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5 comments about Sweet & Simple Country Cross-Stitch.

1. A delightful collection of colourful country designs. Each chart offers a variety of small designs that can be mixed and matched to suit you. Because they are cheerful and bright, they are fun to stitch. I loved this book, the presentation is refreshing.



2. This book is beautifully presented, with great ideas. The charts are easy to read and the designs colourful to stitch. I loved it.



3. Out of all the cross stitch books I have ever owned, this one is my absolute favorite! The patterns are colorful and cute. They are adaptable to so many different projects. I cannot put this book down.



4. Lori Gardner's book was published in hardback in 1997, and has been my favourite source of bright and energetic American Country designs ever since. The designs are clear and simple to do,(very few fractional stitches) but are far from plain when done. There's a feeling of Alma Lynne in them, but somehow these are more satisfying to do. Charts are grouped into the four seasons and include gardens, angels, holiday, 'quilted' designs etc. They range from around 31 x 23 stitches to the 200 x 100+ stuff, so lots of choice here. There aren't too many photographs of the finished articles, so you have to work on trust - but so far I've not been disappointed once. Does anyone know if Lori has produced (or is going to produce)any more books?



5. I used this book for putting designs on my 2 childrens tee-shirts. They are the perfect size charts and they are so beautiful on clothing. Its been the book I have been searching for, for years. The best.

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5 comments about Two-Hour Vests (Two-Hour Crafts).

1. I purchased this book because of the lovely designs and what appeared to be well thought out instructions and was greatly put off by the lack of patterns I could readily use. By this I mean patterns I can copy to scale or order--and since I can't measure the patterns themselves I don't know if they'll fit anyway. I visited several copy centers today and learned that having these patterns reproduced at 285% is not as simple as the author makes it seem. While I may wind up keeping the book for ideas, I'm irritated enough that I may return it on principle. Too bad, Ms. Hiney would have had a really good thing if she'd gone the extra mile.



2. This book contains a wealth of info and ideas. However, I did find it a bit difficult to find a copy center that could do the 285% enlargement. The enlargement cost $10.00 but a second one cost less than $3.00. I traced the basic vest onto an 8 1/2"X11" piece of bond paper using a good technical pen so that my line weight was consistent. I then traced pockets and anything else that would fit. By having two prints made I had one for myself and one for a gift (given with the book). Now that I know what size to go for I will use a projector to scale up tracings for the other vests. If you don't have your own projector it is possible to use one from a library.There are four vests with variations.



3. If you want to expand your wardrobe with vests, this is the book. It has patterns for six basic vests with front and back pictures of each and lots of ways to vary them. The pictures and drawings really help to stimulate your imagination as to how different materials and treatments might look. There are also good basic instructions. I had no problems with getting the patterns enlarged at an office supply store.



4. One problem: the title. I am an experienced seamstress. It would take longer than two hours to enlarge the patterns, prepare the fabric, and construct a garment from this book. Probably much longer.

   The other problem: the patterns. The book shows attractive style variations on patterns that are printed in the book. The instructions say to enlarge the printed patterns by 285%. This is inconvenient, but there is also no size chart to tell you what the size designations really mean. The patterns are called Small, Medium, and Large, but that tells you nothing. There are no body measurements to refer to. There are also no finished garment measurements that would give the reader a clue. You must enlarge the pattern, then measure it to find out which-if any-size will fit. The book also says nothing about pattern adjustments for different figure types. Most of these styles would need some changes to fit full figured or tall women.

   Although some of the vests pictured in the book are very appealing, you would need advanced sewing knowledge to get them to fit.




5. If you are looking for some ideas on what to do with the basic vest, _Two Hour Vests_ by Mary Jo Hiney is a decent book. But it's usefulness is very limited.
   
   On the plus side, it shows six basic designs and ideas on what can be done with each different type of design. There are full-page pictures of 16 vests made with the different designs, and another 16-17 vests that are shown in artists' drawings.
   
   The ideas are interesting, and the use of fabric and trims is well-done.
   
   On the minus side, the included patterns are rudimentary at best, and must be taken to a copy center for enlargement; the patterns only come in small, medium, and large; and there are no tips on choosing or modifying a vest if you are a not an off-the-rack small-medium-or-large person.
   
   A final major irritation for me is there are no pictures of a real vest BEING WORN by a real person. All of the photographs show vests on hangers in nice background settings. That, combined with the artists' drawings being more impressionistic than realistic, makes the book feel like it was self-compiled and self-published by someone who is very proud of what they sew but doesn't get out much.
   
   It's a good coffee table book for the intermediate to advanced hobby sewer, but I wouldn't recommend it for any use besides that.

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