3 comments about The Weekend Crafter: Mosaics: Inspirational Ideas and Practical Projects for the Weekend.

1. I got this book for my birthday nearly three years ago. I was so inspired I wanted to do everything in it. I love it. It is fabulous for the beginner with step by step instructions and great photos. And the best part is that it is so simple. Once you've tracked down the tiles, etc - hard to find in New Zealand, it took me two years. And you don't need all the fancy tools the book give handy hints to get around without them. The book features not only the authors work so it appeals to many tastes. This isn't just a great starter it's good even when you know what you're doing - you can refer back to it all the time or just look at if for insipration. Another book by Martin Cheek, MAKING MOSAICS - with a fish on the front is great too. It also has step by step details and more great photos of more great projects. Get them both it's worth it.



2. I have had this book for about 2 years now (from UK)& since my first attempts at mosaic, have found it invaluable. The author gives clear & full instructions from start to finish on all of the projects, which are well illustrated in phototgraphic sequences. Other mosaic books like this seem to be in the same format but lacking such clear instructions which a beginner would have no problems with. I would recommend it to total beginners & more experienced mosaicists alike, perhaps even to someone with an artistic mind who has never considered mosaic would be inspired by this book. Mosaic is becoming ever more popular & this book will allow anyone to create their own designs at home at a fraction of the cost of a professional (& much more satisfying !) I don't think you'll be disappointed............. Have fun !



3. Martin Cheek is the finest mosaicist on the planet, and his books are a testament to that. (Professional mosaicists will especially love this book because the materials lists are so daunting that beginners are likely to shy away from the craft!) Cheek's work is an inspiration for the already-are and elegant poetry for the wanna-be mosaicists.

No comments about David Battie's Guide to Understanding 19th & 20th Century British Porcelain: Including Fakes, Techniques and Prices (Antique Collector's Club).

5 comments about Fiesta: The Homer Laughlin China Company's Colorful Dinnerware (Schiffer Book for Collectors.).

1. This book as some interesting info but not great. The book is 97% Fiestaware, most of that being the vintage pieces.
   
   Being a collector of the post 86 Fiestaware, the book didn't do much for me.



2. I don't care what Martha Stewart says. I love her show and all... but this book stinks and was the worst recommendation she has ever given!
   There are just not really good books on fiesta ware out there. T

   All this book was to me (i returned it as well) was a nice picture book with beautiful color representations. If I didn't care about the rip of price of [cost] I would have laminated it and given it to a baby as a picture book.

   Outstanding photography and color accuracy just don't make up for the lack of valid information. I read the book cover to cover and I just missed the reference part of the book aside from a list of prices. It is full of errors and distorted information. When you do find something reference about the book it is mostly confusing or plain wrong.
   Things are mislabeled... etc.
   This is more of a coffeetable book than a reference guide.

   Overall [the price] is too much for picture book.




3. I am not sure exactly how I feel about this book. On the one hand, it's got some excellent photos, beautifully lit, lush with color. On the other hand it is not in any way an exhaustive reference of Fiesta, as one would expect with a collectible as popular as this. I like the fact that photos are shown of the various backstamps (marks), but I'm not wild about the lack of organization and skimpy table of contents. I'd like to see more examples added, categories more organized, and prices more accurate (mind you, prices in reference books these days are hard to pin down, due to the affect of online auctions on collectibles). Long on nice visuals, short on information (and a bit too expensive for what one gets!)



4. If I had gone by the first reviews I would have left this book alone and that would have been a mistake. If the text had errors in the past they are long one. The images are fantastic, the text is informative and very readable, the prices are right on target. Particularly good for those new to the field but of use to anyone. Maybe old reviews should be removed now and then. This is a great book!



5. I love this book!! I think that the photos are great very useful information.

No comments about Horse, Bird, And Wildlife Figures of Maureen Love: Hagen-renaker And Beyond (Schiffer Book for Collectors).

1 comments about Thermodynamics and Kinetics in Materials Science: A Short Course Includes CD-ROM.

