Nina Campbell's Decorating Secrets

"A room may be crammed with hideous furniture, be painted in shrieking shapes or have the sort of patterned carpet that makes you feel giddy, but you have to rise above this and see only the structure that lies underneath," says decorator Nina Campbell. In Nina Campbell's Decorating Secrets, the acclaimed British interior designer takes you through the most integral steps of home decorating, room by room. Nina Campbell's signature design is "layering," which means every element--the furniture, wall coverings, carpet, lighting, accessories--should complement each other and the overall scheme of the room. She starts with the hall, the first impression of your home, then moves into the drawing and sitting rooms, the dining room, the kitchen, the study and library, the bedrooms, and then the bathrooms. Campbell uses her own home and other posh London residences as her examples, but you may not have this many rooms, the wallet, or the will to acquire them; however, you can still come away with ideas for your own home. The style she prefers is lush, rich, and elegant but some may find a Campbell-decorated home overstuffed and ornate. Whether or not you're a fan of chintz, you can still find inspiration from her thoughtful process, her emphasis on harmony between function and aesthetics, and her insistence on a comfortable home in which you can have both private retreats and areas for entertaining. "Your home is an extension of your personality," she says, "and it is this that you want to capture when putting your decorative scheme together."