Product Description

Offering a unique look at interior design, Materials and Components of Interior Architecture, Seventh Edition fully covers the nonstructural materials available to interior designers. With an eye on the environment, it provides a firm understanding of the products, properties, and uses of all materials, from floors, walls and ceilings to installation, and recycling. Going beyond paint and carpet, it explores over 27 different floorings and devotes separate chapters to kitchens and baths. Filled with the latest information provided directly from the suppliers, it helps readers think knowledgably and creatively about the “nuts and bolts” of interior design—both in terms of structure and style.  With an eye on the environment, it provides a firm understanding of the products, properties, and uses of all materials, covering everything from floors, walls and ceiling to installation, and recycling. Progressing from the ground up—literally—it looks beyond the more decorative aspects of design to study the properties and uses of both finishing materials in the design field and structural materials in the architectural field. For interior designers and specifiers.

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Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #564850 in Books
• Published on: 2007-07-07
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 368 pages

From the Publisher
In this updated Fourth Edition of Riggs Materials and Components of Interior Architecture, the author deepens her exploration of materials for floors, walls and ceilings to include information on installation, the environment, and recycling. Coverage progresses from the ground up, literally, looking beyond the more decorative aspects of design, to study the properties and uses of both finishing materials in the design field and structural materials in the architecture field.

From the Back Cover
This book offers designers several essential tools to work successfully with architects, contractors, manufacturers, and clients:

• A comprehensive presentation of finishing materials for the interior of as building, whether residential or commercial
• Key information on environmentally responsible and sustainable products
• Careful presentation of correct installation procedures and product maintenance
• Interesting historical background on the development of key materials
• A glossary of useful terms at the end of the chapter
• Appendices that list manufacturers and associations that sell or represent the products covered in the text

In short, this text provides interior design students with the vital knowledge that they need to pass the National Council for Interior Design Qualification (NCIDQ) exam.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

While teaching an introductory class in interior design, I noticed that the students usually chose paint or wallpaper for the walls and always used carpet on the floor, as though these were the only suitable treatments for walls and floors. I felt a need to break the cycle by exposing students to the fascinating world of materials—and so this book started to take shape.

I was unable to find a book that fully covered the exciting nonstructural materials available to the interior designer. Some authors concentrated on historical aspects of the home, both in architecture and furniture. Some emphasized upholstered furniture, draperies, and carpets; whereas still others stressed the principles and elements of design and color and the aesthetic values that make up a home. No one, however, concentrated on the "nuts and bolts" of interior design. Some books purporting to cover all types of flooring did not even mention wood floors, whereas others had only one or two paragraphs on the subject. In the fourth edition of this book, a chapter on environmental concerns was added, and this sixth edition has increased information on products that are environmentally sustainable. Throughout this edition, for those particularly interested in environmental concerns, products and manufacturers are mentioned that are participating in some way in the recycling processes. (See Chapter 1, "Environmental Concerns.") Chapter 1 should be of prime interest to those designers (most of us) who believe that the environment is precious and worth saving. Environmental responsibility and recycling are also ways to help cope with the growing landfill problem. In researching material for the "Environmental Concerns" chapter, a representative from a very environmentally conscious company said that because she spent all day working on this problem, it has become a habit in her personal life and in the lives of other coworkers. This, of course, is the aim of the chapter. The companies listed at the end of the chapter are some of the companies that are helping our environment, sometimes to their financial betterment but not always.

In the past, the interior design profession has dealt mainly with the more decorative aspects of design. Today it has become increasingly necessary for interior designers to be knowledgeable not only about the finishing materials used in the design field, but about some structural materials as well. Many interior designers are working for or with architects, so it is important that they understand the properties and uses of all materials. Thus, the raison d'etre of this textbook. Together with the properties of materials, I also feel that students should have historical background on the materials, as in the case of marble and the construction of wallcoverings. In the latter case, there is a considerable cost difference between various wallcoverings, and much of that difference is due to the methods of printing and the backing used. A knowledge of this will be able to convince clients to use the more expensive product. The section on wallcoverings includes background information on this subject supplied by the Wallcovering Organization.

In the case of decorative laminate, I found some interesting historical background and also current uses. The old "Woodie" station wagon used laminate for the imitation wood on the sides, and today most bowling alleys are surfaced with plastic laminate. The interiors of pleasure boats are often manufactured with laminate because of the product's durability, ease of maintenance, and resistance to salt. Also included is some background on the beginnings of Jacuzzi and Moen.

Most sales representatives realize that the interior design student of today is the customer of tomorrow, but there are still some who do not understand the scope of the interior design field. Many interior designers are women, and I have found that the ability to talk knowledgeably about materials earns the respect of a man in the profession.

