Paint Style: The New Approach to Decorative Paint Finishes

I found Paint Style at the library and after pouring over it for 3 weeks decided I had to own it. The photos are gorgeous and better yet captioned with specific (Benjamin Moore) paint colors and the techniques used to achieve the finish. There are also detailed instructions on how to achieve stippling, Venetian plasters, subtle tone on tone effects and bold patterning to mention just a few. A pictorial catalog of the tools and brushes needed also makes suggestions on how to use the tool for different effects. As a painter I'm always looking for something different and find this book as helpful for painting on canvas as it is on walls. Rarely does a design book stay on my shelf for long. With this book I found myself going back again and again to look and to learn. Now it can go back to the library for someone else to discover.

What is probably most useful about this book are the large pictures of finished projects. No matter how confused you are about what you want to do, this book covers so many different styles, colors, and kinds of projects that you should find inspiration here. I really enjoyed the vivid differences between the styles. So if you are going very modern, geometric designs, like those on page 113 will be useful. If you favor blue and white country, there are plenty of cozy, stenciled rooms. And for those who love tradition, you are bound to enjoy the lavish antiques and fabulously ornate ceiling on page 19. The books covers glazing, stenciling, stamping, geometric, textures and faux finishes. It delves into historical uses of color and how to chose a color palate.

I've only had a chance to look through this book once. However it does seem to have information on water based paints, which I use exclusively. Mostly in technic. I'm glad I purchased it.