Art & Photography Books
Watkins Media Limited Rosslyn Chapel Decoded: New Interpretations of a
Book SynopsisIn the 15th century a new home was built for the priceless holy relics taken from Jerusalem centuries before - a building that, to the initiated, would explain everything about what had gone before and a structure that would be a recreation of the Herodian Temple on the Mount in Jerusalem. This is Rosslyn Chapel and here are its secrets.
£17.09
Bloodaxe Books Ltd Too Brave to Dream
Book SynopsisWhen R.S. Thomas died in 2000, two seminal studies of modern art were found on his bookshelves - Herbert Read's Art Now (1933) and Surrealism (1936), edited by Read and containing essays by key figures in the Surrealist movement. Some three dozen previously unknown poems handwritten by Thomas were then discovered between the pages of the two books, poems written in response to a selection of the many reproductions of modern art in the Read volumes, including works by Henry Moore, Edvard Munch, George Grosz, Salvador Dali, Rene Magritte and Graham Sutherland - many of whom were Thomas's near contemporaries. These poems are published here for the first time - alongside the works of modern art that inspired them. Thomas's readings of these often unsettling images demonstrate a willingness to confront, unencumbered by illusions, a world in which old certainties have been undermined. Personal identity has become a source of anguish, and relations between the sexes a source of disquiet and suspicion.Thomas's vivid engagements with the works of art produce a series of dramatic encounters haunted by the recurring presence of conflict and by the struggle of the artist who, in a frequently menacing world, is 'too brave to dream'. At times we are offered an unflinching vision of 'a landscape God / looked at once and from which / later he withdrew his gaze'.
£10.80
Laurence King Publishing Digital Textile Design, Second edition
Book Synopsis Digital Textile Design, Second Edition covers everything students and practitioners of textile design will need to learn about designing and printing digitally. The book examines how designers can access this technique, looking at the work of those currently exploring its possibilities, and provides an insight into the technology involved in digital textile printing.
£24.00
Laurence King Publishing Printed Textile Design
Book SynopsisThis book explains the fundamentals of printed textile design, from design brief through to the completed collection, and introduces the basics of color, drawing, composition, and repeat with a series of step-by-step exercises and examples.Printed Textile Design helps to demystify the design process and provides an invaluable guide to the study and practice of textile design.The book includes case studies of designers working in both the fashion and interiors sectors. It covers hand and traditional print techniques and the latest digital print technologies, with specially commissioned photographs of the processes. All aspects of textile design are covered, from sustainability to manufacturing and marketing the finished product.
£28.00
Laurence King Publishing Furniture Design: An Introduction to Development,
Book SynopsisFurniture Design is a comprehensive guide and resource for students and furniture designers. As well as discussing pioneering contemporary and historical designs, it also provides substantive answers to designers'' questions about function, materials, manufacture and sustainability, integrating guidance on all of these subjects – particularly material and manufacturing properties – in one accessible and structured volume. Many leading contemporary furniture designers from around the world are included, with case studies carefully selected to highlight the importance of both material and manufacture-led design processes. The book is also intended to provide an insight into furniture design for those considering a college education in product and industrial design.
£28.00
Laurence King Publishing Landscape Architecture
Book SynopsisAimed at prospective and new students, this book gives a comprehensive introduction to the nature and practise of landscape architecture, the professional skills required and the latest developments.After discussing the history of the profession, the book explains the design process through principles such as hierarchy, human scale, unity, harmony, asymmetry, color, form, and texture. It looks at how design is represented through both drawing and modeling, and through digital techniques such as CAD and the use of GIS (Geographic Information Systems). This is followed by an examination of project management and landscape management techniques. Finally, the book explores educational and employment opportunities and the future of the profession in the context of climate change and sustainability.Illustrated with international examples of completed projects, Landscape Architecture provides an invaluable, one-stop resource for anyone considering studying or a car
£32.00
Laurence King Publishing Art Since 1980 (paperback)
Book SynopsisArt Since 1980 charts the story of art in contemporary global culture while holding up a mirror to our society. With over 300 pictures of painting, photography and sculpture, as well as installation, performance and video art, we are led on an illuminating journey via the individuals and communities who have shaped art internationally.The political and cultural transformations of the early 1980s developed a new era of accord between communist states and western-style economics. The art world has since been reconceived and today we see record-breaking sales of contemporary art and a dramatic rise in the number of students taking courses in the visual and performing arts.Kalb approaches art from multiple angles, addressing issues of artistic production, display, critical reception and social content. Alongside his analysis of specific works of art, he also builds a framework for readers to increase their knowledge and enhance critical and theoretical thinking.
