Veranda Elements of Beauty, The Art of Decorating

This stunning collection of photographs from exclusive homes along with insights from their talented designers pushes the gold-leafed envelope on what makes design beautiful.

Our innate desire for beauty is every bit as powerful as our yearning for love and happiness. But a beautiful life doesn't require a private estate, as anyone who has woken up to a simple bedside bouquet of fragrant lilac cuttings from the garden can attest. It just requires an observant eye, open to finding and appreciating the beauty in design and in daily living.

The editors of Veranda spoke with interior designers, architects and landscape designers about how they introduce elements of beauty into the spaces they design so lovingly. Their special touches can be found in many surprising places: the intricate shadows cast by a chandelier on a dining room ceiling; the billowing sheer curtains hung from ceiling to floor in a living room; the sense of balance found when strolling by a gallery wall arranged in simple symmetry. Often, it's those moments that bring loveliness to your hours and with it, your spirit.

Organized by room, each chapter displays both the grandeur of interiors and those special details that make a room arresting, reminding readers that some of the most beauteous thrills can happen in any corner of the home. Throughout, designers share personal advice for creating delightful environments, how to artfully display a collection in a hallway (a spot that's often forgotten), which antique chairs are so timeless they're worth hunting for, or the art of properly dressing a bed so beautiful that it invites you to sink into it at the end of a busy day with a happy sigh.