Summaries and Customer Reviews are supplied by Amazon.com
Summary:
"Do more with less space" is the key concept of this down-to-earth design guide for both new home builders and remodelers. Not So Big Solutions for Your Home provides simplified design principles in jargon-free language for the nonprofessional contemplating a residential building project. Architect and author Sarah Susanka, well-known for 1998's The Not So Big House: A Blueprint for the Way We Really Live, offers advice on how to redefine space to create happier living areas that function more efficiently. For example, analyzing the family's television habits and planning set placement in advance may avert future squabbles and smooth out daily living. Thinking of each exterior door as the location of a sequence of common events (such as hauling in the groceries or taking off muddy boots) will help the planner create a neater entryway adapted to the family's specific needs. Throughout, plentiful drawings and photos illustrate simple solutions to such common problems as unused living rooms, dark bedrooms, and crowded kitchens. Readers seeking to remodel on a budget will be heartened by Susanka's contention that it is often best to stay within existing walls and avoid building out. All in all, the book provides a lot of theoretical food for thought for lay people preparing to begin the daunting task of either building a new home or remodeling an old one. --Judy Fireman
Customer Reviews:
Average Customer Rating:
My house isn't so big. Where do I put everything?
Customer Rating:
The nice thing about this book is that it can be considered when you are thinking about building a new home, or considering remodeling your current home. And the remodel doesn't need to include a contractor. What if you have a window on a short wall, and think "Hey, I could put a bench seat there with bookshelves on either side to create a window seat!"
Those are the kinds of ideas I got from this book.
Great Guide for Remodelers
Customer Rating:
This book will be invaluable for anyone looking to build/remodel their home. The author provides creative suggestions for rethinking how we live and ways to reconfigure existing space rather than construct extensive (and expensive) additions to our homes. Susanka admirably supports her ideas with background information, diagrams and case studies. Ultimately, however, few ideas in the book are applicable to anyone not planning a large scale construction project of some kind. If you're interested in what you can do with your existing small space, check out one of the author's other books instead.
Everyone should read this book!
Customer Rating:
I think every person who owns or is considering buying a home should read this book first. The concepts presented here will make you rethink the idea that you need more...bigger is NOT better. Utilizing space effectively and making a house your own with personalized touches are much more likely to make one more satisfied than buying bigger. While I have been investigating going smaller for a while now, this book really helped me to focus on the details of actually making that change work in real life. A must read for anyone feeling cramped in their spaces.
Love this concept!
Customer Rating:
I now am a HUGE fan of Sara Susanka. I went to the library and read ALL her books. The pictures are very helpful if planning a remodel or building new. Finding an architect that is in-tune is a challenge, most are men and do not think this way.
Not So Complete Ideas
Customer Rating:
Nice book of concepts. Albeit incomplete and some what frustrating.
The Author presents concepts in text, images, sketches and floor plans. Problem is the floor plans and text lack any measurements to put the plans in perspective. There are no size minimums or guide lines.
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