The decorating pride of Atchison, Kansas, Garrity has compiled her favorite tips, tricks and techniques from her stores Nell Hill's and G. Diebolt in this illustrated volume.

Organized around the changing seasons -- and the holidays and celebrations that go with them -- this book features creative party themes, delicious menu ideas, and tips to make every guest feel special. Ideal for people who are intimidated at the thought of throwing a party, this guide gives readers tips and tricks for breaking each step down into a manageable plan.

In Nell Hill's Rooms We Love, Mary Carol applies her Nell Hill’s principles of design to new challenges. Even though design styles and trends have changed significantly since Nell Hill's Style at Home, the rules that guide her approach to decorating have not. In this book, rediscover those principles at work in four very different houses, in addition to her own home. Throughout the book, various rooms are highlighted that were inspired by the needs of each homeowner and were transformed using Mary Carol’s inspiration and “tricks of the trade.” Homes featured include: A century-old English Tudor in a city neighborhood, reinvented for empty nesters A suburban tear-down that was rebuilt for a growing family A home in the country, newly built but with an old soul A sweeping country manor with one-of-a kind rooms While traveling through these homes, Mary Carol constructs the process and provides readers with the blueprint she uses for discovering personal styles. We hope you will be inspired by these rooms and will come away with creative energy to make your rooms beautiful, functional, colorful, and comfortable. Mary Carol Garrity and her staff at Nell Hill’s work with thousands of customers each year to help them bring their homes to life. Mary Carol’s passion is to work with homeowners to make the rooms in their houses beautiful, colorful, functional, and special. In Nell Hill’s Rooms We Love, Mary Carol shares some of her favorite decorating solutions, showing her readers inside the homes of the clients she has worked with to help them bring their dreams to life. In this book, Mary Carol deconstructs the process that helps her work with the myriad of decorating challenges from her customers. It is a big order to think about redoing a room in a house, committing to a paint color or wallpaper, dozens of yards of fabric, new upholstery, area rugs that you will be living with for a while, and the investment of dollars and time spent on the makeover. Mary Carol demystifies the process by showing us through rooms she loves and calling out details that go into making the room successful. Mary Carol defines success in decorating by working with customers to identify their own personal style. While the stores of Nell Hill’s are packed full of great room settings, tableaus, and both big and little surprises, Mary Carol believes that people have a personal style that is uniquely their own. Her goal is to help you discover your own style by offering some guiding principles for your decisions. Mary Carol’s Guiding Principles: Mary Carol believes that your style comes from mixing old with new, showcasing your keepsake treasures as well as your newly discovered surprises. And she believes in comfort—providing spaces where you can sit down with a book and get cozy or where your guests will find a special amenity waiting just for them. Mary Carol believes that a beautiful room always offers an unexpected delight. She encourages you to bring the outdoors inside, using garden structures year-round in seasonal decorating.

In this handsome and accessible guide, a popular decorating expert offers tips and ideas for re-creating her classic, relaxed style in the reader's own home.

Why French women of a certain age are the consummate hostesses, homemakers, and style icons--and how you can be, too. Frenchwomen--particularly those 40 and over--are role models for stylish and gracious living, what the French call l'art de vivre. American-born fashion journalist Tish Jett, who has studied these women for years, shared their beauty secrets in her first book, Forever Chic. Now she explores why Frenchwomen of a certain age are master hostesses and homemakers, expert practioners of les bonnes manières as well as everyday elegance, savoir-faire, and as a result, la joie de vivre. Jett explains how to entertain like a Frenchwoman, including a glimpse into the typical French larder from which a delicious meal can be thrown together with ease, to detailed instruction on laying a beautiful table and crafting a perfect cheese plate (did you know that when cutting from a wedge of cheese, slice from the back to the point, which is the "heart" of the cheese, and as such considered the best part and not to be lopped off so others cannot enjoy it). She explores everyday style and elegance, disclosing how to create that special bien dans sa peau (to feel good about oneself) sensation so coveted by Frenchwomen. Jett also shares the importance of discipline, which goes hand in hand with beauty--a well-ordered closet, be it for clothes or linens, translates to easy everyday elegance. With tips on adjusting your beauty and style regimes seasonally, charmingly packaged with color illustrations, Living Forever Chic is a delightful gift for the Francophile in your life.

Meet 20 beautiful, creative French women who live with passion; work every day; and love to take care ot their homes and families. Visit them in their grand chateaux or charming little country cottages or Parisian apartments. Learn where they shop, where they work, where they play, how they dress and, how they entertain. Absorb each girlfriend's style and joie de vivre. Santoni's affectionate writing, along with gorgeous photography, tells each woman's story with an intimacy usually reserved for the closest of girlfriends. SHARON SANTONI·SMITH grew up in England but married a Frenchman and has raised her family in Normandy, France. Her blog, My French Country Home, is read daily by thousands all over the world. She writes about life in rural France; the ups and downs of family life; her inspiring French girlfriends; the intricacies of village life; and her love of searching for brocante treasure in the flea markets of Paris and the countryside.

This important study documents the rich architectural heritage of Kansas City, a booming metropolis between 1880 and 1930. The grand houses built during this time are evidence of the importance of this midwestern metropolis, which once eclipsed cities such as Dallas, Atlanta, and Denver. The forty houses featured within this book were erected by the city's leading plutocrats, including newspaper publisher William Rockhill Nelson, minerals magnate August R. Meyer, lumber baron Robert A. Long, grain merchant Herbert F. Hall., and oilman Ernest C. These men typically hired local architects, many of whom had received their training on the East Coast, but settled in Kansas City. Architects in the book include Henry F. Hoit, Louis S. Curtiss, Horace La Pierre, Edward B. Delk, Edward W. Tanner, and Mary Rockwell Hook--one of the first women to study at the Ecole des Beaux Arts in Paris. Almost all of these houses were designed in the European and American revival styles prevelant throughout Western culture during this period, although they are distinguished by a midwestern sensibility. This survey will surprise and delight anyone interested in America's residential architecture during this time.