5 comments about Knitting Over The Edge: Unique Ribs, Cords, Appliques, Colors, Nouveau.

1. I'm just a beginner knitter myself and the contents in this book is mostly definitely for intermediate to advanced knitters in my opinion. There is plenty of knitted borders in the book, many of them very pretty, however, they come with very basic instructions that may confuse those who are are suited to more detailed instructions.
   
   The book has many different patterns and cover a wide range of borders; from ribs to coloured borders. I find that a lot of the patterns are quite bulky looking and may be more suited to heavier knitted pieces.
   
   Nonetheless it's a very nice book, lots of clear pictures too. For those who design or alter their knitwear, this would be an excellent addition to one's collection. Regardless of what you're knitting, there's definitely something to learn from the book.



2. This book was so very helpful with learning new patterns. I've used so many of them in my knitting.



3. Knitting Over The Edge: Unique Ribs, Cords, Appliques, Colors, Nouveau
   
   This book, like all of Nicky's books, is terrific! Even if you don't knit, the photos are yummy. If you do knit, the directions are easy to follow, and the ideas will make your next project sing. A must have for the knitter's library!



4. A good companion book for volume #1. I especially liked the appliqué and color section.



5. Look through around a dozen knitting books in a book store, I just fell in love with this book and have to have it. It will give me creative ideas for my future knitting projects. I will make the lush American Beauty Capelet for sure.

5 comments about The Small Adobe House.

1. Robert Reck's photography is beautiful (as always). It was a wonderful surprise to see MY OWN Santa Fe work in the book!

   The book gives a great feel for the beauty of the Adobe Home and the time tested vernacular of the details.




2. In comparison to other books available about adobe houses, the content of this book offers little range and depth. Other choices were less superficial.



3. Great book showing some fantastic homes. Lots of great ideas for when I move west and get an adobe. If you have an interest in this type and style home this is a good book to have in your library.



4. This is a beautiful book. It is an excellent addition to my library of Adobe house books. I will be building an adobe house in the next couple of years and this book is a great reference.



5. This is a great additional to our book collection and is a must have for anyone who is designing their house with the "Santa Fe" look. The pictures are just wonderful!

5 comments about The Prayer Shawl Ministry: Reaching Those in Need (Leisure Arts #4225).

1. This is an excellent book for anyone considering starting a Prayer Shawl Ministry or looking for some easy patterns. It is well written and informative. It has nice pictures, prayers and letters from people who have received prayer shawls.



2. I'm a beginner knitter and was able to follow the patterns. My daughter saw one of my shawls and loved it. She wanted me to do one for her crocheted. I tried it and it turned out beautifully. I've knitted a shawl to 4 ladies so far and everyone loved and cherished their gift especially when they realize my thoughts and prayers were focused on them while working on it.



3. This booklet is a very nice introduction to the concept of prayer shawl ministries, well documented with stories of actual groups making shawls and circumstances where they have been given to someone. If you're not into the "ministry" part of it, this is still a great booklet since the shawls are nicely pictured and instructions are clear. After all, a shawl is a shawl is a shawl. The "prayer" part is optional, in my opinion.
   
   Kate



4. Great resource book. I'm new to making prayer shawls and knitting. This book has prayers taken from several sources, gives information on choosing colors of yarn and has a number of patterns for both knitting and crochet. The book is by Lion Brand, and they have pictures of their yarn colors with the color name and number for reference. I went looking and found one of their yarns in a local store and it looked just like the picture.



5. I ran into this book at a craft store and was so glad I did! I had never heard of the prayer shawl ministry and if I hadn't ran into this book I might not have. I don't knit, just crochet. The patterns are easy to follow and there are great pictures. I've read some of the negative reviews on this. I can understand why people would be upset if credit was not given if due. But I would hope that instead of being upset..forgive..and be thankful that the prayer shawl ministry will grow and touch many more lives because of it.

