Best Craft & Hobby Stuffed Animals
With just two weeks to go before baby Edward's due date, yarn enthusiast Kerry Lord picked up a crochet hook for the first time and a new obsession began. Kerry Lord is the designer and founder of the TOFT Alpaca Shop, a modern British knitwear company offering exclusive knitting and crochet patterns, alpaca yarns and workshops.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"However, there are several negatives that kept this from being one of my favorite books. The author happens to be fortunate enough to have grown up on an Alpaca farm and be an owner of a luxury yarn co. All the animals derive their wooly huggable appearance from the texture of alpaca yarn, which is not available to everyone and is not especially practical for children's toys. I thought I might use the patterns to create my own versions, but it is simply too much frustration and there are many other books and patterns available that are much easier to use."
"Great directions that are clear and concise."
"The patterns online are great but inconsistent in size."
"Fantastic book and patterns."
"OH MY GOSH ~ what a wonderful book !!!!!!"
"My girlfriend loves this book and has made several of the designs that are included in the book."
"ABSOLUTELY LOVE and will be ordering Kerry Lord's other book so I can crochet some wonderful looking birds for my grandbabies!"
"I have found a couple pattern errors and agree with other posts that there could be more pictures for direction and details."
You will learn how to sew your own felt rabbit along with her exquisite wardrobe including 20 garment and accessory sewing patterns. Sarah Peel is a trained pattern cutter and ex-fashion buyer, avid stitcher, expert rice pudding maker and overall creative.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Awesome patterns and great illustrations!"
"Adorable little friend to make and love or give away to some lucky child."
"Quality paper and printing."
"What a great book if you are in to this type of craft."
"Love this book."
"Fun book with cute patterns and good instructions."
"Have not started yet."
"Easy to understand instructions and so cute."
In this book you will find not only a charming selection of crochet patterns to create scrabbling beetles, beautiful bugs and fluttering butterfly crochet amigurumi, but also a wonderful story to read out loud and ponder on: a tale about growing up; accepting change and the power of dreams. Lydia Tresselt, lalylala.com, is the talented designer behind the internationally popular brand of amigurumi crochet patterns, Lalylala.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"The book is very thoughtfully created. (I'm actually tempted to get the ebook version so I don't ruin the book!)."
"Absolutely stunning book."
"Included in the book's 128 pages are detailed descriptions of each project, including supplies lists, as well as beautifully illustrative photos for each tutorial. The book also includes a little story about a hatching caterpillar and the insects and creatures she encounters, written by the author's husband. The first 25% of the book is introduction and technique, supply choice, finishing and general instructions with tips."
"I love that the story in this book is so educational for children!"
"A little story, cute bugs to crochet and a biology lesson."
"Not just a book of patterns - I love the little story illustrated with these cuties."
"I got very good results from the patterns and hope that Ms. Tresselt releases other books in the future."
Best Craft & Hobby Rugs
Every weaver weaves a rag rug--or two, or three. "...his enthusiasm, encouragement, and personal advice make it seem like weaving a rag rug is very, very doable." "The history and instruction alone make Weaving Rag Rugs well worth owning, but the crowning glories of this book are the thirty-two projects, woven by Tom and friends, that show the wide-ranging possibilities of this homely art...Whether you're an experienced rug weaver or rug weaving has just been on your bucket list, this book is a perfect combination of how-to, eye candy (loom candy), and a darn good read." "Anyone considering weaving a rag rug would do well to have Tom Knisely's book in their hands to guide them along the way...Knisely's warm personality and teaching strengths are apparent throughout the book...Inspired by Knisely's supportive tone and instructions, the only problem weavers should have with this book is deciding which project to tackle first."
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Tom Knisely makes weaving an exciting adventure."
"Tom Knisely has put together a wonderful resource full of TONS of photos- really above and beyond."
"I'm a beginner with the wrong kind of loom for it's content."
"Wonderfully written book on how to weave rugs well."
"Interesting concept in weaving by one of the best weaver's out there."
"He gives such clear, precise information about all aspects of rug making plus an AMAZING collection of beautiful rugs with detailed instructions on creating each one of them."
"Another winner from Tom Knisely!"
"This was recommended to me by a number of weavers -- and they were right!"
Best Craft & Hobby Mobiles
Some creative ideas for your lanterns: You can have some creative fun by thinking up some further ideas such as: 1.Hanging one lantern inside a larger one. 4.Making the lantern into a permanent shape by placing a folded cylinder of contrasting coloured paper inside the lantern and gluing at the top and bottom.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"This book is wonderful, is so easy do the paper lanterns because the explication is perfect."
