Crafts Hobbies Books

This is a fantastic product. My boys at 6yrs and 8yrs both love this.We take it to the park and picnics etc. Overall great fun for any age. I would highly recommend it.

I'm waiting til summer to try this out with my grandson, but it looks awesome.. i can't wait!!!

My husband, I and our 7 year-old love this bubble book and wand. There is a recipe in the book for the bubble liquid and it works great. The wand is easy to use, and is easy enough that my daughter can make HUGE bubbles. This is my new "birthday gift" for kids. A great outdoor activity for the whole family! (Hint: Buy an extra wand...it's worth it!) The Amazon.com price for the book was the best I had found in April '08 when I bought it.

Brings back many fond memories of when I was a child. I had this same book and kit. I spent many many many hours blowing bubbles and entertaining the younger children in the neighborhood. Same great quality and easy to read book that teaches techniques and facts. The best bubble making formula has changed though, so don't go buy the ingredients until you read the new formula.

We have had a lot of fun with this product. The recipe for the bubble solution is easy and can be stored for weeks and it only takes a little practice to get the hang of making the big bubbles. Granted, I haven't had luck with making the 10 ft. bubbles they mention in the book, but you can get some really big ones! Keep in mind that humid weather is essential for these bubbles, if it's too dry it gets frustrating. We have had ours for a couple years and it still works great (just rinse the solution out of the wand when you're done) so I've started buying them as gifts. We love it!

This book was so beautifuly done I found myself amazed. While it is not a straight forward book of instructions like so any knitting books have become, it is still a very interesting book.

This book smacks of a time when knitting was very commonplace with the young as well as the old. In a time when we are so rushed in everything that we do, it is nice to be able to look back to when more women (or men) could be seen knitting something for the ones they love.

Know that this book is more like a collection of historical documents than a book of straight forward instruction, but the patterns are there, and they are lovely.

another good book from Elizabeth Zimmerman full of good ideas and a chance to 'know' the author a little better... great style too!

I like the baby surprise jacket and more of the patterns, but I think it's difficult to read the pattern when they are written on a machine and are corrected with handwriting.

Although english is not my mother tongue, I just want to share with all EZ fans how fascinating is to see EZ's patterns in color and on modern models. You can travel from EZ's thoughts, her first letters with the original "unventions" and tips, to classical patterns knitted recently. Some comments on how to improve their well known patterns are really useful. 5 stars to a classical/modern "must to have" on a knitter's library.

More than 30 years ago, I found Elizabeth Zimmerman's first book, "Knitting Without Tears" which changed my relationship with knitting forever. (Every knitter should have this book--which not only tells you how the stitches work, but why.) So I was thrilled to be getting this "new" book, and I was not disappointed!
"The Opinionated Knitter" is really a collection of her "Newsletters," which were originally published individually over a 10-year span. They are like chatty letters from a friend, combined with wonderfully designed knitted treasures to make. You may use her designs with any yarn, for any size person, as she shows how to use percentages to achieve your pattern. This is so liberating! One no longer needs to consult a pattern constantly and knitting becomes so relaxing.
This book was worth every penny of its cost and will become as well-used as her original book, which is currently quite worn-out on my bookshelf. The only thing I would change is the binding--I wish it were a spiral-bound hardcover, instead of the traditional binding.

This book provides great ideas for a beginner, I really like this book. When I'm stuck I can just flip through the book and find some good inspirations. I also picked up several new techniques that I didn't know before. Overall I would recommend this book to anyone who is just picking up scrapbooking.

This book tells you all the materials you can use, and how to creat some very unique designs. This book is excellent for beginners to scrapping, especially if they need ideas. I just got this book today and so far it is the most helpful book I've gotten on the subject.

I purchased this book for my wife and daughter who are just beginning scrapbooking. We looked through the entire book in one day, and to be honest were overwhelmed by the volume of ideas photographed in this book. It is also packed with detailed descriptions of all the different techniques that they will be using for quite some time. I read all the reviews before purchasing this book, and understand that there are probably a lot of advanced techniques that hard core scrapbookers use, but since my ladies are new to this, I imagine that it will be great for them as they learn this art.

