This series details William Pahlmann's popular syndicated column entitled "A Matter of Taste," which ran in newspapers throughout the U.S. from 1962 to 1973. Pahlmann intended his column to provide readers with general ideas on good taste and design as well as some of the basic principles of interior decoration. He also used the column to discuss people, events, and interiors he liked and thought exhibited the attributes of good taste and design. The column began as simple lecture format in which Pahlmann provided thoughts on a particular subject. At the request of the column's distributor, Hall Syndicate, Incorporated, Pahlmann reluctantly included columns with a "mailbag" format where he answered questions from readers about decoration, decorative objects, and the principles of taste.

Margaret Cousins (editor at Good Housekeeping and later an editor with the publisher Doubleday) collaborated with Pahlmann throughout the run of "A Matter of Taste." She ghostwrote most of the columns as well as provided column ideas, read and answered reader mail, and helped with publicity. This series demonstrates that Cousins' contributions were a key element in the column's success.

"A Matter of Taste" became a popular outlet for Pahlmann's ideas which generated interest in his work and the interior design profession. At its height, newspapers throughout the United States and several Latin American countries carried the column. The New York Chapter of the American Institute of Interior Designers (AID) gave Pahlmann their Award of Merit in April 1966 in recognition of the positive reader and professional response to "A Matter of Taste."