Crafts Hobbies Books

I love all the international designs in this book. There are many different levels of knitting in this book. It will give you plenty of inspiration to knit. There are also made different designs from the more plain with sock yarn to the lacy with fine yarn. I will be making quite a few of these socks.

I have only begun knitting less than a year ago, but I'm quick to learn and use wherever on the internet and books I can to learn more. I was struck with awe at some of these sock patterns, and I have knitted one pair. A truly comfortable and cute pair! I've even adapted the double padded socks for a heal guard sock for some new shoes that caused me some serious blisters!

The designers were smart too; They incorporated a spiral into the hardcover! How brilliant!
I do indeed recommend this lovely collection. I can't wait to keep knitting them!

Great sock designs, well laid out, easy to understand - a fabulous book for the sock fanatic!

This is a great book but there are a lot of mistakes in this book. I had a friend give me the corrections on the patterns she found on the internet.So maybe you should look into this . There are some beautiful patterns.
Olga

I have only been knitting about a year or so. I gravitated towards socks because they were small and portable projects, my investment in money was relatively small as I could make something with one or maybe two skeins of yarn, and they just seemed fun to do. This was the first book of knitting patterns I bought. Since I was new to knitting, I had not seen the patterns in the Interweave magazine so they were all new to me. The designs are varied in style and ability level. Some were easy for beginners like me, but I could also see more difficult designs I wanted to try as I became more skilled in my knitting.

One of the best parts of the book is its desgin. The spiral binding ensures the book will stay neat and usable for a long time. I wish more publishers realized this and made the same accomodations for us.

Another good feature is at the back of the book where there are diagrams and explanations for abbreviations used in patterns, stitch patterns, how to kitchner the toes (the clearest directions I have found). All the things new knitters want at their finger tips.

I have used this book extensively over the last year, made at least 5 pairs of socks and have more in my que when I get ready to start them.

Overall, the book is well worth paying for and having in your personal library. After all, I often get books from the library in order to use just for one or two ideas, this book is worth spending money that I would normally use to get more yarn.

This is great book. The techniques descrobed solve problems, and results in an unusual and unexpected two sided quilt.

I SAW BETTY COTTON ON SEWING WITH NANCY, I COULDN'T FIND HER SECOND BOOK ON AMAZON BUT DID FIND HER FIRST BOOK QUILT FIRST THEN ASSEMBLE. IT HAS BEEN A WONDERFUL BOOK. I HAVEN'T MACHINE QUILTED BEFORE BUT HAVE HAND QUILTED AND WHAT A DIFFERENCE. IT IS SO EASY. I CAN'T BELIEVE THAT I STARTED A 120" BY 120" QUILT.(CAL KING). IF YOU KNOW HOW TO READ A PATTERN OF ANY KIND YOU WILL FIND THIS BOOK EASY, IF NOT HAVE SOME ONE TEACH YOU TO READ PATTERNS AND THIS BOOK WILL BECOME A GREAT ADVENTURE. NOT FOR THE WISHY WASHY, BUT CAN BE DONE.

This is a great book from Betty Cotton. It puts a whole new meaning into quilting. Her "Cotton Theory" is taught in many quilt shops. The results are outstanding. It puts all those fancy stitches on your sewing machine to good use.

THIS NEW METHOD LOOKS COMPLICATED BUT THE BOOK MAKES THE STEPS EASY TO FOLLOW. THUS A NEW WAY OF QUILTING.

The author overly complicates the process of quilting as you go and relies heavily on machine embroidery to "quilt" with. While she does offer some helpful advice on bobbin work she fails to address how to adjust a bobbin tension for sewing machines with drop in bobbins (for those of us with vertical bobbins she correctly recommends buying a second bobbin case).

The projects are OK, well thought out, and the directions are clear but most of the quilts are basic squares and rectangles. If you are looking for help in working with traditional quilt designs (log cabin, bow tie, drunkard's path, etc) this isn't the book for you.

I haven't reviewed the three other well known quilt as you go books yet but here are the titles for those who are interested:
Quilt-As-You-Go by Sandra Millet
Reversible Quilts: Two at a Time by Sharon Pederson
Crazy Shortcut Quilts by Martguerita McManus (NOTE: this is different from crazy quilting)

Happy quilting!

I buy these books because my grandkids love them too. They always have age appropriate topica and seem to keep pace with their interests as they grow. They are challenged and they learn as they work through the books. Mom & Dad love them too.

This book had a lot of really fun art ideas that my boys loved. It is very hands on, and you can mix in science with your art. My history buff loved the art history, and this book inspired much online investigation and a planned trip to our local art museum. It is a great way to introduce your child to real art- but is also fun and "crafty." My high-energy boys loved this book, and I can not recommend it enough.

