5 comments about 501 Quilt Blocks: A Treasury of Patterns for Patchwork & Appliqué.

1. There is only one thing I don't like about this book: It is so much fun to look at and read, I'll NEVER get around to cutting and sewing. But if I ever do make any of the fabulous blocks in this book, I am going to come out with fabulous quilts, hangings, table runners, and anything else I want. There are a few projects in here too, and the instructions and photos and pictures are all clear, concise and fun. I love this book, for the blocks and for the inspiration.



2. I received this book in top condition and withing 10 days of ordering. Thank you!



3. Useful book with multitude of block patterns - I like especially the variety of applique designs. I have one problem: the binding is too tight to enable proper photocopying of designs on inside of pages, a nuisance when you want to enlarge a pattern.



4. this is the top of the line in patterns. Service from Amazon couldn't be better. One happy customer.



5. Although strip quilting is my favorite type of quilting, this book was inspiring enough that I did a quilt for a classroom and had each student picked out a favorite block. The instructions on how to make the block were good. Although I thought making pieced blocks would be too difficult, it was surprising to me how easy it was to make some really cute blocks. Pieced patchwork blocks may not be my favorite but I now consider them to be attractive and fun.

4 comments about 101 Needlepoint Stitches and How to Use Them: Fully Illustrated with Photographs and Diagrams (Dover Needlework).

1. This is a great and easy to use book by the extremely knowledgable needleworker, Hope Hanley. This softcover book provides detailed information for the beginning and advanced needlepointer on a wide variety of stitches. Of special interest is a four page reference section where stitches are listed according to their use as a background, filling, detail, quick to stitch, slow to stitch and best canvas. If you are looking for a great, inexpensive and user friendly guide to needlepoint, this is it! I highly recommend this book to the new needlepointer and the experienced stitcher as well.



2. I bought this book for a reference, and it is great. The examples are clear, and include suggestions for best use. I like to suggestions about materials, canvas, and needles.



3. This book does an excellent job of explaining stitches. For the first time, I undersand how to do a basketweave stitch. That alone is worth the price of the book!! The only reason I didn't give this book 5 stars is because the examples of the completed stitches are in black and white. This and the chucky yarn makes it difficult to see the finished stitch.



4. Good book for beginners. Covers lots of stitches....wish it had more on finishing projects.

5 comments about Get Started Beading (Best of Bead & Button Magazine).

1. This book is awesome!!!! It has beautiful examples and illustrations as well as instructions for each project. I have shared this book with friends and they ALL have ordered this book!!!!



2. Great book! I'm pleased. I am really a "very" beginner and the book explains all the processes very well.
   I am having trouble finding some of the beads recommended for the projects but maybe that is because I am still not familiar with everything. The book still gets a thumbs up from me.



3. book was very easy to follow with good instructions for those starting to bead. very very helpful.



4. This product is a mediocre learning tool. It could be used by the inexperienced to get a very basic explaination of the tools need to start beading. The experienced could possibly use it for the various projects explainations included. As someone new to this craft I will be seeking aid elsewhere to further explain the various ways to bead.



5. This is a great book for beginners, teaches you the basics of findings, wirework, etc. Very good projects too!

5 comments about Mastering Copperplate Calligraphy, a Step-by-Step Manual.

1. I was looking for a book to explain everything from soup to nuts. This is it. A little history, an equipment guide, and then into the basics. Advanced and commercial techniques are covered also. I highly recommend this book.



2. After studying calligraphy through workshops and lessons since 1989, I decided to add Copperplate to my repertoire. I found learning this style requires a whole new "think" on writing: different flexible pen nibs, pen angles, paper slant, stops, bold and hairline strokes, and of course incredible(albeit refined)embellishment. This book holds prime position in my library, is ink-stained and spotted, has pages unbound from overuse, and is the most perfect way to learn this hand as any I have ever seen. Every time I want to use Copperplate on a commission or project, I haul it out to have beside me, to remember all the little specifics that make Copperplate so beautiful. I love this book!