£44.00
Laurence King Publishing ReFashioned: Cutting-Edge Clothing from Upcycled
Book SynopsisThe area of recycling and upcycling is a rich and growing source of innovative design in the fashion and accessories industries.In a fast-fashion world of throw-away clothing, it is the ultimate expression of the slow-fashion movement, with each piece individually conceived and crafted from scratch, using different materials each time.ReFashioned features 46 international designers who work with recycled materials and discarded garments, reinvigorating them with new life and value. The result is beautiful and desirable clothing and accessories that also make an important statement to the fashion world about its wasteful and exploitative practices.
£28.00
Orion Publishing Co Airline: Style at 30,000 Feet
Book SynopsisThis fascinating book examines every aspect of airline style, from the company liveries and interior designs of planes to advertising, haute couture and airborne haute cuisine. Divided into four sections covering fashion, food, interior design and identity, Airline shows how airborne culture has changed since the 1920s. The book spans the conservative to the outrageous, from saris to hotpants, from Hugh Hefner's private jet to the huge Airbus A380. A wide selection of retro styles are illustrated with illuminating archive material and images of ephemera. Airline uncovers the style, image and experience of the parallel universe that exists at 30,000 feet.Table of ContentsIntroduction Fashion Food Interiors Identity Acknowledgements Bibliography Index
£13.49
Orion Publishing Co Read This if You Want to Be Instagram Famous
Book SynopsisOver 100,000 copies sold! So you've got an Instagram account, you're posting pictures, but your follower count has flatlined. Read This If You Want to Be Instagram Famous holds the answers to fixing up your feed and finding thousands of new followers. Packed with the essential secrets of the hottest Instagrammers around, the book features tips covering photographic techniques, captioning, codes of conduct, kit and managing your account. Put the advice into practice and soon you too will be hailed as an Instagram icon. Read This If You Want to Be Instagram Famous is part of the internationally-bestselling ‘Read This’ series, which has sold over half-a-million books worldwide and has been translated into over 20 languages. Coming soon: Read This if You Want to Be Great at Drawing People by Selwyn Leamy (September 2019) More titles in the ‘Read This’ series: Read This if You Want to Take Great Photographs by Henry Carroll (9781780673356) Read This if You Want to Take Great Photographs of People by Henry Carroll (9781780676241) Read This if You Want to Take Great Photographs of Places by Henry Carroll (9781780679051) Use This if You Want to Take Great Photographs: A Photo Journal by Henry Carroll (9781780678887) Read This if You Want to Be Great at Drawing by Selwyn Leamy (9781786270542) Use This if You Want to Be Great at Drawing by Selwyn Leamy (9781786274052) Read This if You Want to Be a Great Writer by Ross Raisin (9781786271976) Read This if You Want to Be Instagram Famous edited by Henry Carroll (9781780679679)
£10.79
Oneworld Publications Nineteenth-Century Art: A Beginner's Guide
Book SynopsisMunch's The Scream. Van Gogh's Starry Night. Rodin's The Thinker. Monet’s water lilies. Constable's landscapes. The nineteenth-century gave us a wealth of artistic riches so memorable in their genius that we can picture many of them at an instant. However, at the time their avant-garde nature was the cause of much controversy. Professor Laurie Schneider Adams brings vividly to life the paintings, sculpture, photography and architecture of the period vividly with her infectious enthusiasm for art and detailed explorations of individual works. Offering fascinating biographical details and the relevant social, political and cultural context, Adams provides the reader with an understanding of both how revolutionary the works were at the time and of their enduring appeal.
