3 comments about Jed Johnson: Opulent Restraint.

1. "Opulent Restraint" is THE book that you want to buy for all your friends or for anyone who truly loves and appreciates interior design. Arthur Dunnan is a true master! Additional information on Jed's/Arthur's unique style may be seen in "Designers on Designers."



2. One of the best books in interiors design I've ever read. Beautifull photos that almost need no explanation and the feeling of not having enough of turning pages, waiting breathless to see what's next. Congratulations to his brother and to all who participated in this homage.



3. Having recently read The Warhol Diaries and seeing pictures of the brothers Johnson in Scavullo's retrospective, I went in search of more information about them and found this title. First of all, the quality of the book is amazing, between the text, the photography, and the projects. Secondly, how incredible that Jed Johnson was self-taught. He clearly had a wonderful eye and an amazing talent to have created these dazzling spaces that function as homes while never seeming untouchable or cold. Opulent restraint, indeed. I never knew the man and yet, feel his loss keenly.

2 comments about Outdoor Cleaning with Pressure Washers: A Step-by-Step Project Guide.

1. Great tips on selecting and using home use pressure washers. Helps you to operate the units right so you are not as likely to damage what you are cleaning. Factors you will learn to consider include: spray angle, distance, nozzle pattern, and the ratings of the unit you select.
   
   Good treatment of the subject with lots of pictures. Far superior to any other book on pressure washers that I have seen.



2. This book was over priced. It deals strictly with Brigg&Stratton equipment and was of little use to me as I had bought an electric washer. It's fine for B&S owners but not much good otherwise.

5 comments about Classic Arts & Crafts Furniture You Can Build.

1. I've got tens of woodworking books and this is one of the best. The designs are great and the structure and information contained within first-rate. I consider arts and crafts furnature to be the best and many of the pieces in this book are absolutely beautiful. The China cabinet and the lamp are stunning.



2. The designs that Schultz uses have an asian flair to them, adding curves to Arts & Crafts style furniture. Cutting these curves is certainly more work than traditional straight Stickley furniture, but it also adds a nice touch.

   Schultz includes a section at the beginning of the book covering technique, which is especially helpful on the curved legs. This section also includes information on making mortise and tenon joinery with a router.

   There are many plans in this book, and they are accompanied by color photos of the finished product; which I really like. I would prefer better detailed drawings, and more of them, but the text is quite descriptive. It just takes me a little more to figure it out that way.

   This is one of my favorite Arts & Crafts furniture books and I refer to it when drawing my own plans for a piece in our home.




3. Note: I just got this book, and haven't built anything from it. I never actually build from plans, but use books for general ideas and technique.

   My main problem with the book is that the author seems to build a good, basic piece of furniture, but get's lazy in the home stretch and ruins the final product with cheap hardware. The most glaring example of this is in the china cabinet (see page 70) and serving table (see page 67). No joke, in the photo on page 67 you see the extended drawer showing those cheap, white-painted, tacked-on drawer slides. On the china cabinet, the doors are single panes of glass with wood sticks glued on the exterior side of the glass (not even any wood on the interior side of the glass!). With the door open, you see the glued on sticks, and the glass is held in with white plastic fasteners. The glass shelves in the cabinet use those cheap metal shelf supports that hook into slotted metal support strips. Those supports are for cheap wall shelving, not a home furniture project of many, many hours!

   Now, I don't care if someone does this in their furniture, but I wouldn't buy stuff built like that in a store, and I certainly don't want that in a book on building Arts and Crafts furniture. I'm hardly the type to get hung up on doing everything authentic to a particular style, that's not my point. What I don't like is that the short-cuts are taken in a how-to book on "Class Arts and Crafts". So, I don't learn the technique to making real drawer slides, I don't learn the technique for doing nice paned doors, etc. Another example is that he uses plywood for the panels in the dresser. That may be an option, but, again, I don't get tips and instruction on building to accomodate for the natural expansion and contraction of wood.

   I found the book next to useless. If I had been able to flip through the book before buying it, I would never have bought it. I bought another book on Arts and Crafts: "Authentic Arts and Crafts Furniture Projects" that seems much better. That one includes several projects in the Greene & Greene style, which are not often seen.




4. Really cheesy designs and lousy construction. Good side bar on making flared legs. Otherwise, I got nothing from this book. I also bought "The Furniture of Gustav Stickley" which is much better.



5. This books has lots of good ideas for lots of pieces. I won't follow his designs as is but it give all the overall measurements for each piece and a cutting guide for the lumber. This is not a book for everyone but I don't regret getting it.

No comments about Formwork For Concrete Structures.

No comments about Great Workshops from Fine Woodworking.

No comments about Outdoor Kitchen Ideas that Work.

1 comments about If I Had a Hammer: More Than 100 Easy Fixes and Weekend Projects.

1. This is a must have for any homeowner that is all thumbs when it comes to home repair and home improvement. Designed for the novice, the book tells you exactly what tools and materials plus step by step instructions for the projects that anyone can understand. There are great tips, tricks and home maintenance information any homeowner can use. This book would make a great housewarming gift, especially to the first time homeowner.

1 comments about Workholding in the Lathe (Workshop Practice Series) (Workshop Practice Series) (Workshop Practice Series) (Workshop Practice Series) (Workshop Practice Series).

1. If you own a lathe, you need this book. I've read maybe 50 lathe books and this is one of the top few. This guy knows his way around all types of lathes and their accessories, which is a rare talent. He discusses jeweler's, wood, and metal lathe workholding, of all sizes. The book is very versatile, opening up possibilies you probably haven't thought of.

4 comments about Tansu: Traditional Japanese Cabinetry.

1. If you're thinking of purchasing a tansu or already own one and want to know more about it, this is the book to have. It covers everything from the history of these unique pieces of furniture, to the materials used in their construction, as well as providing tips of how to select, refinish, and care for them. Truly a scholarly work. But perhaps the best part of all is the book's exquisite photographs showing outstanding examples of tansu from all regions of Japan. You can't help but drool when seeing them.



2. Found this book very interesting with its description of differing tansu from different regions in Japan. Great for collecters of tansu who wish to know meanings/locations of their tansu as well as the era from which it was constructed.



3. This book was exactly the information I needed to help design a new stair step tansu cabinet that was both historically accurate, and modernized for today's homeowners. The history of the cabinet style, the construction, the joinery, the hardware, and the finishes used were well laid out in the book and easy to read and understand.



4. Informational book on tansu, which is collectively a variety of Japanese cabinets. The book describes the different types of cabinets, their uses, and also historical information by period, along with detailed structural notes (ie. cabinets being made from certain types of woods to accomodate changing humidity during the season, flexibility to withstand earthquakes and typhoons, etc.) Black and white photos and diagrams included.

No comments about The Homeowner's Handbook to Energy Efficiency: A Guide to Big and Small Improvements.