3. I have a number of books on Copperplate. This is the most thorough, and produces the best results. Winters sweats the details, both in the letterforms (which all the books cover), but in the fine details of them, details of posture, help in choosing paper and ink (A real issue when trying to learn copperplate -- the right paper can make all the difference).
   
   Absolutely, if you're trying to learn Copperplate, get a copy of Winters and read it. It will make all the difference.



4. First to Eleanor--thank you thank you thank you! For giving me a handwriting style that will last centuries yet.
   
   Ahem... Copperplate hand is beautiful, and instead of having to guess how to go about making it right from a one-page sample, you have a kind and considerate teacher walk you through a complete tutorial in a real-world classroom pace--with every intention of actually passing down this beautiful hand--warts and elegance--all--from her years of experience into your fingers. This text will be your guide to teaching future generations this beautiful hand. I am honored to have found this book and even more honored to have the chance to learn this hand from a true master. I hope you will find it, as I did, that her tone is considerate, experienced, and helpful every step of the way--she made _every_ _word_ _count_. She will never bore you.
   
   At this moment I plan to work on this hand whenever I take notes. I have a Namiki/Pilot Vanishing Point fountain pen, and although the default nib cannot vary stroke width through pressure--it's a hard nib--I have every intention of enjoying the styling of copperplate in my everyday writings. Like any others who have recently rediscovered the pleasure of writing a journal, I am using a fountain pen or a roller ball on a Moleskine brand notepad. There are many blogs and online write-ups helping you get into this fun activity. Check them out. But I realize I need a cursive hand to work on, otherwise my handwriting would remain illegible! But thanks to Ms. Winters--I am saved!



5. This is a wonderful book that goes into great detail about how to write each letter. The author knows so much about copperplate and she offers great advice and tips. Listen to her advice! Instructions are very easy to follow and I got a really great understanding of writing copperplate. Great for beginners or for those with experience who want to work on technique.

5 comments about The Rug Hooker's Bible: The Best From 30 Years Of Jane Olson's Rugger's Roundtable.

1. This "Bible" is a wonderful resource for the basics, as well as advanced hooking and dyeing techniques. As a beginner, I was surprised to learn of all the variations in design, composition, and color shading possible. It covers both primitive technique and precision hooking in great detail. This is the one to buy. I'd also bought "Purely Primitive", and it was just that--the very, very basics. I learned alot more from "The Rug Hooker's Bible".



2. This is a really great book for people wanting to learn the intricacies of hooking with wool. I found the examples of fine shading better that many of the books written solely about fine shading. There is something in this book for everyone from beginners to experts. The photos are fabulous too. If your eyes are too tired to read, just cruise through the photos, they're beautiful and worth every cent you'll pay. Of all the books on rug hooking that I have (and I have almost all of them), this is my favorite.



3. This book is a wonderful reference for all aspects of rug hooking. Good images and great text from a master in her field.



4. This book has so much wonderful information on rug hooking. It comes with basic patterns and instructions. It is a great resource to have if you are a rug hooker.



5. This is my favorite rug hooking book, and I believe I own them all. The photographs are beautiful and so helpful, the instructions are clear and the authors go into the kind of detail that is really helpful to beginners like me, and I expect to experienced hookers as well. The two companion DVDs, if you can find them, are amazing and illustrate the beginning chapters beautifully. Learning by watching someone actually do the hooking is even better than reading about it. A lot of books for beginners gloss over some important steps, and you are left wondering how to correctly put the pattern on the frame, or which direction to hold your hook, or how to turn a corner, or how to fill in a little space,etc. I don't mean to imply that the book is at all simplistic, because the later chapters detail quite advanced techniques. I am only saying that it is detailed in a good way, which is very helpful. I expect to use this book for many years to come.

2 comments about Complete Guide to Making Wire Jewelry.