2 comments about Bracelets, Buttons & Brooches: 20 Projects Using Innovative Beading Techniques.

1. A beautiful book of creative designs. Directions are detailed w/clear, colorful photos. Can't wait to start my own creation.



2. I realize that beginners have to start somewhere, but 99% of the bead books available seem to cater to the newest of the new: people who can't thread a beading needle, or need to be told what a seed bead is. And frankly, as I read the first chapter of Bracelets, Buttons and Brooches, I thought it was another one of the same. That is, until I got to the projects:
   
   Yay! These projects are NOT for beginners, except for one or two at the beginning that appear to be put there so that an adavanced beginner who bought the wrong book won't take it back to the store. The rest of the instructions, while complete and thorough, don't assume that you can't tell a Delica from a Treasure or a Charlotte. And this book makes liberal use of all three, along with 11/0 beads, 15/0 seeds and 8/0 Delicas and seed beads.
   
   I love the new (to me) methods of surrounding a cabochon with beading on both sides at the same time. The method is ingenious, and I gave myself one of those "why didn't I think of that" smacks in the head when I saw Ms. Davis' clear and easy to understand diagram. I was also thrilled when I looked at the twenty projects and realized that they were merely the springboard for many, many more projects simply by adding some of the steps in other projects or subtracting an edging or a bit of netting that is too fancy for the cabochon or button that you're using for that particular project. You can also fancy up a project to your heart's content with netting, edging and pretty links to the other focal beads in your project.
   
   Ms. Davis assumes that the reader can follow a flat peyote pattern, knows netting, brick, ladder and peyote stitches (both flat and round), although she does give one of those one paragraph once overs at the beginning of the book. If you aren't familiar with all of these stitches, plus probably going from one stitch to another, you might want to wait before buying this book. But if you are an intermediate to "almost advanced" beader, you are going to leap for joy because there is finally a book with some new projects for the rest of us!
   
   (I say "almost advanced" because there are advanced beaders who do loomwork in 24/0 beads in twenty shades of yellow, or think nothing of encasing a kitchen chair in Aiko beads. Those people don't need books. They write them, unless they are busy making beaded clothing from handmade beads they got on their last bead-gathering trip to the Yucatan. I'm exaggerating slightly, but people who are that advanced know who they are)
   
   Most of all, the finished projects are pretty and can be finished in a weekend or less. Those are two big deal selling points to me, because I don't want to spend three months working on something that isn't mind-numbingly easy only to find out that using ten shades of taupe doesn't look so good. It also gives you a chance to use those cabochons that you bought because they were so beautiful then stored somewhere because beads without holes present challenges all their own. Or if you have a drawerful of beautiful buttons from your grandmother, and you'd like to make something beautiful that would remind you of her. If those things apply to you, then you will be very happy you spent the money on this book and will shriek at the spouse who says, "Another one of those freakin' books? I'm throwin' this out!" (Or maybe that's just me. I don't think a bookcase dedicated to beading books is too many, do you?) Just sayin'
   
   To sum it up, if you're sick of the average "here's how to make an odd numbered peyote watchband" project, then this book is for you. It's a happy medium between so simple you can bead in your sleep and so tough that you're scared to buy the beads. Best of all, it teaches some very clever techniques that can be adapted to even more projects and you'll refer to the book again and again.
   
   P.S.: The author mounts a lot of her cabochons on a backing, i.e., Lacy's Stiff Stuff/heavy interfacing/bonded felt. It would be a good idea to purchase a little bit of your favorite backing so you have it on hand when the book arrives. That way, you can jump right into beading your next masterpiece. You will also need a good quality white craft glue and a very good quality glue that dries clear and bonds anything to anything else.

5 comments about Bits and Pieces: 18 Small Quilts from Fat Quarters and Scraps (That Patchwork Place).

