Crafts Hobbies Books

Very useful book for those responsible for keeping young children interested and involved with handicaft projects. Supplies are readily alvailable and at nominal cost. Instructons are clear and uncomplicated.

Kids Create! is an excellent collection that uses various mediums and can apply to children with varied artistic ability. I am a 6th grade art teacher, and I purchased the book after borrowing it from the library. There are too many wonderful ideas to let it slip away! My students especially love Carlson's collection of sculpting projects.

The craft instructions in this book are indeed easy, fun, cheap to do (etc) for kids. But the best part was the discussion in the back of the book on appropriate levels of creative projects for kids of different ages. It clearly outlined what attention span and dexterity level you should expect from kids of different ages. And it had useful advice for adults on how to make the project fun for kids; not just push the child to produce an "aesthetically ideal" finished project. That unanticipated inclusion in the book made it really stand out for me.

I've been reviewing art books this week, and had a look at an old favorite of mine: Scribble Art. Remember when it was called "Scribble Cookies"? Yes, I'm that old!! This updated version now called "Scribble Art" (I guess the word cookies was cute but probably confusing to bookstores) is one of those books that is just perfect for parents with all ages of kids. Each project can be taken to any level, even with middle school or high school kids, all the way down to about age two or even younger with supervision. If you only own one art book, own this one.

Easy discovery art for everyone, no matter what age. This book has been around for awhile, but the ideas are still classics.

This is a great book. Own your own and use it all the time to give your kids found memories of creating things with you. The ideas are fun, well explained, and creative.

This is a great book for parents and educators alike. The projects well-detailed in this book are very comparable to techniques educators are taught to use with children in elementary and younger classrooms to promote creativity and self esteem.

This is a must have book for both parents and teachers. I keep it handy for those days when I feel like doing a project with my daugher, but I need a little help coming up with a creative idea. This book always gets us started. There's something here for everyone and it can be used with a huge variety of ages. It is truly one of the best art books we own.

This entire series of "500..." by Lark Books is wonderful. Beautifully photographed examples of the limitless ideas and materials used by these jewelry artists.

I first took this book out of the library, but after having it at home for a few days I knew I would have to own it! I have four of Lark Book's 500 series, and they are all spectacular. I would highly recommend this book for aspiring as well as seasoned jewelers in any medium.

I LOVED "500 Earrings" & had high expectations for "500 Necklaces" so imagine my disappointment to receive a book full of 'art jewellery project work'. Some of the work was interesting & I was intrigued w/ the use of found & recyclable objects & I like when artists are edgy & imaginative in their approach, but one pretty necklace would have been greatly appreciated & the only really lovely piece was the boulders & gold stones depicting a necklace.

With way more than 500 amazing necklaces out there in the world that could have been in this book, it's frustrating to have some of the pages dedicated to what would better be described as "scarves" or to see the redundancy of including many similar pieces by the same artists (for example, one piece from the "Guarded Gestures" series would have been enough). While I don't expect everything to be wearable, I would have thought the editors would have narrowed their definition of "necklace" to exclude a 2.5-meter arrangement of rocks on the ground. Overall, it's a good picture book with some amazing pieces, but it could have been better.

As a jewelry professor at a majoy university, I used to recommend these books to my students along with Tim McCreights books. However, unlike McCreight, Lark Books outsourced all the work to China for printing and never review the editorial material before they publish it. The result? A group of objects by jewelers that are poorly shot, badly laid out and really don't aid the jeweler OR the jewelry collector in knowing anything about the current happenings in the world of jewelry design.

This book is wonderful. It is very informative and easy to understand. Follow her instructions and anyone can create a beatiful quilt.

It was the perfect help to work with Freezer-Paper, the describtion and Visual Guide are very clearly.

Unfortunately I missed out on a live workshop with Ruth and sent my best buddy in my place instead. She LOVED it!!! Even though I tried to practice her techniques in her other books, I never quite 'got it'. I guess I'm just more of a 'show me what you do' kind of person.
This book changed all that and I made her sugar maple quilt quickly and easily and I'm thrilled with the outcome! Also, with her guidance on inset seams, I finished a difficult navajo quilt that had had me stumped because I couldn't get the seams set in just right. But with her latest book, it was like having this amazingly talented and wonderful lady right there with me! She is such inspiration, her quilts are outstanding and absolutely fabulous! Thanks Ruth, -can't wait for the next one!!!