Just started scrapbooking and it was very confusing to try and decide what I needed and how you go about it. This book explains in detail and gives great ideas and examples. Each sample scrapbook page tells exactly what was used to create the page and has given me lots of ideas!

I recently purchaced this book, and i was very disappointed. I have some of the other Creating Keepsakes books, such as the "Scrapbooks tips" and "Scrapbooking Family heritage" (I'd give all of them 5 stars). But, the Creating Keepsakes Encyclopedia has half the images and examples as the other books. After about 1/2 an hour of reading through it I was done for good; whereas with the other books every time I open them I see something new that I didn't notice before. I was extremely disappointed with this book. I would not recommend it to anyone. And it shouldn't be called an "encyclopedia"-it only explains the MOST BASIC of scrapbooking techniques. I mean, it takes 4 pages just to show you how to tear paper!!! PLEASE don't waist your money on this-instead, try some of the other "Creating Keepsakes" books. This one is the worst of the bunch. All the other "Keepsakes" books I own or have read are terrific.

I found her information very helpful and clear. My mother also uses this book and is the one who suggested it to me. She has been making soap at home for years and finds this book the best one she's seen.

I've been making soap for some time and have enjoyed this book immensely. It has lots of good suggestions and tons of excellent recipes.

I have plans to start making soap in the near future and I was told this was the book to have. Lots of information here. I haven't started the project yet but this book will be right there with me when it happens!!

The Soapmakers Companion has been in print for more than ten years now. My copy of this book is worn and stained from many soapmaking sessions. Despite the drift of time and my accumulated knowledge, this is one book that I return to frequently for review of all that pertains to Soapmaking. One of the strong points of this book is that it gets you up and running making soap. The recipes work their way from the relatively simple Soap Essentials Bar comprised of a basic coconut/olive/palm oil mixture to more elaborate recipes such as transparent soap and soap in the round. While Susan Miller Cavitch notes that this book is not that much of a basic book, yet I believe that even if one has never made soap before, this is an excellent book to start with.

I am only just getting into soapmaking and found this book to be comprehensive and interesting for the most part. What I did not find helpful was the limited (and often dangerous) lack of direction that the author gives re: safety and soapmaking. References like, 'be ready to leave the room' or words to that effect, if you are overcome by fumes, is not my idea of dealing with safety issues, in a professional and sustainable way. Im still looking for information before I begin making soaps but this book did pique my interest even more. Limited what's available at present, finding a book on soapmaking that covers all bases, completely and accurately. It is a craft/business that is growing by leaps and bounds though, hopefully someone will write a book that really covers every issue in detail. Ill be ready to purchase!

Excellent step by step book for jewellery making. Im just starting out so have picked up some useful tips.

I thought the book was real good. It would be good for beginners as well as experienced craftsman. It had 13 projects from beginner to experienced.

I have several metal working books, including those by Tim McCreight. Although these books are excellent, this book by Nicola Hurst beats them all. I'm not a novice to metal working, but I wanted a good basic reference book. Nicola gets right to the meat of a subject and tells it in a very clear, understandable manner. I love it because it isn't wordy and there isn't a lot of time spent searching for the information you want. The photos are fantastic. All are in color and large enough to see details. My only regret is that I didn't find this book sooner. I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in doing metal work. It's a GREAT book.

I thought this was an exceptional reference on simple techniques for beginning to intermediate metalsmiths. I didn't feel that I needed to invest in a fully fledged workshop to create some fine jewelry pieces. I particulary liked how each project built on the ones before and how the author included professionally created pieces that highlighted various techniques and provided inspiration. OK, so I haven't actually made anything yet, but of all the books I have purchased and not actually made anything from, this one has probably moved me closer to getting off my butt and picking up a tool than any other. Excellent descriptions and photography, attractive projects I'll be happy to make when I get around to making anything. In case you're interested, I have actually gone back to this book and re-read it three separate times, which says an awful lot about any book in my library.