"it was ok but i guess i wanted more than it offered."
Best Craft & Hobby Ribbons
Now you and your family can eat healthy meals with simple and delicious five ingredient recipes. •Healthy and common ingredients. •Easy to follow, step-by-step directions. •100 healthy recipes in 5 ingredients or less to be use with your instant pot. Less is more because you will be spending less time shopping and cooking, and more time eating healthy foods with your family!
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"On the off chance that you would prefer not to need to utilize a huge amount of fixings or time, this is an extraordinary cookbook for you."
"These 5 ingredients recipes delicious, I get this book on the demand of my husband because He needs some delicious and healthy food."
"Still trying new things in my Instant Pot."
"Also on the plus side, there are a lot of recipes for side dishes and beans, which is nice to see. I would call Easy Soft-Boiled Eggs and Baked Avocado Eggs breakfast recipes, and think Caramelized Onions are more an ingredient than a side dish on their own, but whatever, there are still a lot of side dishes, although darn few with rice. Be aware that, some recipes appear to be problematic. Creamy Source Rice, what is that? You dump a package (doesn't say what size) of french fries in the pot, drizzle a tablespoon of oil over them, then season with salt and pepper, finally spreading a package (again, size is up to you) of shredded cheese over the top. I can think of no way this recipe will be a success, with soggy fries (likely burned on the bottom) and separated, oily cheese."
"This is one of the best book in my kindle collection because the book is a big value addition in my kindle collection thanks."
"The recipes are easy to follow and delicious."
Best Craft & Hobby Reference
Choose the proper tools and set up your workbench Ensure personal safety and use proper eye and ear protection Understand how electrical components work and why they fail Perform preliminary diagnoses based on symptoms Use test equipment, including digital multimeters, ESR meters, frequency counters, and oscilloscopes. His involvement in ham radio led to his writing career, first with articles for ham radio magazines, and then with general technology features in Electronic Engineering Times, Desktop Engineering, IEEE Spectrum, and The Envisioneering Newsletter. Along with building and repairing electronic circuitry, he enjoys table tennis, restoring antique mopeds, ice skating, bicycling, and banging out a jazz tune on his harpsichord.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I NEVER thought of circuits this way and the author was able to explain that the active elements are the players in the story and everything else is a supporting cast. Bottom line, this is the book that I couldn't put down...and it is about some of the driest material you can find. I cannot recommend this book enough and I would pay triple just for the section where the author walks through a couple sample circuits, describes each component's function, and what would happen if that component failed."
"Well written and organized."
"Read it slowly and use it as a reference."
"B&W pictures of some of the older devices are understandable but most of the pictures could've easily been replaced with new coloured ones."
"Needed so to learn more about plc.."
"Good book that gives some insight to those new to troubleshooting."
"the Item Excellent and the seller is good thank you."
"Informative!"
Best Craft & Hobby Painting
This beautifully illustrated and inspiring guided watercolor-a-day book is perfect for beginning watercolor artists, artists who want to improve their watercolor skills, and visual creatives. “To the outside observer, Jenna Rainey’s work seems completely effortless, but it is in fact built on an extremely solid foundation of techniques, materials, and color theory.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"In EVERYDAY WATERCOLOR: LEARN TO PAINT WATERCOLOR IN 30 DAYS, author Jenna Rainey gives us a step-by-step approach to learning how to paint. By Day Thirty, we are finalizing our “Jungle Piece.”. So all in all, I found EVERYDAY WATERCOLOR to be an outstanding book. All it takes is practice, a lot of passion, dedication, and most importantly, patience.”. The author concludes the book with this encouragement: “Keep painting and dedicating this practice to yourself as an artist and creative individual.” I appreciate the author’s helpfulness, and warm encouragement."
"In this technique, you paint in the darkest part, then use clean water to wet the lighter areas, and a final stroke joins the two to create a bleed of the dark into the wet areas. In the lessons, you learn how to paint various leaves, flowers (roses, paradise flower), plants (trees, cacti), fruit (papaya, dragon fruit), animals (chickens, hummingbird, toucan, elephant, macaw), and several landscape or collage-like paintings using these objects. She frequently urged "add lots of water," leaving it mostly up to the reader to figure out how to keep the paint from escaping the desired bounds."