Certainly a 5-star book. You can take your quilt piecing to a new level with Ruth's piecing techniques. The instructions and pictures are very detailed, concise & clear. Combined with her "Designing Workshop" book, you could produce gorgeous, detailed art quilts.

Ruth B. McDowell's Piecing Workshop: Step-by-Step Visual Guide, Indispensable Reference for Quilters, Bonus Projects
My first quilt was by Cynthia England and was a parchment paper design. I won viewers choice with this quilt. I was anxious to find out more about this techinique and ways to creat my own designs. I chose Ruth's book because I own several of her other books and knew that I would not be disappointed; and I'm not. The how to instructions are not complicated and in an easy to understand format. I would recommend this book for the quilter whose time has come to move on to more inovative expressions of her art. Enjoy! Rose Germaine, Los Angeles

This was a Christmas gift for my husband whom is interested in the repair of watches and clocks. He just needed additional information on repairing clocks, and he said this was the perfect book! He was very pleased.

Clock Repairing is a fun, delightful, relaxing hobby that more people should take part in, and this book is a great introduction into the world of clock repair. It helps you get passed all the elaborate gears and levers, and into the fun of it. The diagrams in here are great and really helpful. Pick this up if you are new to the clock world.

Lynn's knowledge about quilting and her ability to explain and share this knowledge to a wantabe quilter is superior. This book will become your quilting bible.

The machine as a labor saving device is never so perfectly illustrated as the advent of the sewing machine and the making of a quilt. A hardcover, hidden-spiral bound, 'user friendly' instruction manual, "Machine Quilting: The Basics & Beyond" by quilting expert Lynn Witzenburg offers the novice machine stitch quilter with a complete, step-by-step, visually illustrated guide to successfully creating quilts with the assistance of a sewing machine. As fun as it is informative, "Machine Quilting: The Basics & Beyond" includes twelve do-it-yourself projects complete with full-size patterns, as well as favorite and original quilting designs that even the most novice of needlecrafters can employ to good effect. Such issues as choosing a stencil design, working with quilting paper, adapting motifs to fill spaces, making border designs fit, even the creation of 'feathers' in round, square, triangular, and free form. From the needed equipment and supplies, preparing to machine quilt, to free-motion stitching techniques, and so much more, "Machine Quilting: The Basics & Beyond" will prove to be an invaluable reference and a popular addition to personal and community library Needlecraft reference collections.

The latest in the Basics & Beyond series by Landauer Books once again shows why they have become staples in every quilter's library. Before you read the first word - and believe me, you will read every single one - you will appreciate the attention to detail incorporated into each book.

It is a hardback with a hidden-spiral so the pages will lay flat next to your sewing machine. And, there are over 200 pictures and illustrations so you can visually view the process - every step of the way. Whether you would like to machine quilt a small project - or a queen size quilt - Lynn will walk you through the process, step by step. She has been quilting and teaching her techniques for years so she's incorporated her no-fail techniques into each and every page. Lynn Witzenburg is truly an expert!

Let's face it, many of us love to applique and piece projects but when it comes to actually finishing them, we turn them over to the experts - and send them out to a machine quilter. But, what if YOU were the expert? That means you would no longer have to wait in line to complete your quilts. In our area, many of the machine quilters are booked six months in advance! And, the money that you would spend on quilting could be used to finance the materials for your next project.

Think about it. You could buy everything Lynn recommends to get started - including her book - for the price of sending out one quilt! So, why not give it a try?

The Tricks of the Trade

Lynn includes tips and helpful hints on almost every page. And, frankly, I looked at the pictures and read the tips during my first sitting. But, she drew me in. In the middle of a blizzard, I got a cup of coffee, snuggled in a quilt, and sat down to savor every word.

I have always been intimidated by machine quilting. I've even tried it a few times - but with less than stellar results. But Lynn went into such detail that she gave me solutions to the problems I encountered - and instructions and tips that stopped me from trying anything bigger than a placemat!

And Then Move on to the "Beyond"

After you have mastered the basics, Lynn explores more advanced techniques such as trapunto, bobbin-quilting, and free-form feathers. She even explains how to design original borders. So this book is a must have for all machine quilters - even those of you who are more experienced.