Kate

This is a very helpful book, starting with all the basic tools you will need, continuing with methods and styles used in silverwork, and many good basic projects to practise on. A must for everyone starting out to do silverwork, and even advanced students would find it helpful. Iam very pleased I purchased it.

This series is a great incremental approach to working on coloring/motor skills. Although this is recommended for 2 and up, I would say it is better suited to older 2 year olds (2.5 and up) rather than all 2 year olds...primarily because most young 2 year olds aren't as suited to listening to creative instruction (like "color here" etc).

My son does love the book, though, and I love the incremental approach which builds confidence and skills at the same time!

These Kumon books are great, preschool geared fun. My son loves to do them and it's a treat so I only let him do one or two at a time. They have simple, fun ideas for them to color.

This is excellent for teaching fine motor skills to little ones. I am a teacher and I use it with my own three year old.

I recently discovered the Kumon books and I am super pleased with them.I will be reviewing all those I have so it will help other parents get a better idea of what's inside. The LET'S COLOR book is very nice and is part of the Kumon First Steps series for ages 2 and up. I must say that this book isn't for the very young only. My son is 8, and is a very normal child in every way, yet like some children, has not been very quick to develop fine motor skills for writing, holding a pencil, cutting, etc. He has enjoyed all his Kumon books very much, and they are not babyish. LET'S COLOR is a very nice book for children who would be overwhelmed by a whole uncolored page being placed in front of them to "finish". I like that most of each page in LET'S COLOR is colored already and is very colorful; only a white circle, square, triangle (nice for teaching shapes along the way) is left blank for the child to color in. My son is very pleased with just a small bit of coloring to finish the picture. He especially loves when his colored pencil ( I recommend Prismacolors over crayons) matches almost exactly with the color of the object and when finished, you can't easily see where he did the coloring. Later pages have you color 2 or 3 parts of the picture, such as blue, green, and yellow circles on the beach ball, or 3 different colored balloons, or the yolk of the egg. Then the last few pages are having the child color the 2 flowers, the mane of the lion, the icing and candles on a birthday cake, or different parts of a clown. Even these pages with more white areas to color, are not overwhelming to a child, as the full picture is only about 8 inches square. My son enjoyed the first "scribble" pages, where you drew hair on a boy, spaghetti on a plate, sprinkles on the ice cream, water squrting out of the garden hose onto the children, etc. He has enjoyed coloring in this book as we have our read aloud time in the evening. Kumon uses high quality heavy paper, and the coloring pages are printed on one side only. I highly recommend it to any parent of young children, and would make a nice little gift with a new box of colored pencils or crayons. These are attractive when finished to give to grandma and grandpa to hang on their refrigerator. I really think you and your child will have fun with this book.

My 40 month old son was born with birth defects on his hands. The few fingers he has are very short and his muscles are a little weak. This book offers him a challenging and fun way to work on his fine motor skills. This workbook is well made with thick paper and a lot of colors. You cut off about 2/3 of the page and give it to your child and encourage him to color in the dot with a matching color on some of the pages. This is encouraging to small children so they don't have to fill in an entire page themselves. The last page is a write on wipe off page! The only drawback is that $5.95 for a small workbook is rather pricey to me.

Great sweaters for the plus size woman. I can't wait to make all of them.

Margret Hubert wrote this book with me in mind. These are sweaters that are flattering, colorful and I want to be seen in them. The patterns are easy to follow and well written. These patterns are not beyond the abilities of most crocheters in my opinion.

I wear a 3x and there isn't one item in this book I would make. Most of them require specialty yarn and some are definately not styled for the plus-size figure. They are either too short or require waist shaping that a plus sized person does not appreciate or require. Piecing diagrams with measurements are necessary for this kind of garment construction and they are not included in this book at all.