1. What to do with the scraps from other quilts! That is always a question in a quilter's mind. BITS AND PIECES helps solve that problem. While the book is about making small quilts in the size range of 20" square, there is no reason you couldn't make several of the small quilts, put them together and make a bed sized one! A bit of sashing between each "quilt" and you have a large quilt instead. For example, in One Patch Garden, there are lots of colorful square with a border. So just make more squares from your leftovers and you have the bed quilt
   
   Each pattern, of which there are 17, begins with a bit of information about the quilt. Then the size of the finished project is listed and a materials list is given. Cutting instructions come next followed by how to assemble the top and finishing directions. There are plenty of graphics to help you visualize what the instructions are telling you to do. And lots of tips are found in special boxes through out.
   
   Your quilts will most likely not match the ones in the photos as your scraps are sure to be different than the author's. The quilts are divided into four types, those using squares and rectangles, those using triangles, those using diamonds and those using curves and circles with easy appliqué. This makes the book one in which everyone will find a project to their liking.



2. I love it when I can find 2 or even 3 projects from a book that make it on my 'to do' list - but out of the 18 I would say that at least 12 have made it! Great quilts - great color combinations - and quick to finish. A+



3. The instructions in this book allowed me to make beautiful small quilts from my "stash" without buying more fabric. However, one could certainly buy fat quarters to make small quilts with a more organized palate. The directions were clear, with lots of pictures. I loved the book and highly recommend it.



4. I had bought a bunch of fat quarters and no idea what to do with them. A friend said she had the perfect book/quilt/wallhanging for them. She brought her book and I was off and running to find the book. It will be perfect. The book arrived very quickly and in perfect condition. Thanks for having such fun quilt patterns and easy to understand and follow directions.



5. This is a terrific book, full of well illustrated original ideas for producing individual quilts making use of your existing stash (and avoiding the mass-produced look of so many similar books). I have been quilting for many years, but found a number of new ideas in this volume and will certainly be making more than a few of the designs. Interesting for the experienced quilter, the instructions, diagrams and photographs are of such high quality that beginners should also have no problems here - also the small sizes are very attractive to those wanting a quick project or not yet confident enough to face a big quilt. Another plus is that the book is honest about how many fabrics you need to get the desired effect - so often in books the instructions say '5 assorted fat quarters' but when you look at the photo you can count 14 different fabrics. Not so here - what you see is what you get the instructions for. A recent addition to my extensive quilting library, this is already one of may favourite books. A winner from cover to cover.

5 comments about Couture: The Art of Fine Sewing.

1. The photos of the finished outfits are very dated looking, overdone, and not really couture looking. They look like someone with no figure tried to do too much to a garment. However, the instructions on how to do the techniques are excellent. I'm giving it 4 stars because the finished products are not very inspiring.



2. As a sewing professional, I am always on the lookout for new insight. This book did not do the trick. Some of the technique information was interesting, but the examples are truly hienous. The entire point of couture is a beautiful result. Schaeffer does a much better job approaching this subject.



3. This is the first really good and very inspiring book about couture sewing techniques. Wonderfully illustrated.
   
   It goes into:
   
   -which fabrics are appropriate for lining
   -pleating out stripes
   -how to block fabric
   -how to use grain boards
   -flat hand held chalk
   -even bias tape makers
   -innovative techniques on seam allowance
   -how to preserve structural effects by using scalloping as an alternative clipping method
   -thread tracing in order to ensure your fabric remains flat on the seam, darts and pleats.
   -Cross basting for multiple layers fo fabric
   -why not to back stitch
   -proper way to press fabric to that it lies flat
   -how to sew a french seam
   -hong kong seam finish
   -tucking
   -how to cut out fabric correctly
   
   And so much more!!
   
