Rating: 
Summary: Truly new & creative ideas for home & spirit
Review: After reading this book I had so many ideas I didn't know where to begin. I first saw Kelee on Oprah and thought her story was remarkable....her work with Habitat for Humanity is so inspiring. And now I can use her immense spirit and creativity for my own home. She is like a spiritual Martha Stewart but so much more interesting!
Rating:
Summary: Truly new & creative ideas for home & spirit
Review: After reading this book I had so many ideas I didn't know where to begin. I first saw Kelee on Oprah and thought her story was remarkable....her work with Habitat for Humanity is so inspiring. And now I can use her immense spirit and creativity for my own home. She is like a spiritual Martha Stewart but so much more interesting!
Rating: 
Summary: Inspiring Photos, Great Ideas, Ignore the "New Age" Stuff
Review: Although I agree with her basic premise, I found some of Ms. Katillac's writing and the "rituals of belief" a little silly. Nonetheless, beautiful photographs show what you can do without necessarily spending a lot of money. If you like a funky, eclectic look, this book is for you.
Rating:
Summary: Takes Decorating from Materialism to Meaning
Review: As an interior designer of 18 years I have seen design trends or "looks" come and go. And I must openly admit that in my early years I assisted many clients in scrambling after and capturing the style-du-jour, often at considerable financial expense and always at great spiritual expense (to us both). Because, you see, outward style is the manifestation of who and what we are on a spiritual level. In other words our personal style is Spirit in a physical form. So adopting a "look" or another's style simply because it is fashionable will always leave us feeling inwardly betrayed. My book "House of Belief" is an effort to help us find our inner motivations for the outward expression of our creativity at home. If you want to find and consciously express your own creative spirit in uplifting ways in your home, this book is for you. However, if you want a book on creating this or that style look elsewhere; or if you want an approach to material stuff devoid of its conscious meaning and intent--that which is "look oriented" this book is not for you. If you do find you want meaning associated with the decorating of your home, then read on. Heart and soul--those warm--and often emotional abstractions which we long to express find a material language inside a house of belief. A house of belief serves as a visual affirmation of all that we are and aspire to be. Every creative action we take becomes a ritual which perpetuates our belief in our own self-worth and creativity. Some might tag this concept "new" but it is truly an age old approach. As old as stained glass windows, hand-crafted furniture, and personally sewn curtains and clothing. When we make it ourselves, we believe in ourselves. We have evidence of our values and dreams for life and of our skills, talents, and potentials. A house of belief is our evidence; that which lifts us up and motivates us to the fulfillment of all we have ever hoped to achieve. Is this possible? Can decorating really be a catalyst for far-reaching personal empowerment and growth in our lives? Sounds as absurd as the concept that "laughing can help to heal you" did at one time; but we now know that positive thoughts and feeling greatly contribute to our physical health. A house of belief surrounds us with positive reminders of our own creative spirit which keep us in a place of well being. See this evidenced in the stories and homes illustrated within House of Belief. And remember: this book is not for the spiritually squeamish or those yet celebrating the rift between body and soul.
Rating:
Summary: Takes Decorating from Materialism to Meaning
Review: As an interior designer of 18 years I have seen design trends or "looks" come and go. And I must openly admit that in my early years I assisted many clients in scrambling after and capturing the style-du-jour, often at considerable financial expense and always at great spiritual expense (to us both). Because, you see, outward style is the manifestation of who and what we are on a spiritual level. In other words our personal style is Spirit in a physical form. So adopting a "look" or another's style simply because it is fashionable will always leave us feeling inwardly betrayed. My book "House of Belief" is an effort to help us find our inner motivations for the outward expression of our creativity at home. If you want to find and consciously express your own creative spirit in uplifting ways in your home, this book is for you. However, if you want a book on creating this or that style look elsewhere; or if you want an approach to material stuff devoid of its conscious meaning and intent--that which is "look oriented" this book is not for you. If you do find you want meaning associated with the decorating of your home, then read on. Heart and soul--those warm--and often emotional abstractions which we long to express find a material language inside a house of belief. A house of belief serves as a visual affirmation of all that we are and aspire to be. Every creative action we take becomes a ritual which perpetuates our belief in our own self-worth and creativity. Some might tag this concept "new" but it is truly an age old approach. As old as stained glass windows, hand-crafted furniture, and personally sewn curtains and clothing. When we make it ourselves, we believe in ourselves. We have evidence of our values and dreams for life and of our skills, talents, and potentials. A house of belief is our evidence; that which lifts us up and motivates us to the fulfillment of all we have ever hoped to achieve. Is this possible? Can decorating really be a catalyst for far-reaching personal empowerment and growth in our lives? Sounds as absurd as the concept that "laughing can help to heal you" did at one time; but we now know that positive thoughts and feeling greatly contribute to our physical health. A house of belief surrounds us with positive reminders of our own creative spirit which keep us in a place of well being. See this evidenced in the stories and homes illustrated within House of Belief. And remember: this book is not for the spiritually squeamish or those yet celebrating the rift between body and soul.
Rating:
Summary: CREATIVELY AWAKENED!
