Perfect English Farmhouse

Excellent book, beautifully written and lots of lovely photos of magnificent houses and cottages in different parts of England. Arrived promptly and book was described exactly as the seller identified it. Still reading it and it has gave me lots of inspiration for my home.

This is a fantastic book, I leant my first copy to a friend who didn't give it back, but I really missed it and had to buy another copy! There is nothing like it and it's sister book, perfect english cottages. I help run the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings Gloucestershire branch so that's why I call old and beautiful things spabby. This is the perfect book for creating spabby style, that is using things that generally aren't mass produced, that value beauty and associations rather than condition and a style that actually creates comfort and rooms that people can relax in and feel comfortable in. This book is about houses to live in, houses where you can kick your shoes off and cosy up to the fire. There are too many books about boutique & minimal style, this is a book for real people and real families to live in. I only hope Ros is working on other books in this style - they're fab!

Another edition to her "Perfect Series" and Ros Byham Shaw certainly doesn't disappoint.Everything you've always imagined about an English Farmhouse is here with more besides and that is the real attraction of this book. One or two of the houses featured have been completely fashioned by some well to do designer in typical designer fashion but the real gems are the ones were the owners have lavished energy, enthusiasm and imagination into creating there dream abodes.My tip is to read this book more than once because everytime I read it I learn just a little bit more.My only small gripe is that it would be nice to have a floorplan of each house in order to gain a better appreciation of how all the rooms fit together.

This book's predecessor - The Perfect English Cottage - was a real winner, mainly because it was adorned with many extremely fine photographs, which made it a joy to look at. This one, on tastefully restored farmhouses, hasn't the impact of the book on cottages and seems somehow colder, and while there are some good photos, there are rather too many that are shot into the light with the result that the eye is drawn to sun drenched windows rather than to the interiors. Moreover the quality of the paper seems to be not quite as good as in the earlier book. That said, there are many things to admire and the text, as always, is informative, though like the photos, perhaps a little cold.

This is a lovely book. But it is more than just a 'lovely book', delightful though it is to look at and handle. Nor is it just a parade of 'aspirational' interiors beyond the pockets of most of us - though there are some pretty sensational houses here. It's more a celebration of English individuality - that you can do what you like with your own space - mad colour and piles of stuff if that's your bag; or restrained colour and pared down decor if that's what you want. To guide you, there's a gentle categorisation of the different types of English house and a neat summary of the essential elements of each. But there's nothing prescriptive here - and uniformity is told to take a running jump. The message, really, is have faith in what you love and surround yourself with that. All these interiors are totally at ease with themselves - not concerned with keeping up with anybody, or 'making a statement' - except to say: 'Welcome and enjoy'. Congratulations to Ros Byam Shaw for reminding us that in making a home, as in living our lives: 'To thine own self be true'.

This is such a fantastic book. Enjoyed it but not before my husband had seen it first and commented on how great it was too.

I almost didn't buy this book because of a previous reviewer's comment about it being formulaic and too similar to her other books. My goodness, I am so pleased that I chose to disregard such negativity. The fact of the matter is that this writer knows her stuff and manages to photograph and write about interiors that are so much more pleasing than the average captured in both books and magazines. She distills the essence of whatever style she is writing about and offers bullet points in how to achieve it. Formulaic? Well if it is, it's a winning one. It's a beautiful book; buy it and enjoy it, you won't be disappointed.

Beautiful photography and interesting text. I had previously borrowed a copy of this book from the library several times and decided I would like my own copy.