   This book is a very good investment, and I highly recommend it to any serious designer, or any one obsessed with sewing :D



4. First, I'll state that I'm a new sewer but a technical person and can tell when a topic is over my head or is simply poorly explained. In my experience a well-written technical book makes the complex easy to understand. That said, I've been reading several haute couture titles to understand the process so that I can apply it to the garments I intend to create. I own and have read Claire B. Shaeffer's Couture Sewing Techniques, High Fashion Sewing Secrets and Carr's Couture: The Art of Fine Sewing and believe it is worth owning all three as each has a technique the not covered by the other two. If I had to narrow it down to two of these three selections I'd purchase this and Couture Sewing Techniques by Shaeffer. If I had to buy only one I'd probably go with Carr's. Here's why.
   
   First you have to discount the reviews which knock the finished examples (i.e. pictures of couture dresses). In most couture instructional books the dresses are dated and show little if any construction detail. One has to consider that any book will be limited in haute couture examples as even a hundred dresses would only a drop of water in a sea of creative fabric work that dates back over a hundred years. Also, fashion is subjective so no book can please every customer. What one reviewer finds heinous another may find appealing. These books are not meant to be art galleries, they are to instruct. If you consider them from a purely technical standpoint you'll get the most from them.
   
   Second, Haute Couture is an expressive and sometimes experimental art. I'm guessing that some reviewers feel these books should tell you how to perfectly mimic current couture dresses but that would be like a painting book telling you how to copy a Monet. I don't expect a book like this to tell me what to make. What I do expect is for it to introduce and explain as many techniques as possible, suggest problems they can be used to solve, and put it all together so that I can make a finished product that helps me express my idea closely to the original concept.
   
   Shaeffer's "High Fashion Sewing Secrets" comes off a little hodge-podgy (i.e. it lacks cohesiveness) and the page formats are hard on the eyes. You have to sort through a lot of miscellaneous, unrelated information on each page to get to the one technique she's trying to explain. Still, there are techniques not covered in the other books so it's a worthwhile third book to get after her other title and Carr's book.
   
   Shaeffer's Couture Sewing Techniques has a better format than her other title, has much more content (techniques) but is still not quite as clear, cohesive, or comprehensive as Carr's book. If you're an experienced sewer you may get more from this book than Carr's but, again, the cohesiveness is its weak point. I didn't walk away from it with that mental 'click' that gave me the confidence to put together that lingering vision of a garment. However, it does have many useful techniques not covered in her other title or by Carr.
   
   Carr's strength is how she seams topics together that make the whole concept easier to understand. The editing and presentation is much clearer than any of the other books. True, the dress pictorials are dated and probably could have been omitted but the same could be said of Shaeffer's. I believe Carr's book is a good first step toward making your own haute couture creations and understanding how to tackle the problems of fine garment construction and fit.



5. Ha ha ha. It's so "Dynasty". The pictures and the couture featured are very bad 80's. Useful for Halloween if you want to make a "Blanche" outfit. Not a good buy, but I'm too rich/lazy to return it for a refund.

5 comments about Intertwined: The Art of Handspun Yarn, Modern Patterns and Creative Spinning (Handspun Revolution).

1. This book is chock full of wonderful ideas, techniques and projects. I actually read it from cover to cover before utilizing it for my spinning projects. It's a visual delight as well as a practical resource. If you want to spin yarns outside of the proverbial box, this is the book for you.



2. Intertwined, by Lexi Boeger goes in a completely different direction than any other spinning book in my library. I've been looking at this book every time I go into a yarn shop for a while, and I finally could not resist it any more. I bought the book and it is sitting on my bedside so I can look at it every night before I go to sleep. It is filled with gorgeous photos of novelty yarns that are so inspiring I can hardly stand to stop looking at the pictures to read the text. The back of the book has some projects to make with the various kinds of yarns, but that's besides the point to me. If you're creating your own amazing, unique yarns, who needs patterns to show you what to do with them? Still, though I'll never use one of the patterns in this book, they are all wonderfully inspiring. The instructions for making the gorgeous yarns are written in clear prose, and the illustrations clearly show how to handle the fibers that are being used while you are spinning and winding the yarn onto the bobbin. The stories by various designers are also fun to read and will inspire you in your own creative spinning projects.
   