With only one possible exception, most of the patterns in this book are extremely unflattering to the fuller size figure, both in style and in yarn choices. I was so excited to receive this book and get started on making myself some great new clothes that would actually fit, however when I received it, I started flipping through... unflattering, unflattering, makes you look even bigger, unflattering, unflattering, unflattering. There weren't even any cool or creative stitches to learn so the whole book was a total waste of money as it will be going to the thrift store promptly.

I was very disappointed when I read this book. I was hoping for a crochet version of the Big Girl Knits books, with fashion-forward and trendy patterns. Despite the bright colors, the sweaters are frumpy. How many button front cardigans does one need? I live in a cold climate, and I own only one. The obvious plus size styles are all here: big, thick vertical stripes; oversized cardigans, oversized pullovers. Clothes that cling to outdated rules about what looks best on 'heavy' women. There are no styles that show off the plus size woman in her best light, whether she is an apple, a pear, or in-between. How about an equestrienne jacket or a sexy mock-surplice top? Maybe a cool bamboo or linen hoodie with a zipper? Even, gasp, a few skinny horizontal stripes.

Another complaint I have is with the shaping instructions. Plus size women often need extra room through the back, bust, armholes, upper arms, ribcage, waist, hips, derriere, etc. In some cases, we need less room in one area and more in another. In sewing this is accomplished through darts, yokes, pleats, etc. Ms. Hubert seems to address mainly armhole, upper arm, and waist.

I also really dislike it when there are no diagrams to accompany the patterns. This makes it difficult for anyone who is not standard height to adapt the pattern. Consider that I an 5'1" and 42DD. Also a 2X. But my arms are short for a petite 1X. I have a 25" inseam, as well! What looks like a normal V-neck may end up at my belly button!

I also agree with the reviewer above who complained about the lack of variety in shoulder styles. A raglan actually fits my small shouldered busty frame better than anything else.

On the plus side: I don't mind chunky yarns in outerwear, such as the cute mohair coat. The bamboo cardigan is attractive.The stylist certainly did these garments a disservice, as they are not shown in the best possible light. I really can't tell if I like the asymmetrical hem polo or not. I like the spiral-bound format: it'd very practical. While the stitch patterns are basic and could be more interesting without increasing difficulty, I am happy enough to see something that does not consist of plain double crochet on and on and on.

Ms. Hubert has designed much better garments and written much better books. This looks rushed. I'm sure some will like it, but it was certainly not the book for which I was yearning.

I just recently got back into knitting. I understand some of the basics (knit, purl, casting off), but I am still just a novice. The illustrations are excellent! I have found these to be very helpful. I used to go to the internet for help and would waste time searching through site after site. No more, this is the first place that I go to now. In many cases this book will show you how to do techniques in more than just one way. A must for every knitter!Vogue Knitting: The Ultimate Knitting Book

This beautifully presented book is a minefield of wonderful illustrations and photos to help and guide you through almost any queries you might have. The relative sections I wanted information on, were very easy to find. An absolute treasure of a book.

so my wife says. but she's the knitter - not me. she says this is THE book to have.

I own an older printing of this book and have found it an invaluable resource as a knitter. I was pleased to see that the book has been updated and purchased it for a fellow knitter. The book contains clear explanations of just about every knitting stitch and solutions to problems one can run into while knitting. It also includes some patterns.

As soon as I picked up this book, I knew it would become one of my favorites! I page through it wishing that I were an intermediate knitter, but, alas, am just a little bit better than a beginner. Take heart, if you keep making those little stitches, you improve immeasurably.

I just started knitting again in November after a more than 10 yr hiatus, due to choosing patterns that were beyond my expertise. Since November, I have learned numerous cast on techniques (which I could NOT do before), how to fix dropped stitches (also something I was unable to do prior to November) and other little so called trivial techniques.

Keep at it, and keep on hand a book such as this. You WILL learn. If I can do it, anyone can do it, if you keep at it.

Happy Knitting!! Blessings!!