This collection gathers essays and lectures by a designer that examine practical principles of design alongside the wider relation of art to life. Subjects include the aims and possible outcomes of the Arts and Crafts movement, methods of art teaching, ornament and decoration, house-decoration and dress, and the social and ethical bearings of beauty. Additional pieces address temporary street decoration, heraldry, book-cover design, and decorative techniques such as gilding and gesso. Practical sketches, illustrative examples, and reflections on public art, collective dwellings, and education’s influence on taste accompany the theoretical and critical discussions.