Lynn has also included several projects with the machine quilting designs included. If you are a shop owner, why not consider teaching a series of classes using the same book. Start them off with the basics and move on to the more advanced techniques. Trapunto, bobbin-quilting and free-form feathers could all be demonstrated with white on white fabrics to make an assortment of pillows.

Your students will be able to finish it in class - and will learn how to adjust the bobbin tension (without shuddering); use water soluble thread; and quilt larger projects.

This book covers it all - and explains it in such simple terms that you will refer to it again and again. I shared it with all of my favorite machine quilters - and they gave it a five star "must read". But, don't stop here. Check out the other books in the series - Applique the Basics and Beyond: The Complete Guide to Successful Machine and Hand Techniques with Dozens of Designs to Mix and Match and Knit Book: The Basics & Beyond. You'll be glad you did.

If you LOVE looking at jewelry, the editors of this book have done a fine job of curating a remarkable collection of work. The pictures are clear and close enough to see the smallest granule, some of the work featured in this book is truly jaw dropping. I love this book.

Looking for beautifully made, artfully designed jewelry made with high quality materials? Historically, a few big name retailers have provided leadership, but over the past couple of decades, the 5th Avenue jewelers that used to be the go-to stores have grown tired and complacent, their goods have evolved from innovative and exciting to safe and boring and the low and mid-range jewelers have followed their lead. The giants who built those legendary retail establishments are long gone and most of the famous names have been sold off to conglomerates who grow fat off their fading reputations. In short, they are no longer a solution, they have have become part of the problem.

The good news is that there are a small number of American designer-goldsmiths and jewelers working today that are producing tomorrow's heirlooms. They are the Rene Laliques, the Pierre Cartiers of the late 20th, early 21st Century. Unfortunately few are well enough capitalized to stand against the hot wind of hyper-babble that hammers the consumer with the dubious virtues of such artistic nonentities as Paloma Picasso, JAR and David Yurman.

A new book, published by Lark Books and entitled: Masters-Gemstones, Major Works by leading jewelers curated by Alan Revere will provide you with an acetylene torch to to cut your way through the junkyard.

Unfortunately, the book presents its own design problems. The title is unfortunate and the cover is a mess.--so poorly designed that it becomes impossible to tell what the title is, what the book is about and who wrote it. Well Alan Revere is listed as "curator" which means he wrote it, I guess, Lark prefers publishing books without authors, that way they retain the copyright and most of the profits.

Revere has made an excellent selection. He picked 39 contemporary jewelers and each one is a master. The common denominator, they all work with gemstones---a practice considered very un-chic in university jewelry arts programs where most of our creative artists are trained (another component of the problem, but I digress). What I found most exciting was that after thirty years of looking around there were a good number of artist-jewelers that I had never heard of.

I know and carry the work of several; Bernd and Tom Munsteiner, Michael Zobel, Michael Sugarman, Zoltan David and Stephen Webster but artists like Klaus Spies, Gregore Morin and Bayot Heer were completely new to me. What is really surprising, with perhaps two exceptions I like them all.

Revere's commentary is adequate but oh the pictures! Really its all about the pictures. Masters: Gemstones is a breath of fresh air blowing through the mundane world of American retail jewelry. The book provides a visual stroll through some of the best of the best jewelry being made today. Revere has performed his curator role to perfection. Some of the artists use traditional materials, some add the non-traditional, but all put their pieces together with sensitivity and panache. Secrets of the Gem Trade: The Connoisseur's Guide to Precious Gemstones

This book is incredible! It follows the same format as the lark 500 series - but with more! There are profiles of the masters showcased in this book with info about them, thier work, sometimes how they got started etc. Then this is followed by a selection of pages of thier work. Its beautifully done and its inspiring to the very last detail. This is not a project book. Its a gallery of masters, as its title implies, and its inspiring for jewellers, collectors and anyone interested in jewellery. It focuses, obviously, on gemstone use - but this doesn't restrict it to one type of jewellery - there are incredible examples of metalwork, mixed media, gem carving, setting etc. Its just beautiful. I'm blown away by it. It arrived a few days ago and I still can't put it down. Been carrying it around with me! If you like the 500 series, any of them, one of them or all of them, I feel sure that you will love this book. Its very well done and a lot more effort has gone into this new "masters" series that lark are planning to do more of (yey) than with the general 500 series - which is just a call for submissions. This book has collected masters together and written about them and thier work some - so its insightful, especially to other jewellers/metalsmiths. I highly recommend it.