1. I found this book to have quite a bit of information in it. As a matter of fact too much! If you are a beginner wire worker I'd advise against this book. If you want to purchase it anyway I suggest you take it very slowly. In this book it mentions soldering wire. The book states that if you are going to do this you need flux, pickle, pickle pot and a torch. If you are just going to just solder jumprings or make head pins you don't need all of that. All you really need is some "fine sterling silver wire". Fine sterling silver wire doesn't tarnish and get scale build up. Thus your end product ends up looking like it was just polished. As for the "captured coin" on page 50 you can go to the Kalbach website and purchase the instructions for a couple of dollars. On page 81 it says to put the coin in a doming block and use a punch. The book states don't tap too hard or you will mar the coin. Don't press too hard or the coin will cave in and the sides will fold and overlap themselves. At the beginning of the book they show a set of letter stamps. If you want to spring for an expensive set in a wooden box you can but, I bought mine which look exactly like the set pictured at Harbor Freight for quite a bit less. The torch I didn't buy at Harbor Freight because I found one cheaper at Home depot that does just the same thing. Well that is my review for all that it is worth. Now it is up to you to decide if you would like to purchase the book.



2. Most of the projects in this book have been published in Art Jewelry Magazine. If I had known this, I would not have bought the book. However, the book is beautifully done and covers many different style of working with wire. I would recommend this book only if you do not subscribe to AJM.

5 comments about Cherish.

1. This book has beautiful scrapbooking pages laid out with instructions on dimensions to cut your paper (so that you get the most out of your patterned paper), ideas for changing the layout slightly,and techniques for papercrafting/stamping/scrapbooking. You could make hundreds of different pages using just this book! IT's the best scrapbooking book I've seen!



2. Being new to scrapbooking, it is sometimes hard to create a layout from scratch. The patterns in this book help to get the creative juices flowing whether you exactly copy a pattern or take elements of the design to enhance your own ideas. Even veteran scrapbookers can benefit from the wealth of page layouts. Highly recommended.



3. I've been a huge fan of Becky Higgins sketches because they give me a blueprint for my scrapbooking layouts. A friend recommended Cherish to me, and I was skeptical at first because I've bought too many scrapbook "how-to" books over the years. Nevertheless, I bought it, and I loved it immediately. If you love Becky Higgins' sketches, you absolutely flip over this book. Not only do you get a sketch for your layout, but you get paper and picture sizes as well. In fact, you even get a diagram of how to best cut your coordinating papers to minimize waste! I just completed a [...]scrapbook for my son's teacher, and I used this book to do it. The final album was incredible! If you like using sketches for your scrapbooking, you need to buy this book.



4. This is a great book for scrapbookers. It is one of the best I have, and I have a lot of books. This book is perfect to help you make more creative pages. It is easy to follow and you can mix and match pages. It is perfect for the person who wants to use 5 or 6 or more pictures for their pages, but can't figure out how to get them to fit. There are plenty of layout page books out there, but I have never seen one that actually tells you the exact measurements to cut. You can make pages pretty quick and they are really nice. It is a must have, I highly highly recomend it.



5. I'm extremely happy with Cherish. Using it has given my scrapbook pages such variety and made my books more interesting. The diagrams are easy to follow and I'd buy this for a gift for other scrappers.

2 comments about The Craft of Natural Dyeing: Glowing Colours from the Plant World.

1. What a great resource this book is! As a teacher for young children, this book provided a great background of the craft, easy instructions and even a glossary of terms. For someone who has never experimented with the natural dyeing process, the book was a great place to begin. The wondeful colored pictures were also a delightful reference especially for showing children when presenting a lesson.



2. Excellent book! The other books by this lady are great. Good info with excellent instructions.

2 comments about Keiko's Ikebana: A Contemporary Approach to the Traditional Japanese Art of Flower Arranging.

1. This book is a pleasure to read and look at even if you don't do flower arranging. The illustrations are beautiful and the writing is clear and direct. I bought multiple copies and gave them to clients for holiday presents, and it was very well received.



2. Nice book, explains various techniques used in this flower arranging art.
   I liked the techniques of creating decorations using more than one vaze side by side and the ways they are connected with flowers.

1 comments about Lincoln Cents Folder #1, 1909-1940.

1. The nice, lock-in feature prevents your coins from falling out of the folder, while holding them in a nice layout. The only drawback is you cannot see the reverse of the coins when they're in the folder.