Review: Creative empowerment is how I'd descibe Kelee's book. Your very own creativity once discovered, becomes empowering! I never knew what I'd been missing until I began to rediscover my own creativity through my own, and my children's creative actions. I lead a typical life - double income, 4 school age children, soccer-mom, basketball coach etc., and something has always been missing from my life. What I found out is that I had been so busy with everything "going on" that I wasn't using my creative spirit that God has given all of us. Our family just made our "Family" book of belief. It is a album of our future. A future filled with travel & adventure. As a family, we all want to play at the beach, see the ocean, one page is covered in that dream, our living room now is an expression of that dream - we have a basket of smooth round rocks, seashells on the table, seagulls, tropical plants - we've just begun to surround ourselves with visual images that support our family's dream of a beach vacation. Another creative action we've taken to help bond our blended family of 6 is to create pillows that represent our values. My seven year old daughter slept with a framed picture of her & her mother - until I used a heat transfer process of appling the picture to a pillow slip - so now my daughter sleeps with the pillow- which she wrote on it - Mom - I look up to you... When my husband saw how much our daughter loved her mom - my husband gained a new perspective on his former wife - and began to show her more respect. My nine year old just last week asked to take his pillow he designed, Kelee Katillac's "House of Belief creating your personal style" book and our "Family Book of Belief" to school for show and tell. His pillow is a picture of my husband and him wading in lake Michigan(our summer vaction this year). He wrote on his pillow - "My Dad - my friend, my pal." He wants to be a school teacher so the pillow includes a glued-on pencil & ruler. The House of Belief book has awakened our family's creativity. It's amazing how our family is bonding together through creative actions. Our newest addition to our Family's Book of Belief are the fortunes we each recieved at a Chinese dinner - we glued each fortune in our belief book and we are making "fortune napkins" to use at our own dinner table, by using the heat tranfer process and black text onto our favorite colored napkins. These creative rituals are simple, fun and bring closeness in our family. Kelee Katillac's philosophy of how one small action of creativity leds to greater actions, and the more we create the more we believe in ourselves - this has opened a door into our family's relationships, by increasing each person's understanding of each other and communicating through these creative rituals.
Rating:
Summary: CREATIVELY AWAKENED!
Review: Creative empowerment is how I'd descibe Kelee's book. Your very own creativity once discovered, becomes empowering! I never knew what I'd been missing until I began to rediscover my own creativity through my own, and my children's creative actions. I lead a typical life - double income, 4 school age children, soccer-mom, basketball coach etc., and something has always been missing from my life. What I found out is that I had been so busy with everything "going on" that I wasn't using my creative spirit that God has given all of us. Our family just made our "Family" book of belief. It is a album of our future. A future filled with travel & adventure. As a family, we all want to play at the beach, see the ocean, one page is covered in that dream, our living room now is an expression of that dream - we have a basket of smooth round rocks, seashells on the table, seagulls, tropical plants - we've just begun to surround ourselves with visual images that support our family's dream of a beach vacation. Another creative action we've taken to help bond our blended family of 6 is to create pillows that represent our values. My seven year old daughter slept with a framed picture of her & her mother - until I used a heat transfer process of appling the picture to a pillow slip - so now my daughter sleeps with the pillow- which she wrote on it - Mom - I look up to you... When my husband saw how much our daughter loved her mom - my husband gained a new perspective on his former wife - and began to show her more respect. My nine year old just last week asked to take his pillow he designed, Kelee Katillac's "House of Belief creating your personal style" book and our "Family Book of Belief" to school for show and tell. His pillow is a picture of my husband and him wading in lake Michigan(our summer vaction this year). He wrote on his pillow - "My Dad - my friend, my pal." He wants to be a school teacher so the pillow includes a glued-on pencil & ruler. The House of Belief book has awakened our family's creativity. It's amazing how our family is bonding together through creative actions. Our newest addition to our Family's Book of Belief are the fortunes we each recieved at a Chinese dinner - we glued each fortune in our belief book and we are making "fortune napkins" to use at our own dinner table, by using the heat tranfer process and black text onto our favorite colored napkins. These creative rituals are simple, fun and bring closeness in our family. Kelee Katillac's philosophy of how one small action of creativity leds to greater actions, and the more we create the more we believe in ourselves - this has opened a door into our family's relationships, by increasing each person's understanding of each other and communicating through these creative rituals.
Rating:
Summary: powerful concept
Review: Everyone should have a House of Belief! Great book, great photos, great stories. I've met some of the artists featured here and their stories are powerful!
Rating:
Summary: Inspiration!
Review: Extremely inspiring! Encouraged me to not only brighten up my own house but to get involved with Habitat for Humanity and the House of Belief program. Loved it!
Rating:
Summary: Read, Create and BELIEVE!
Review: House of Belief : Creating Your Own Personal Style is a dynamic tool to be utilized by all who strive to embelish their environments with tokens of their soul. Kelee teaches her readers to look deep inside themselves to seek out their own personal style and encourages her reader's own creative self expression. By adapting basic interior design theory and spirituality... one's own beliefs, goals & dreams... HOB promotes individuality and empowerment in it's readers. The gorgeous photography and contemporary design of the book makes it a fabulous asset to any coffee table but I would encourage everyone to read, create and BELIEVE!
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