"However, what I found more important is that it doesn’t only teach but also entices you to start practicing: – It gives a defined time frame “30 days of watercolors”, so you can see the goal. – The example images are not intimidating and portrait only what you are supposed to learn (not astonishing pieces that obviously required more knowledge than what they teach and you go “no way I can do something like that” and give up). It doesn’t focus on making you achieve a specific stylized design, but if you want to build solid foundations in watercolor and go beyond the examples provided, then go for it!."
Best Craft Framing
Kistler, a leading framing expert and author of numerous books and articles on the subject, teaches the do-it-yourselfer to frame like a pro. Vivian is the author of numerous books and videos, including the seven-volume Library of Professional Picture Framing. Her monthly articles appear in Art World News, Picture Framing Magazine and Profile magazine.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"While the author of this work sadly passed away a few years ago, the book is not in the least outdated and is as clear and as comprehensive as one could possibly wish."
"I don't know if you could call this the definitive framing publication, but it's a pretty good starter for beginners, such as myself, and should enthuse you to delve deeper into the creation of your own frames."
"Good, easy to read and use guide on framing."
"I joined a local art gallery recently and found that if I sent my photos to be framed I might as well just give the products away."
"A lot of info with great pictures to help you see what is going on."
"If you have framing experience, this book won't tell you much you don't already know."
"A great overview of framing."
"I absolutely love this Guide."
Best Pottery & Ceramic Craft
"Millefiori" means, one thousand flowers", this technique is used in Venetian glass work, and can be applied to polymer clay. In this book you will learn how to use your cane slices and designed clay sheets to make beautiful beaded jewelry, cover glass objects, and create a variety of home decorations.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I liked that this book gave clear instructions on the basic cane designs and that each cane built upon the previous one (s)."
"This is a small book with compact, with very clear and basic information."
"This is a great instructional book."
"this is exactly what i was looking for--straight, simple easy to follow instructions with many photos."
"Nicely written, very good instructions & photo's."
"I wish there were more stars to give this book."
"This book teaches you how to make a *cane* with a flower inside. it's a good reference book, and it has some good ideas, but I wished I had in paperback edition."
"Excellent reference & great instructions for the intermediate polymer clay artist."
Best Jewelry Craft
Masterfully weaving together pop science and history, Stoned breaks history into three categories—Want, Take, and Have—and explains what the diamond on your finger has to do with the GI Bill, why green-tinted jewelry has been exalted by so many cultures, why the glass beads that bought Manhattan for the Dutch were initially considered a fair trade, and how the French Revolution started over a coveted necklace. “Raden’s commentary on the often ugly side of human desire through the ages is consistently captivating, and her witty delivery makes the material shine.” (Publishers Weekly). What makes a stone a jewel? In this brilliant account of how eight jewels shaped the course of history, jeweler and scientist Aja Raden tells an original and often startling story about our unshakeable addiction to beauty and the darker side of human desire. With sharp wit and a light touch, Raden weaves together history, science, and economics to explore our enduring love affair with beautiful things, and shows us that just like their glittering surfaces, jewels have a singular power to reflect our desires back to us and show us who we really are.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I picked up Aja Raden's Stoned expecting a history of jewelry and was pleasantly surprised to find an in-depth social history of how human perceptions of value, desire and innovation have shaped the modern world. She starts with the beads that bought Manhattan (and in doing so makes a compelling case that it might not have been quite the con we think of it today) and ends with the wristwatch and its role in making modern warfare, aviation, navigation and personal private time possible."
"Personally, I rarely read non fiction books for the simple fact that they aren’t usually very captivating."
"This book started off snarky but interesting and ended up being educational and funny and I enjoyed it a lot."
"I am still reading the book."
"Many of the stories Ms. Arden tells were familiar to me but to read them from from her perspective and with her research gave the stories new meaning and proved to be a delightful read."
"This book has a lot more general world history than I expected."
"Not as informative as I had hoped."
"In depth research on several popular stones."
