2 comments about Weaving Contemporary Rag Rugs: New Designs, Traditional Techniques.

1. This is a book of pure inspiartion and aspiration. I loved the color images and the new and traditional options available to the handweaver. I can't say enough good things about this.



2. I think this book is great. She shows lots of great color photos of rag rugs, and then in the back has lots of "projects" which show the completed rug and have very good detailed instructions, like warp calculations, and tie-up and drafts, all you need to know to make the rug, just like it's pictured. But all the photos give ideas on how to customize the rug to be exactly what you want. Also the author gives a good introductory history of rag rugs chapter, and tells all about how great, beautiful, and functional rag rugs are. I also can't say enough good things about this book. The best rag rug weaving book I've ever seen.

No comments about Textiles of Central and South America.

No comments about The Weaver's Workbook: A Concise Weaving Course Based On A Creative Understanding Of The Principles And Practices Of The Craft (Color Craft Workbooks).

5 comments about Zapotec Weavers of Teotitlan.

1. I have lived and worked in Oaxaca, Mexico for over 30 years. My parents and I went there for the first time in 1965. They stayed and built a life there. Over the years I financed my many trips to see them with import and export between the two countires. During those times of importing rugs from Teotitlan, woven goods from Mitla, pottery and wooden animals from various villages, I built strong relationships with the Zapotec Indians. I still visit and see them several time per year. Imagine my delight when I opened up Ms. Stanton's fine book and saw familiar faces, patterns of tapestries and rugs that I had been a part of, and an in depth exploration of the Zapotec reality in a changing world. This is a well written book, with a deep cultural understanding, and a fine display and history of those wonderful rugs that the Zapotecs of Teotitlan del Valle continue to produce. If you are going to buy one book that is high in quality and gives a real glimpse into the lives of the Oaxacan Indians....this it it.



2. I enjoyed this book a great deal, and will no doubt go back to it again and again. The photos of both historic and modern weavings are gorgeous, and I especially appreciated the detailed description (and photos) of the laborious process of washing, carding, spinning, and dyeing the wool before weaving can begin. The photo of a man rinsing cochineal-dyed skeins in a stream is especially evocative, showing clouds of the red dye blooming in blue water. My only complaint is that the author occassionally seems as if she's selling the town and its inhabitants in the same way she sells their crafts. I think we need to ban the word "magical" from all descriptions of indigenous/low tech comunities until we acknowledge the "magic" of our voodoo market economy and the hard materialism present in even idyllic-seeming villages. But that's a relatively minor flaw in a very good book.



3. This is an excellent book with gorgeous photos of Zapotec rugs and weavings. I recently returned from a trip to Oaxaca where I had the opportunity to visit the village of Teotitlan and purchase some rugs from one of the families featured in the book. I just wish I had read the book before I went so that I could appreciate the beautiful examples that I saw even more. Besides the information on the laborious process of making the rugs, the book tells the differences and qualities that make some "works of art" and some imitations. And in telling the story of the weavings, the friendliness and pride of the weaving families must be told. I will treasure the book as well as my memories of the village of Teotitlan and her people.



4. This book is well-written as well as thoughtfully and lavishly illustrated, giving one a true insight into the famous Zapotec weavers of this lovely and traditional Oaxacan community. Zapotec precolumbian traditions are mentioned, and the illustrations show many steps in creating dies, yarns and weavings ranging from the traditionally inspired to the most avant garde, from natural dies to the use of anilines and naturally colored churro wools.

   As one who has spent time learning to appreciate the arts of weaving and embroidery from weavers through Mexico and Guatemala, including a hospitable and skilled family in Teotitlán, I heartily recommend this book to anyone with an interest in the topic covered.




5. .... informative, educational and very interesting - especially when you have purchased some of these beautiful works of art.

3 comments about Baskets from Nature's Bounty.

1. The author's love of nature makes pleasurable reading. Excellent guide to collection and preparation of natural materials. A very good addition to a basket maker's library. Quick and easy referenc



2. This is one of the best books I have ever used on making baskets using recorces available to us in nature. It gives a complete list of different plants that can be used, where they can be found, the time of year to gather them, and how to prepare and dye them. There is also step by step instructions on different projects like coiling, twining and plaiting that one can make with the materials just gathered. I highly reccomend this book to anyone interrested in basketry or natural fibers



3. If you want to make baskets from local materials (any locality). Jensen tells you what to look for, how to prepare it and how to make a basket with it. Several techniques, many materials. Everything except bamboo and cane.

1 comments about Weaving a World: Textiles and the Navajo Way of Seeing.

1. Like Lila O'Neale in her early twentieth century study Yurok/Karok Basket Weavers, the authors of this book, Willink and Zolbrod, have set about to "read Navajo rugs" through the eyes and minds of Navajo, mostly older weavers and their families. What we, the readers, get is a somewhat anecdotal filtering of ideas, recognitions, myth and oral history that indeed does lend surprising information about some of the designs.
   
   But, the real jewels of this book are the weavings themselves. Forty separate color plates show rug after rug, over half predating 1900, from the School of American Research Collections in the Museum of New Mexico's Laboratory of Anthropology in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Each is magnificent in its own way. Accompanying text relates a separate story for twenty-seven of them, organized into: The Mythic Memory; The Collective memory; Ceremonial Practices; Harmony and Disharmony; and A World In Motion.
   