This was a huge hit with my two daughters, ages 6 and 8. They passed many hours going through every project/exercise in the book. Later they devised ways to create their own projects based on ideas form the book. We also discovered which crafts the kids wanted to follow up on, we have ordered materials for metal foil embossing, etc. based on our experiences with this introductory book. I recommend this book highly, your kids WILL enjoy it!

I bought this book for my nephew, who is 10 years old. He opened his present and started looking through it right away, ignoring his other presents waiting to be opened. There is a nice selection of different activities in this book. I would recommend it for older children as it includes activities that require lots of cutting and pasting, and the tempura painting could be messy with younger children.

Crafty people will like this book, and all of klutz other books. This one has lots of fun things to do, and will keep you busy for a long time. You get to play with stickers, do sunburn art, paint with eggs (this sounds strange, but it works!!), and tons of other stuff. It's a cool book.

When I get the book it was a little bit different than what I though it would be. But I really like it, it's very artistic.

This book is fabulous! And, it has some really easy and fast creative journaling and collage techniques. It made me jump up and begin making stuff. I've had fun experimenting with the ideas, and love the beautiful pictures. I just had to have it in my collection and I was truly pleased!

I truly enjoyed this book. It has a number of mixed media types of collage exercises that were a lot of fun, and very different from other books of this type. I highly recommend this book to all levels of ability. It's fun.

I have wanted to try my hand at altered art for awhile, so I bought this book and let me tell you I have already tried several of the techniques and love the results. It made the process less intimadating. There are great photos and ideas.

A single image naturally gives birth to a variety of amended, reworked and even wholly dissimilar creations, all dependent upon the mind of the viewer. This is the mechanism that propels creativity. Along side the ability to absorb and value artwork for it's its existence alone, the art watcher's analytical process is a reflex, an autonomic firing of synapses that creates a compare/contrast session: what is it - why is it - how did it come about - is there a message or messages here - am I comfortable with the execution of the idea - do I need to be comfortable - what would I have done differently - on what level do I interact with this piece - what will it mean tomorrow or next year - do I want to use this idea as a piece of foundation for my own work - do I want to run screaming - is it o.k. to hate this - how can I have this kind of experience, and so on. Because the human mind so naturally filters, interprets, alters and uses the information it gathers with a unique series of parameters, it seems quite natural that someone (or many someones) would recognize this fact and write it all down in a user friendly format for the rest of us to admire. Conventionally, these authors have something to do with the psychology and sociology world. Mixed-media artist, teacher and entrepreneur Karen Michel has thrown her two cents into the fray by writing the relevant, interesting and non-intimidating reference The Complete Guide to Altered Imagery.


Books like Michel's allow people to do what few artists race to admit - namely, to "cheat.". It is for this very reason that I bought her book. Like millions of other folks, I hate to be caught tracing, copying, recycling or borrowing material. When I pick up a ruler to draw a straight line I can sense the immense and crushing disapproval of real artists, alive or otherwise, as they curl a collective purist lip in my direction. Paranoia perhaps, but we all know that one person who will insist on collecting wild wode and nettles from a rainy mountainside because using azure and turquoise ink from a bottle is lowering one's standards. In particular I found the author's chapters on the versatility of transparencies helpful. Her suggestions for making negatives from acetate and processing them with photo developers is one I will incorporate into my own work.

Got this 4 months after I 1st learned to crochet. I love it--beautifully colored photos, very readable diagrams, plus the spiral binding & compact size make it a great "bring along" book I can just throw into a small bag with my yarn and hook. First I thought it might be too tedious to learn how to read the symbol diagrams for the patterns. THEN I discovered each right-hand page also has tiny quick-reference on its margin to remind me of the name of each symbol, so I didn't have to keep going back to the full symbol guide. I learned the Tunisian stitch in just minutes from reading this book! Soon I'll know how to read symbol diagrams, too!

As soon as you get this book, provided you have crochet hooks & yarn on hand...you will be able to make something using the simplest of stitches (chaining & single crochet) to more elaborate ones...no matter where you stand as a crocheter...the clear, straightforward diagrams & pictures will make you better before you know it. Worth getting & adding to your library.

I am new to crochet and have made a few baby blankets and a couple of sweaters. I picked this book up as a resource to enlarge my stitch knowledge after learning the basics in the Stitch 'N Bitch Crochet: The Happy Hooker. I enjoy the variety of stitches in this spiral bound book ranging from Lace stitches to Squares. The best thing I like about the book is that it includes both Charted and written instructions so if you don't quite understand one the other set can usually help you out. I have made a sampler afghan out of the blocks section and am working on a custom wedding shawl for a coworker with the daisy lace pattern. Bottom line is that if you're new to crochet and know your single, double and treble crochet, this book is the logical next step. It is a good blend of easy to moderate stitches that pique your interest. If you are more advanced this book may seem a little basic and boring to you. But I would still suggest it as a refresher reference.