1. This book explains thing fairly well minus a few errors in equations and plots. However, the CD has many bugs in it and is pretty much worthless if you are using it for homework or tests. The "Labs" generally do not work and have had to be reprogrammed multiple time. The "exams" section in the CD has many wrong answers and has also had to be reprogrammed. Unless you are taking this course from one of the 3 authors don't bother with the CD because it is far too much work to fix everything.

5 comments about Real Girls.

1. For me this book was a little dull. The girls were natural and attractive but I would like to have seen more girls in more locations, with fewer clothes. Not one I'll go back to regularly.



2. This is really a great book. The girls are stunning, very sexy and natural. There are some for all the tastes...Many with tatoos or piercings and some totally nude like they were at birth, with no drawings or anything. If you hate tatoos and piercing, perhaps this is not a book for you. But if you are curious and like beautiful girls in any way they ARE, then you will enjoy to discover them one by one. All deserve attention because they are natural and unique in what they express through the shots. I especially like the blonde girl from the cover and another one who is a true Audrey Tautou look-alike!! This is really one of the most attractive books i have seen in many years..Would love to meet many of them just for the pleasure of kissing their hands!



3. Like it or not, the average young woman in 2007 America will very likely have at least one tattoo as well as one or more piercing's. Such attire and fashion sense might have been construed as cutting-edge five years ago, but today is it quite normal. This is not to suggest that Scott Lanes has a thing here for pierced, tattooed young woman, this cultural obsession is in no way over-emphasized in this book; he's just showcasing what "real" girls look like beneath their clothes in today's western society.
   
   Scott Lanes is an experienced and gifted photographer and the production quality of "Real Girls" is excellent. What's most striking here is Lanes' vision. Although this is largely a collection of nude portraits, it is interspersed with gorgeous examples of more traditional figure studies as well as images that venture in the realm of erotica (lesbian sexuality and erotic nudes). This slide from one genre to the next gives the work a slightly off-balance feel. Yet, this is undoubtedly a genuine reflection of what's transpiring in the lives of these young women, most of whom are on the verge of full adulthood and all the responsibilities that entails. A little self-exploration is only natural and to be expected. It's cool that "Real Girls" is in touch with all this. This is what ART is all about.



4. "Real Girls" is a book dedicated to the beauty the natural body holds. None of these shots are photoshopped for perfection, nor are the girls manipulated with plastic surgery.
   The adornments on their body are those of tattoos and piercings indicative of their personality; their private lives, not society's idea of what beauty should be.
   Lanes does an amazing job of shooting these girls using natural light, capturing their coy smiles, fair skin and the delicate looks in their eyes.
   It's great to see that sexuality is still imminent in photography without the crudeness of pornography. The fine art of naked photography is something I have enjoyed ever since I discovered Nan Goldin a decade ago.
   Cheers to Lanes and his models for putting together a piece of art that I am happy to keep in my bookcase and flip through when I desire some inspiration.



5. I love this book. But don't let the cover, or title fool you. You have to like the young 18+ girl next door look....with piercings and tattoos. These girls would look so normal dressed, and many photos have some clothing on (but most are nude, but not real explicit) But they all have some piercings or tattoos, or both. I found the photographs to be very erotic, in maybe a goth sense. But these girls DO have the real girl next door look, but you must love the look of tattoos and piercings, or you will be disappointed. I found it very different and erotic.

1 comments about Marvelous Majolica: An Easy Reference & Price Guide.

1. A beautifully illustrated and thorough guide to Majolica, and an invaluable addition to any collector's library!

2 comments about Midsummer Snowballs.

1. An excellent overveiw of an Andy Goldsworthy project. Great Huge Images to get your teeth into.



2. Midsummer Snowballs. The very idea puts a smile on your face. If that doesn't, then a few photographs of this Summer 2000 exhibition by Andy Goldsworthy will.

   This book is a photo essay and journal entries on the creation of this facinating exhibition. I was enticed by the photos, and then had to go back and read the journal to learn more about the creation of this display. A highly enjoyable, but light read by the artist. A great book to give to other people, since it's very unlikely they'd ever buy it for themselves.

No comments about Chantal Akerman: Moving Through Time and Space.

No comments about Ancient Etruscan and Greek Vases in the Elvehjem Museum of Art (Chazen Museum of Art Catalogs).