Best Cross-Stitch
This is because crocheting afghans is presented by most crochet books as a very difficult and arduous process that can only be accomplished after mastering many different kinds of crochet stitches. Whether you are just learning how to crochet, have mastered crochet for beginners, or know every stitch in the book, Crochet Afghans can help you improve your technique and learn how to crochet an afghan in less than one day. This is why this book is perfect for anyone who wants to learn how to crochet afghans , whether they have no crocheting experience, or having been crocheting for decades. Now, all you have to do is read Crochet Afghans and you will be able to follow even complex crochet patterns. To speed up the process, the book also includes a full list of pattern abbreviations , to explain the crochet terminology that patterns and other crocheters use. Here are only a few of Crochet Afghans’ benefits: • Full-color illustrations and diagrams. • Teaches how to choose yarn and how much to buy. • Beginning and advanced crochet techniques. • Teaches how to start your afghan. • 22 gorgeous Afghan patterns from beginner to advanced level. • Teaches how to find more patterns. • Best yarn color combinations. • How to divide a crocheted afghan. • Most common crocheting mistakes and how to avoid them. • How to start and finish any kind of afghan.. Together theywould figure them out, and then, soon, Emma did not need her grandmother's helpwith the patterns any more, and they could just sit side by side and crochet.Emma Brown's knowledge of crochetingis more extensive than most and was built by trial and error-so she knows what reallyworks for someone who is first starting to learn or who wants to progress from thebasics to more advanced patterns and techniques. She has started crocheting circlein just about every city she's lived in, passing her knowledge on to others, beforedeciding to write a book that would encompass the entirety of experience and expertise.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"This book has what about 95% of the other books don't have--photos! Ms. Brown has included enough of each element of crochet needed to make this book of value to everyone who is just above beginner to experienced crochet. There is really something for everyone in this book."
"This book is perfect for a total beginner. All you have to do while trying a pattern from the book is look at the beginning to clear out all the information before you start."
"I have been crocheting for a while and I have always wanted to make a Crochet afghan but I've never really got the courage to."
"Wonderful for the beginner, and excellent for busy people that have a desire to offer a homemade gift but are short on time."
"Very interesting and really could understand the directions and explanations."
"I loved that there was a provided link to videos for the different kinds of ways to stitch, to give me a little more help, its different when you can watch someone else do it just to make sure you're doing it right."
"Great descriptions of all stitches and patterns with links to video for more detail."
"I have been crocheting for many years and my crocheting books are over 20+ years old."
Best Crocheting
With bright, modern, full color illustrations, anyone can quickly learn to crochet, master new stitches and make a selection of cute and easy first crochet projects, including beautiful scented hanging hearts, baby hats, granny squares, scarves and mittens and lots more !. Alison McNicol is an expert in teaching crochet, knitting and sewing, and has written a series of best-selling craft books for adults and children.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I’m a complete crochet novice so I loved the clear and easy to follow illustrations which were so easy to follow."
"Working on Christmas gifts. Thank you for such a easy to understand book!"
"sorry I did not buy 2 or 3 to give as gifts great book for learning how to crochet."
"I like this book because it is simple and it shows step by step how to do the stiches."
"Great book to learn how to crochet."
"Love how easy it sounds to crochet."
"I have been using this as a reference book and because this is the Kindle version it is easy to reference and bookmark."
Best Fun with Paper & Wood, Stones & Knives
Make your own custom-tailored and perfectly formed cold-process soaps! Further information, including videos of the soapmaking process, is available at the author’s website.VERDICTFaiola’s enthusiasm for her subject is apparent, and with her guidance, beginners will easily take to this craft.” — Library Journal. Anne-Marie Faiola, The Soap Queen, makes cold-process soapmaking accessible and fun with complete descriptions of the entire process, from selecting your oils to staying safe when working with lye.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"The beautiful and stunning directives in this book really turned on my inner creativity, and I was ready to get to business. Firstly, I only used the EXACT ingredients listed by the author, who incidentally owns Brambleberry, which she guiltlessly plugs every chance she gets. The delivery time is unbelievably long, so expect to wait at least a week before you can do any of the recipes you have saved up with those specialty ingredients. I waited a week and a half for one fragrance oil, which was supposedly in stock, but they didn't ship until 5 days after my order placed. It's a basic swirl made by pouring, and I've had enough soap success to figure I could do that one easily. Also, the most useful part of the whole book, aside from color techniques, is an in-depth look at the properties of the oils used in soap making. Basically, the recipes are a nice starting point, but you might check the percentages and double-check the suggested FO to make sure it doesn't accelerate trace. To use the beautiful color patterns listed in the book, you need to have the longest trace possible to give you time to work."
"It has complete recipes and techniques for making a number of gorgeous and varied soaps, and a plethera of facts, tips, and information you can clearly see and easily find."
"My wife and I started making soap a couple of years ago and now we want to start doing some interesting color."
"Some of the projects in this book are similar to the ones on the blog, still I am happy to have this book as a reference and for inspiration."
"Lot's of different recipes."