Where to start with this book? The book's spiral binding keeps the page open where you want it (a feature every craft book should have, IMO). There are positively oodles of different stitches and stitch patterns, which are grouped into like collections. Toward the beginning, there is an overview of every stitch pattern featured in the book, so that it is easy to spot something you like and find out what page it's on. Each stitch has a color picture of a sample swatch (which doesn't always show the greatest detail, but does a pretty good job), a chart showing how to do the stitch pattern (a must have for a visual person like me, to whom the written explanations are like deciphering ancient Aramaic by smell), and a written explanation.

There are no project patterns in this book, but with so many different stitch patterns, you'll probably end up with a dozen little project ideas of your own. I know I did.

I also love Donna Kooler's Encyclopedia of Crochet.

Read the first four chapters before searching the book for a pattern. It explains everything you need to know to understand the stitch collection that follows. The graphs are outstanding, and the principals of each stitch are shown and explained clearly. Good book for beginners and those who have crocheted for years.

This is a great stitch dictionary for the beginner embroiderer and beyond. The diagrams for the stitches are clear, the information is sound and easy to follow. Plenty of stitches are covered in the book, too, along with variations. If you're looking for a good stitch dictionary, this is a classic and will serve you well. And, for the price, you really can't beat it!

I wanted a reference of all the possible stitches I might want to use at any given point in my work. This is perfect for that. However, there descriptions on how to reproduce the stitches aren't intuitive and I felt at times there were steps missing. I made up the missing steps, but it meant that a couple of the stitches just never quite turned out the way I wanted them (i.e., like the pictures in the book). This was true especially for the very complicated stitches that resulted in complex geometric patterns. I would recommend this for any advanced embroiderer who wants a quick picture reference of what stitches might work in this situation. I would not recommend it for beginners.

This book on embroidery was just what I needed. The diagrams are easy to follow, the book has a lot of different stitches, and tells you what the stitches are mostly used for. This is a good book for a beginner and reference for the experienced.

This revised edition is a great resource for both beginners and more advanced users. The illustrations and instructions are very clear and easy to follow and the allover design is very good.

I bought this book when I decided it was time to get back to some of my needlework projects after many, many years. The book is very helpful, showing detailed, clear drawings of stitches. There are also color photos of completed work so you can see what the stitches look like in color, etc. Highly recommend this book.

As one whose creativity needs a nudge, I love this book.

They are many admirable and (important for me) inspiring pieces pictures. I tabbed many pages with "I want to try that" and rekindled a love of pottery, particulary of course of cups and mugs.

The variety of cups shown is very wide: Simplic, lavishly decorated, purely artistic, functional, etc. The artist statement that accompanies many is also nice, as it explains many themed cup sets.

This book, like all the "500" books I have seen, is utterly beautiful. I find it inspiring both visually and conceptually. The chosen subjects are thought provoking and artistically sumptuous examples of ceramic art.
Wheather you put it on your coffee table or in the studio, it is another "must have" from the Lark 500 series.

Beautifully presented, with 500 timeless ideas and references. If you are a potter and looking for inspiration - this book is a gold mine.

I bought this for a pottery student of mine after she bought the teapot book. Both are great fodder for the potter's imagination, and for me, a wonderful set of examples that get me away from the idea that my own pottery has to be as "perfect" as a wedgwood teacup. The pitcher book will be the next to grace the shelves of my studio library.

We just opened the pottery area of our store this year. The learning curve is steep: setting up the studio, hiring teachers, choosing clay bodies and glazes, and wheels, repairing kilns and firing other peoples work! So, I have purchased a lot of pottery books recently! This one is very cool. It doesn't teach you how to make anything, but it is a great way to see a huge variety of possibilites. I just love looking through it. There are several cups in there that I want to try to build (when I get better skills). The Lark Ceramics books are excellent resource books-stock your library up with them. You won't be sorry.

Wondering which book to pick up as your very first foray into chain mail jewelry-making? This is it! The first 52 pages are worth it's weight in jump rings. Plumlee uses the first 13 pages to explain the basics, the Byzantine chain and how to use Pi to figure out the right diameter for your jump rings. He jumps right into tools all the while keeping it simple. No fancy tools here, you can pick up your much needed mandrels at the yarn store - they're knitting needles.

