Getting a read oninspiring designs By Chantal LamersSPECIAL TO THE CHRONICLE

Author and DwellStudio founderChristiane Lemieux might havedeclared 2011 the year to “Undec-orate,” but the latest crop of homedecor books suggests that not every-one is ready to throw out designadvice. Ripe for plucking off book-shelves are library-worthy releasesthat convey decor proclivities fromquirky illustrated pages to black-and-white splendor and some col-orful riffs on shabby chic. Thesegenerous guides also offer cues forstocking the pantry, setting the tableand selecting dining-room chairs.(Just in time for the peak of the en-tertaining season.) Here are somefavorites:

Black & White (and a Bitin Between): By CelerieKemble (Clarkson Potter,$50). Trends of late havedictated retreating to interi-ors chock-full of color; con-sequently, the black-and-white palette has faded intothe background. In visits tomore than 75 homes, Kemblereveals that this classic,

Cico Books

Rachel Ashwell’s seventh book, “Shabby Chic: Inspirations and Beautiful Spaces,” goes beyond the imperfect basics.

Books continues on E5

HOME & GARDEN

Clarkson Potter

“Black & White (and a Bit inBetween)” challenges the notionthat a black-and-white palette islimiting.

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DatebookSan Francisco Chronicle and SFGate.com | Wednesday, December 14, 2011 | Section E GEB/NB/WB

Leah Garchik: Chasingwhitebeards throughthe streets E8

Just in time for the holidays: “GreatPerformances” cooks up a special feastfrom the San Francisco Ballet of an eve-ning-length work by visionary HamburgBallet Director John Neumeier based onHans Christian Andersen’s beloved “The

Little Mermaid.”All well and good,

but only if you’relooking for a dark,postmodern alterna-tive to sugarplumfairies and the Land ofSweets: Neumeier’s“Mermaid,” airingFriday, is about as far

from the Disney animated film as SantaClaus is from Rasputin.

Yes, there is a little mermaid whosaves a drowning prince, falls in lovewith him, and makes a deal with the SeaWitch to gain a pair of legs so she canpursue him on land. But there is also acomplete parallel plot involving An-dersen himself, known as the Poet, whopines for the prince as much as the littlemermaid does. In addition to obsessive,stalker love, the ballet drips with thethemes of revenge, murder, sexual re-pression and tragedy.

Ho, ho, ho.The timing may seem a bit off, but the

ballet is worth a look, even if its many

Erik Tomasson / S.F. Ballet

The fine dancing and choreography inSan Francisco Ballet’s production of“The Little Mermaid” is undercut byplodding camerawork.

Dark ‘Mermaid’gasps for airon small screen

DAVID WIEGANDTelevision

LTheLittleMer-

maid: A “GreatPerformances”presentation. 9p.m. Fri. on PBS.

Wiegand continues on E2

There’s a local angle to the career ofSteven Holl, the newly named recipientof the 2012 gold medal from the Amer-ican Institute of Architects.

Long before such atten-tion-getting work as histranslucent addition tothe Nelson Atkins Muse-um in Kansas City, Hollwas a young architect inSan Francisco. In the late1960s and early ’70s, hetoiled here on his ownand for such firms asLawrence Halprin’s be-

fore heading to London’s vaunted Ar-chitectural Association and then astill-unfolding career in New York.

“He was doing private projects, try-ing to be an architect, looking forwork,” recalls bookseller-publisherWilliam Stout, who shared an apart-ment with Holl on Telegraph Hill. Hollalso was the first (very part-time) em-ployee at Stout’s architectural book-

Acclaimedarchitect Hollhas S.F. roots

JOHN KING Place

King continues on E2

StevenHoll

Q: Normally, my dogprefers to be in thesame room as me, butrecently he’s been goingdownstairs and lyingdown in the dark, eventhough I’m upstairs. Ifind this new behaviorconfusing.

Recently, he also be-came terrified of the petgate that blocks off theliving room. It fell onhim one day, and hemanaged to get out fromunder it, but now hewon’t go into the livingroom. Could it be that hegoes downstairs to getaway from the pet gate?

A: This type of situationraises questions in re-gards to overall history offears: What are his nor-mal responses to fearfulsituations, his reactions toscary things, etc.? Was headopted? A stray? Inmany cases, early lifehistory makes a hugeimpact on the way dogshandle life.

Did this behavior startafter the gate fell on him?If yes, then that might beyour issue. Knowing thereason will allow you tomotivate him to stay up-stairs.

With that said, dogs are

like people in that some-times they like to be alone.Is he older? Does he seemuncomfortable? Is it cool-er downstairs? When hegoes downstairs, can youencourage him back up-stairs with a special, deli-cious treat? I would startkeeping a log when hedoes this. Who else ishome? Did he get chal-lenged over a toy or foodfor attention? Was some-one cooking? (Sometimessmells can cause dogs toleave.) Did someone run aloud appliance, such as avacuum, hair dryer orblender?