"Before I ordered the book, I printed out a bunch of info and recipes from her blog and put it in a binder, but ended up ordering this book anyway and I'm so glad I did."
"The quality, glossy paper, photography, detailed instruction and information was excellent!"
Best Lace & Tatting
Learn how to work from a knitting chart; instructions for 15 striking shawls are charted and written out Get tips for choosing the right yarn--from fiber content to color--plus tips on using stitch markers, making shawls bigger, and more Make great gifts; find a variety of knitted-shawl patterns to suit yourself and your friends. Find lovely knitted-shawl patterns designed specifically for today's popular sock-weight yarns.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I also love the fact that Jen Lucas had the forethought to add in to each pattern a section on how to make your shawl bigger."
"I particularly like that there are both charts and written instructions for all of them.I have completed several and have found no errors in the patterns -- which is common in patterns I've gotten online."
"The kindle version charts lose all contrast and are difficult to follow."
"Great variety of patterns well written and detailed pics!"
"Great photos, nice projects, and clear directions."
"Did not realize these patterns were for intermediate knitters."
"The pattern instructions are a little confusing since she gives you the lace pattern before the instructions for starting the shawl and carrying on."
"The two color shawl is my favorite one, but I have sat here for 10 minutes and I can’t make heads or tails of that written pattern portion as far as how to order the sections, and I have done plenty of pieces that are as complex as those here."
Best Leathercrafting
Aetheric ray deflector solid brass goggles Calibrated indicator gauges Ferromagnetic self-scribing automated encyclopedia (or, the Steampunk book drive) High voltage electro-static cannon (or, the lamp gun) Tesla-pod chrono-static insulating field generator (or, the mobile device enclosure) Altitude mask with integrated respiratory augmentation Armoured pith helmet Mark I superior replacement arm with integrated Gatling gun attachment. Thomas Willeford has degrees in physics, history, and art.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"The pages hidden between the lovely covers are full of fun and amazingly well layed out projects created, innovated and presented in a wonderfully easy to follow and incredibly well written and thought out style."
"Steampunk Gear, Gadgets, and Gizmos: A Maker's Guide to Creating Modern Artifacts. I've bought lots of DIY books, and read many steampunk books."
"Willeford's step-by-step, cautions and how-to hints are a treasure and we are all the better for his opening the doors of Grimmelore Manor to show us what's inside that genius brain of his."
"It's really remarkable how some of those concepts eventually materialized (portable wireless communication devices, flying machines, trips into outer space, etc.). This book - Steampunk Gear, Gadgets, And Gizmos - is a great look at the designs, and means to create and build your own, Steampunk styled stuff."
"This book contains 12 step-by-step projects for building your own steampunk artefacts from the essential goggles right up to a steam powered artificial arm with gatling gun."
"I started getting into steampunk and wanted a book with some info to make steampunk accessories."
"Really nice to organize my make up and personal items in a small space."
"Also, the cannon on the helmet decoration can be substituted with a different item, or you can find a how-to video on YouTube of Mr. W showing how to make a mini cannon out of a brass rod!"
Best Dried Flowers
HOW TO GET RID OF HPV AS SOON AS POSSIBLE : The new ways to get rid of Human Papillomarvirus (HPV) within 7 months. Read For FREE with Kindle Unlimited Subscription. For a limited time you can download “ HOW TO GET RID OF HPV AS SOON AS POSSIBLE : The new ways to get rid of Human Papillomarvirus (HPV) within 7 months " for Special Discounted Price of Only $ 3.59 from the full price $ 6.99.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I MUST FIRST READ FOR BASIC EASY FOR ME AND AFTER I CAN READ A BOOKS ANYTIME."
"It's a basic eat vegetarian book by someone who speaks limited English."
Best Candle Making
Choose the right soapmaking equipment Blend colors and aromatic scents Create all kinds of soap, from bath soap to facial cleanser Make soaps for holidays and special occasions. Alicia Grosso has been creating handmade soap and toiletries for more than a decade.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"This book taught me how to make soap."
"This is a decent book for anyone interested in soapmaking."
"It is very comprehensive in explaining any information a new soapmaker might need, including safety information, and I believe has enough info included that even someone who's been making soap for awhile might learn something new."
"Excellent book with lots of good information and recipes."
"The book was very informative, easy to understand, told me exactly what I would need to make soap."
"This is an excellent book for beginners in soap making like me."
"So much information.. great for a beginner in CP soap making."
"I like the book very much , It has the basic information + many recipes 👌👌."