   What I personally love about this collection is the insight into balance, detail, symbolic representation and the fact that each weaving is strictly individual. A great reference for weaver and collector alike, my only criticism is that there aren't more close-up photos.

No comments about Weaving Without a Loom: Second Edition.

2 comments about Navajo Textiles: The William Randolph Hearst Collection.

1. If you love both Navajo textiles and well-designed art books, this is the best of both. The text provides an educational overview of the history of Navajo weaving from 1650 to 1920, explaining dying techniques, tribal uses for each style and the eventual marketing of them. Blomberg, a curator at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County (or at least she was when the book was first published in 1988), also describes how their weaving was influenced in later years by relocation and the switch from native use to trading company sales. Regardless of how you feel about William Randolph Hearst's collecting style, his quest for traditional pieces at the turn of the century has become part of the history of the weavings and makes for an interesting story. The textiles are the main feature, of course, and they are beautiful. The 200 prints, illustrating pieces from about 1850 to 1890, are of excellent quality and displayed large enough to take a good look at. With only one print per page, each stands out to full effect. Reading this book is a lot like walking through a gallery exhibition; you can start at the beginning knowing next to nothing about the craft, examine the changing patterns and styles (ponchos, child's blankets, chief's blankets, saddle blankets, transitional styles), and come out with a new appreciation of Navajo design. In the absence of such an exhibit, I'm really happy to have this book.



2. If you are looking for design ideas and colors this is your book. It has extensive photos. There are few close-ups thought.

5 comments about Handwoven Scarves.

1. I have patiently been waiting for this book to be published (it was late) and when I finally received it was greatly disappointed. While the photographs are indeed lovely and the scarves are inspirational, there were few that included the drafts for the designs. Fiber statistics would have also been helpful including yardage and possible resources. I returned this book.



2. The only reason this book gets two stars instead of one is because it was promoted honestly as a source of inspiration and did not promise detailed instructions. The publisher should have known better, however, than to purposely omit weaving details. Such a format is of little use to those of us who have no desire to spend time experimenting. Further, there are inaccuracies; I resorted to telephoning one of the contributors when I was unable to reconcile the draft with the scarf -- because the draft as presented in the book was incomplete! I wasted an afternoon because of this error.



3. Handwoven Scarves is, indeed, a book of ideas and inspiration. But, it is not a compilation of the "best scarves ever published in Handwoven." It is not a "how to weave a scarf" book. It is more in the genre of "Ideas in Weaving" by Ann Sutton and Diane Sheehan (Interweave Press, 1989, out of print.) The weavers represented here use materials, dye techniques and weaving patterns to extraordinary advantage. The book will, I hope, inspire readers to expand their weaving skills and explore the use of silk and rayon, overtwisted yarns, forgotten weave structures and the glories of plain weave.

   As for me, I've just purchased a supply of rayon ribbon, the silks have been sitting on a shelf since 1995 and the loom is empty. I forsee a shawl, perhaps in boulevard weave?




4. I'm a new weaver & really looked forward to getting this book. The scarves are beautiful & the book inspirational, but did I mention I'm a new weaver? It's hard to turn that inspiration into a textile treat without some direction or instruction. The editor states they published the information each scarf designer was comfortable in sharing; a few were very generous, but most shared only the very basic information. All in all, this book was a disappointment and not what I've come to expect from Interweave Press.



5. As many have written already, this is definitely a book for inspiration and not a formula or pattern "how to" book. Since I had the chance to look through it before buying, I knew what I was getting into and have really enjoyed it. Some of the weaves are wonderful puzzles to try to figure out and mimic, some are just beautiful and astonishing (like those woven with sewing thread!). As a professional weaver, I have to respect the designers for retaining their designs, but a few more details to get me on the road would have been great!

5 comments about The Basket Book: Over 30 Magnificent Baskets To Make and Enjoy.

1. This is the BEST beginner book on basketmaking that I have found. I believe it should be in everyones collection. The baskets are lovely and inovative. Even the most simple are elegant and useful. I have used this book until it is in shreds! The intructions are very clear and well illustrated. And the designs and patterns teach as well as instruct. I can`t say enough good about this book. If you intend to sell your baskets, this book will pay for itself on the first sale. And the baskets are charming and very saleable, even the easy ones. There are also some more challanging patterns for the more expirienced. A "must have" for any basketmaker.



2. I really enjoyed this book and would highly recommend it for any one interested in the subject!



3. Until I bought this book, I had never made a woven basket, only coiled ones. This book has made it easy for me to progress from one to the other. It has great technical drawings, easy to understand instructions, and beautiful photographs. The sections covering terminology, helpful hints, and resources have also been useful to me. This book also has a great variety of patterns, of which "Feather Basket" and "Potato Basket" are my favorites. I recommend The Basket Book for beginning basket makers.
   
   J.H. Sweet, author of The Fairy Chronicles, and basket maker



4. This is a wonderful book for those getting started in basketmaking. It has step-by-step illustrations and color photos. The text is enjoyable and easy to understand. The author explains the whys and whats in a personable manner that's as encouraging as it is informative. The baskets are fun to make and are useful in the home and as gifts.



5. After the first look through the book, I couldn't wait to read it in deapth. Sat down and read it with a specific project in mind and found numerous wonderful ideas that will make my project easier and much more successful. Great pictures and directions are clear, concise and to the point If you like baskets and want to make heritge quality baskets, this is the book for you. Enjoy, I am!!!