clear from the author's rebuttal to Coco Chanel, where she writes that rather than take one thing away - add more and more again). There were a few gems in the book and a few almost gems but the rest was... not it.

[Hillary Anderson · Rating 2 out of 5]

I love design books but I was pretty disappointed in this one. Didn't seem like a lot of effort went into the text or the choosing of photographs to include. It was a lot of recycled stuff I've seen in other books, blogs, or designer's portfolios. The cover is really pretty, though, so this will make a nice display book!

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lovely and charming. Also makes for a very pretty coffee table book.

[Patricia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gorgeous photos! The text, however, is tiny and sometimes positioned and colored so that it’s very tough to read ie white print on a light grey background.

[Trish · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked this book. Lots of different styles.