   If you're a beginning spinner, I also recommend Start Spinning: Everything You Need to Know to Make Great Yarn by Maggie Casey, which will give you everything you need to feel confident in your spinning skills.



3. This is a one note and variation on a style of spinning yarn that I'm not a fan of nor do I like. For others this would be very exciting and challenging artistic expression. The patterns were good except I didn't like the spun yarn that was used.



4. I adore this book because of the artistic slant it takes rather than for its "how to spin" instructions. I am an artist who has worked with fiber for a long time, but mostly in mixed media sculptures, knitting and felting. I am a pretty inexperienced spinner. But although some of the techniques described in Intertwined may be beyond my spinning expertise (for now), the ideas it gave me are not! Unlike one of the other reviewers, I am not put off by the thought of mixing disparate elements into the spun fiber. In fact, I have always enjoyed mixing media - although I have been producing necklaces, art dolls and wall pieces rather than hats - so that might make for a different opinion. Even if I don't become an expert spinner overnight, I see myself plying some unusual combinations of yarns in the very near future, and I have this book to thank for the inspiration.



5. I'm dazzled. Seriously, visiting Lexi Boeger's already interesting Pluckyfluff web site, amazing as it is, doesn't come close to the fantastical, fun, magic world of yarn in this book. If you're into funky, offbeat, one-of-a-kind, this is your book. I really enjoyed how the author, through stepwise photos and text takes you inside the creation of her every-one-unique yarns. The designs to use them are appropriately simple, because with yarns made out of dolls, or flowers, or thread or shredded paper or all of the above, the yarn is art, your body a stabilizing surface on which to show it off.
   This wonderful book is appropriate for fiber artists, painters, knitters, sculptors and any museum goer who likes "cool" things. Can't recommend highly enough, has already been endorsed as "very interesting" by my generally not endorsement prone 16 year old.

5 comments about Quilting For Dummies (For Dummies (Sports & Hobbies)).

1. I bought this for my daughter after she checked it out of the library about 19 times. She said it was very helpful for her.



2. WONDERFUL book to learn the skills needed to quilt. What an easy read for learning a new hobby. Easy descriptions and pictures to help guide you along. A must buy if you want to learn to quilt.



3. The book came fast and is just what I wanted as a reference book. thank you for the series!



4. This is a good book if you can't get any other quilting book or all you want to do is make small projects, like wall hangings or table runners. The information presented isn't any different than what you can get in (for example) Quilter's Complete Guide, and not as well done.
   
   I'd give this a miss if you're a new quilter looking for a teacher in book form.



5. I had never made a quilt before and wanted to make one for my new grandson who is on the way in August. This book gave me the step-by-step information I needed to complete my task in ONE DAY! I can't wait to give my gift to his new Mommy!
   I highly recommend this book for anyone who has some sewing skills but is a novice at quilting.

5 comments about The Big Book Of Bible Crafts (Big Book Series).

1. This book has many craft ideas to keep your child entertained and gives you opportunity to discuss biblical stories.



2. This is full of great ideas and fun things for kids to do I love it.



3. this book is very helpful in my children church i use it alll the time. what i like about it is that the craft are made from simple material that is easy to find. And to top it off the children always enjoy doing craft from this book.



4. I teach Sunday School in our nursery at church, and this book is a great supplement. I can almost always find a craft in this book to go along with our lesson. I have similar books as well, but I find I use this one the most.



5. I have to say I was very disappointed. I only liked about 7 or 8 crafts from the entire book. I thought they seemed too complicated and time consuming, especially for the younger kids. I'd recommend "The Encyclopedia of Bible Crafts for Preschoolers" also, "The Encyclopedia of Bible Crafts for Kids". Much easier and includes a mini lesson.

No comments about Sewing in No Time: 50 Step-by-step Weekend Projects Made Easy.