Good representational body of work for 20 contemporary jewelers. Excellent photography. Decent commentary. Multiple mis-identification of gems. Many excellent ground-breaking jewelers omitted.

as a jewelry designer and craftsperson I was very impressed by the variety and quality work of my peers in this publication. Great book to have

Wonderful book, a must have for any knitter/yarn lover. Beautiful pictures along with great stories from the people and animals who bring us the yarn and fiber products we love so much. Very diverse, this book features fiber farms from around the country, no two are alike. Plus this book has patterns! Who could ask for more?

Great pictures and interesting storiesShear Spirit: Ten Fiber Farms, Twenty Patterns, and Miles of Yarn
I also found a perfect sweater pattern I was looking for from one of the featured farms.

This book was very much what I expected. It is meant to be more of an inspirational coffee table book than a how-to. As a handspinner, I almost wish that some of the projects were geared towards handspinners with instructions on how to make the yarn for the particular project rather than requiring the millspun yarn that the book gives (although I do understand that the people whom the book covers also want to sell their products). Overall, a beautiful and enjoyable book.

Almost every knitter and spinner I know has dreamed of having a hobby farm with sheep of their very own. This book tells stories of those lucky ducks who get to live the life we imagine. It tells of the romance (skirting a fleece with a glass of wine *sigh*) but also tells what an incredible amount of work these people go through to get us our pretty yarn.

The photography is gorgeous. Drooly gorgeous.

This book is beautiful to look at and informative to read. This is not primarily a knitting pattern book, but a book about sheep and wool. The photos are gorgeous and the stories are about families and animals and farms--compelling and enjoyable for anyone who enjoys fiber arts and anyone who sometimes feels like chucking everything and going to a farm somewhere to raise alpacas.

As a teacher staying home with my toddler, I wanted materials for her that would be fun and educational without her catching on to the fact that she's learning something. This fits the bill...and each page has a little reminder to parents of what their expectations should be, so kids don't get frustrated. I suggest getting a few different books together and just doing a few out of each. Mix it up!

My son is 2. We bought the maze,color,and trace books too.Although he likes them all, the sticker and paste books were by far the easiest for him to use at his age.The quality of the paper is wonderful w/ bright colors and a thickness that holds up to a toddler.We use scotch tape instead of a glue stick when I'm not in the mood for the extra clean up! I homeschool our other child, these books make him feel like he's doing his "school" too. I will definitly continue to buy Kumon books in the future.

We have several of the titles in this 'Lets....' series and they are great books to get started on colouring, sticking, tracing etc. My [...] son and I love to work on them and they are wonderful 'instant gratification' projects for young children. Small pages to work on encourages small people to finish each page and get to the next. I would highly recommend them and then for older kids, the next levels - check the ages on the books. Great activity workbooks.

I should have believed the bad reviews that I read on Amazon and not bought this book. They were right. I could have saved the return shipping charge. This book was such a dissapointment. Nothing new, creative or interesting about it. Also, it has nothing in common with any French lifestyle. I returned it the next day.

Bring the look of French decorating to your home. I love this book, never having been to France and only seeing limited books on French decorating, I find this to be one of the best, it is kind of a more laid back decorating approach than the more formal French decorating books I have seen, it is well done and gives you some projects you can tackle as a beginner sewer. This book looks at french tickings and uses for them throughout your home, if you have ever come across French tickings and the like, you will find they are so versatile in your home, and you will keep wanting to get more. A 5 star book.

A beautiful book--if you like shabby chic, it's for you. Good ideas, but not always practical unless you have access to a lot of estate sales and flea markets where dealers don't price themselves out of the market.

I cannot tell you how disappointed I was with this book. Having read the glowing reviews, on receiving the book, there is really nothing in this book of value, creativity or the "oooh" factor. This one will be quickly dispatched to the second hand book store!

I read this book from first page to last right after I opened it from the mail. It is filled with inspiration, helpful hints, decorating ideas, and an archive of full colored images that you can scan into your computer and use yourself. I love how she does not force her shop onto the reader, she states that you can find the items that she is explaining at flea markets and antique sales all over the world. I would rate this book 5 stars, for helpful insight into creating a "french inspired home." Cant wait for the next one!!