Try to figure out whatenvironmental situationstend to be common whenhe goes downstairs. If youthink he is emotionallydistraught, a trainer canvisit and help set up atraining plan. If no envi-ronmental reason comesto mind, then it could bemedical. Check with yourvet.

Holly Brand, personal,certified dog trainer, WestCoast K-9 Training

Does your pet have a healthor behavior problem?E-mail Ask the Vet athome@sfchronicle.com.

ASK THE VET

Dog seems to be saying: ‘I want to be alone’

timeless pairing is any-thing but limiting. Rather,she divulges the complexside of black and white,with advice on selectingfinishes, techniques forsuccumbing to whitewalls, incorporatingtexture, collecting com-plementary accessoriesand blending in accentcolors. Though black andwhite is the startingpoint, Kemble establishesthat it can create abun-dant possibilities forshowcasing natural woodelements, colorful trims,metallic accents or per-haps the cool silhouette ofa bold blue headboard.

The Perfectly Imper-fect Home: By DeborahNeedleman (ClarksonPotter, $30). The founderof Domino and editor ofWSJ magazine, Needle-man believes that themost stylish homes areequal parts comfortableand beautiful. In thiswhimsically illustratedguide, she takes a refresh-ing approach to demon-strating her point byoffering up 80 essentialsthat design acolytes oughtto consider. The book’sunusual take consists ofwell-layered chapterssuch as “A Bit of Quirk.”

The section covers “irrev-erent accents,” whichNeedleman says are nec-essary to impart a not-so-serious flavor, and whatshe refers to as “jolifiers,”or sentimental objectswhose function is to con-vey joy. Throughout,you’ll find style tips, his-tory lessons, cheat sheetsand guides to foldingbathroom towels, creat-ing salon-style hangingsand (finally) resolvingonce and for all the ques-tion of the acceptable sizeand number of pillows foryour boudoir.

Katie Ridder Rooms:By Heather Smith Mac-Isaac (The Vendome Press,$57.50). The days of con-forming to a single decorgenre are officially gone.Though purging that ruleof thumb can be wonder-fully liberating, mix-and-match methodology isn’tnecessarily straightfor-ward. In this volume byacclaimed decorator KatieRidder, readers get a visualbreakdown — room bysublime room — of master-ing the modern-meets-antiques remix. Riddergoes beyond the old-and-new mashup. She demon-strates how to edge outtradition further by cou-pling furnishings withbright decorative nuggets

against a palette of herfavored brilliant hues,such as peacock blue,emerald, orange, saffronand lemon. Even the chic-est of rooms embrace alived-in, easygoing opu-lence, something she attri-butes to her Californiaupbringing. Engaging tipsboxes in each chapter —divided by room — offeruseful bits of guidance.Readers can take in theanatomy of full-lengthcurtains or get a meticu-lous description of theideal dining chair (it’s 20inches wide).

Shabby Chic: Inspira-tions and BeautifulSpaces: By Rachel Ash-well (Cico Books, $35). Inher seventh book, thedecorator who taught usto embrace the appeal ofimperfect tattered fur-nishings alongside thelikes of bright and flouncywhite linens takes read-ers beyond the narrativethat has come to definethe shabby chic genre.Though Ashwell paysvisits to her new NottingHill Boutique and Bedand Breakfast in Big Top,Texas, she also showcaseshomes with distinctlydarker palettes. From thehomes of a childhood palto a London houseboatdweller, and even Sharon

and Ozzy Osbourne, eachtrifles with the shabbychic principles yetthoughtfully douses spac-es with recycled, vintage,handmade or all-glammed-up materials.

Big, Easy, Style: ByBryan Batt (ClarksonPotter, $35). If you’vemissed Bryan Batt since heleft the set of “Mad Men” in2009 (he played SalvatoreRomano), catch up withhim in a decor ode to hishometown: New Orleans.Batt begins with the basicsthat help define iconic stylein the Big Easy: radicalcolor and audacious pat-tern. He endorses toyingwith saturated color, likejuxtaposing a sassy hot-pink sofa against a choco-late wall, or swathing awhole room in a shiny coatof turquoise lacquer. Batt’slighthearted style meansthat the decorating processdoesn’t always result in afinished product; he pre-fers to build collectionsover a lifetime (his go-tosinclude throwback bar-ware and old portraits).Batt touches on the funda-mental aspects of decor byrevisiting nooks androoms he has decoratedand others from which hehas gotten inspiration . Allthe while, we’re treated tohis vision of makingrooms inviting, festive andultimately setting thefoundation for entertain-ing, which is what thisget-down town is all about.

E-mail comments tohome@sfchronicle.com.

Getting a read oninspiring designs Books from page E1

E4 | Wednesday, December 14, 2011 | San Francisco Chronicle and SFGate.com GPN

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