A chapter on wire skills takes you step by step through the winding, cutting and making clasps. Pictures accompany each step and helps a beginner to learn the process visually.

Overall the pictures with accompanying directions throughout the book are superb. They make learning how to create each project virtually foolproof.

I'm particularly fond of the Inca Puno Chain - it's fluidity enthralls me. It's one of three components, the
Double Chain, the Inca Puno Chain and the Byzantine Chain. The remainder of the book combines these chains in clever and unique ways that you'll just have to buy the book to find out. They are all lovely!

So, if you want to learn chain mail and don't have the slightest idea how to go about it - this book will reach out, grab your hand and lead the way with its perfectly executed step by step directions and accompanying photos.

Love this book! It was recommended to me and I would recommend it to anyone interested in chainmaille. Lots of ideas and great directions.
Jeanne, NJ

All the chains used are variations of the Byzantine style - but he does some really cool stuff within that narrow chain window.

I absolutely love this book. It gives you step by step instructions. It also shows you every tool needed. I appreciate the cultural background given at the beginning of the book. The only problem I had was with the time it takes to complete a piece. I stick with it because I love the outcome.

Whether you're just starting out or have been creating chainmail jewelry for a while, Plumlee's first book provides solid introductory information-from an overview of included chain styles to the tools, materials, and techniques needed to complete them-along with plenty of inspirational photos of original chain patterns. In addition, the techniques for creating clasps and earwires are easy to follow and produce great results. Some of the photos of gold wire seemed a bit green in my copy, but this is just a cosmetic issue that could have be corrected by the printer. Solid technique and instruction here. [...].

Beautiful book on fresh flower arranging. Lots of information and lovely photographs. There is good technical information regarding the basics of arranging flowers in general. Her designs are beautiful but personally, not something I would want to reproduce. They are too edgy. She is obviously very talented. If you are looking for a book on silk flower arranging, try Decorating With Silk & Dried Flowers by The Home Decorating Institute. Even if you are more interested in silk flower arranging, there is still a lot of good information about color, line, texture, etc. in this one.

This was supposed to be a NEW book. All the pages were stuck together on the bottom of the book and when I got them apart you can see a huge water stain. This was the first time I had ordered from Amazon and I will never do it again!!!!!

This book is being used as a text book for an advanced floral design class I am taking. Very useful for the advanced or beginning floral designer. Pictures are very detailed.

This book is amazing! Detailed, gorgeous photos and instructions to create the best floral arrangements of your life. New ideas on every page, lots of suggestions for supplies and techniques.

I would never contest the beauty of this book, but I found the lessons section to be lacking in terms of specificity. After all, this book is meant to be instructive. The instructions were often much too general for someone actually trying to learn floral design. Sometimes the generality is along the lines of 'put the twigs in the vase, put the roses in the vase,' while at other times it is more specific. In essence, the real process of placement is sometimes excluded.

Also, many of the arrangements are of a similar style, round and mouned, and though this is a particular style, I would have appreciated fewer examples of this type of bouquet, which I consider to be less complicated to make. As a florist, I would recommend this book to other florists looking for interesting ideas for using alternative floral materials such as food. I would also recommend this book for beginners needing very basic informatioin, such how to use greeneries and basic floral tools.

I would not, however, recommend this book for beginners or florists hoping to make commercial sorts of arrangements. After all, her book is the "art" of floral design, not the "economics" of floral design. Many commercial floral arrangements make more economical use of stem length and amount of flowers. This is not universal, but it is something to keep in mind when deciding who to buy this book for.

This book is full of fun projects that will provide much inspiration if and when I ever get around to tackling the field of altered art.

A well-illustrated compendium for this particular gentre of work. Informative at several levels,sound techniques,excellent projects and interesting contributions from various artists in the field. It exists at a variety of levels,enabling a wide range of abilities from practising artists to beginners, to gain inspirational information. A bonus is the artist's biographies and web-sites. A good companion to "Altered Art'

I had been eying this book for awhile now and was surprised when my husband got it for me for Christmas. I love it! It's well laid out and has very lovely photos. Quite inspirational!

This is a nice book and has some great ideas. But I don't work in metal or wood so it wasn't exactly what I was looking for. If you are interested in 'tin' or other metal mediums then this would be a very good book for you to see. I usually check books out of the public library first to be sure they are what I'm looking for but the library didn't have this book so I bought it sight unseen.

It is a very good book with a lot of nice photos.

I am so deeply in love with this book! Each idea is fresh and new and the pictures make everything really clear. I haven't even finished it (although I've had it for quite a while) because I'm trying out the new mixed media ideas on projects as I go.....kinda savoring each section and saving the rest for later ...so many ideas! So little time!