Installation methods are discussed in this book because there are some contractors (luckily only a few) who will use the cheapest method of installation, one that may not be the best for that particular job. Installation methods have been taken from information provided by manufacturers, associations, and institutions involved with that product. Knowledge of the correct installation procedures ensures a properly installed project. The instructor's manual provides many real-world examples of problems with products that have been improperly installed, and some installation problems are mentioned in this sixth edition. In researching material for this edition, I read in technical journals of various problems, such as yellowing in carpet, moisture in concrete slabs, and discolorations in vinyl flooring. Awareness of a potential problem before it occurs can prevent headaches in the future.

Maintenance information on many materials has also been included, because the cost of maintenance should be one of the deciding factors in product selection. What may be an inexpensive material at first may be the most expensive over time because of high maintenance costs.

Most of the world uses the metric system, and the U.S. government has stressed the importance of a transition to the metric system, so designers will find increasing use of millimeters, meters, grams, and kilograms as measurements for length and weight. The wallcovering industry has already converted to metric or European measurements. Some manufacturers, particularly those who sell to Canada and other foreign countries, now list their products in two systems, inches and metric. Thus Appendix A contains handy conversion tables of most of the measurements used in interior design.

In doing my research and talking to many manufacturers, I have found a growing awareness of customers' needs and wishes. Dependability is one thing the consumer requires, whether for a private home or a large commercial installation. Thus many manufacturers offer warranties (one manufacturer offers a lifetime structural guarantee on the wood floor).

All disciplines have their own jargon. To communicate properly with contractors and architects, a designer must understand their jargon. Designers or prospective builders who have read and studied Materials and Components of Interior Architecture will be able to talk knowledgeably with architects and contractors about the uses of materials and their methods of installation. This understanding will also enable designers to decide for themselves which materials and methods are best for a given installation and avoid being influenced by the bias of salespeople.

One word about the spelling of moulding: The Architectural Woodwork Institute uses this spelling, and the term is spelled this way in Canada, where this textbook is also used. The dictionary I consulted has both spellings. To be consistent I have used moulding throughout this book, as some companies even have that spelling in their corporate name.

The growth of the Internet between the writing of the fifth and sixth edition is phenomenal, and therefore, I have included as many Web addresses as possible of manufacturers of products mentioned in the text. In selecting products to mention, I have selected ones that advertise in Interior Design Magazine and Interiors & Sources, especially in the Buyer's Guides. I am also on the e-mail list of many companies who send me information about their latest products as soon as they appear on the market. Awards are also a good source of new and well-designed materials.

This book can serve as a reference for designers who are already practicing, because it brings to their attention new materials on the market and improvements in current ones, many of which won awards in 1997. The appendices are useful reminders of manufacturers and their products. When a product is unique to one manufacturer, that manufacturer's product has been mentioned. Wherever possible, generic information has been used. A contractor who read this book told me that contractors would also benefit from using it as a reference tool.

In arranging the subject matter, I placed the chapter on environmental concerns first, because all chapters on materials stress environmental concerns. The chapter on paint follows because all types of surfaces—floors, walls, and ceilings—may be painted. Then, starting from the bottom, the logical progression was a chapter on carpets, Chapter 3 (carpet is the most common floor covering). (The Carpet and Rug Institute provided invaluable assistance in writing Chapter 3.) Chapter 4 deals with all the other types of materials for floors.

One comment on ceramic tile is needed here. Spain is the largest producer of ceramic tile, with Italy and Brazil also being large producers. However, I have not mentioned manufacturers of imported tile as the scope of imported tile is too large. Students should be aware that many companies carrying ceramic tile also display imported tile, which can be ordered. Delivery may not be quite as easy as domestically produced tiles.

Many of the same materials used for flooring are also discussed in Chapter 5, but this time they are used on walls; the installation, finish, and maintenance vary of course. In this chapter, the Web site of the Wallcoverings Association proved invaluable. Chapter 6 covers ceilings, areas that are usually either painted or ignored. Chapter 7 discusses all the other components that make up a well-designed room, including mouldings, doors, hardware, and hinges.

Chapter 8 explains the construction, structure, and design of fine cabinetry and could not have been written without the assistance of the Architectural Woodwork Institute. (The information presented in Chapter 8 will come in handy for inspecting ready-made furniture because cabinets and furniture are constructed similarly.) Study of Chapter 8 will enable designers to provide rough drawings of cabinetry that is as economical as possibl...

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Customer Reviews

Broad Outlook on Interior Products
This book is a good reference for anyone who is currently designing or building a luxury home, but for a general education on construction interiors, this is not the book. There are many references to the latest products, which include both color and feature description that will be quickly outdated. Most of the discussion centers around materials that would be used in an affluent home rather than your typical family residence, and product descriptions focus on the unique product, not the typical. Dimensions for comfortable clearance and layout hints are useful for residential layout, but the commercial references are very limited.

Very Poorly Written
This book is very poorly written. It also does not adequately discuss estimating materials.