£9.49
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC The Ethics of Visuality: Levinas and the Contemporary Gaze
Book SynopsisOur world is saturated with images. Overwhelmed by this proliferation of visual stimuli, our gaze becomes increasingly bored and distracted. Do we ever really read and engage with images? Can they ever provide the sense of meaningfulness we crave? French-Jewish philosopher Emmanuel Levinas confronted and subverted these questions. A superficial reading of his works might indicate an ambivalence if not a wholesale critique of the visual, whose mode of signification remains, for him, objectified, finite and flat. Yet an enigmatic statement - 'Ethics is an optics' - recurred throughout his work. Hagi Kenaan takes this mysterious idea as the starting point for a strikingly original philosophical argument on the place of visuality in Levinas' ethics. The Ethics of Visuality analyses Levinas' philosophy of the human face in order to show how his vision of 'Otherness'(alterity and transcendence) can open up for us a new and surprising kind of optics that is so needed for an ethical living in the contemporary world. Where other critical approaches have largely undermined Levinas' ambivalence towards the visual, The Ethics of Visuality uncovers the relevance of Levinas' bias against the visual to developing a radical philosophy/theory of visual meaning in which the aesthetic is always already intertwined with the ethical.Trade ReviewAn excellent book. The questions it asks are most acute and they renew the analysis of the question of the Face in Levinas's philosophy, which is quite an achievement. Dr Hagi Kenaan is not content with explaining the main lines of Levinas's thought on the Face, he proposes a fine phenomenological approach of what it means "to see" in general and what it means to see a Face in particular, while giving concrete examples which is a very good pedagogical approach too. His knowledge of the different phenomenological philosophers is excellent and he refers to them in a most appropriate way. His analysis of the act of speaking (dibour) and of its subtle and necessary link to the Face, is also very well done. I also want to underline Dr Hagi Kenaan's qualities of explanations and rational deductions in his book. This is a fine and clever book. Professor Catherine Chalier, Professor of Philosophy, University of Paris X- Nanterre Kenaan's brilliant study reveals what Levinas' 'ethical turn' has to teach us about the ethical potential of the visual. His study offers nothing less than a guide for restoring us to an ethics of vision in our postmodern world. It is an urgent, compelling and, ultimately, hopeful work. Martin Berger, Professor and Chair, History of Art and Visual Culture, University of California at Santa Cruz. The Ethics of Visuality is an extraordinary achievement. The author offers a brilliant meditation not only on Levinas' thought but also through it, engaging and going beyond it, culminating in profound insights. It is a must-read for anyone seriously interested not only in visuality but also in the very condition of what it means to speak with responsibility about appearance. Lewis R. Gordon, Professor of Philosophy, African American Studies and Judaic Studies at the University of Connecticut at Storrs and author of Disciplinary Decadence.Table of ContentsContents Preface: The Rule of the Frontal Ethics is an Optics: Preliminary Remarks Face 1: The Gleam of Infinity Face 2: How a Face Looks Face 3: Face and Object Face 4: Why A Face, All of a Sudden Face 5: Vision, Gaze, Other Face 6: Face and Resistance Face 7: Outside Talk 1The Face of Language Talk 2Expression Talk 3The First Word Talk 4Saying and Betraying Talk 5Word, Window, Screen Talk 6Listening to a Big Bird Talk 7The Open References
£22.79
Collective Ink Architecture of Failure, The
Book SynopsisAgainst those who consider architecture to be a wholly optimistic activity, this book shows how the history of modern architecture is inextricably tied to ideas of failure and ruin. By means of an original reading of the earliest origins of modernism, the Architecture of Failure exposes the ways in which failure has been suppressed, ignored and denied in the way we design our cities. It examines the 19th century fantasy architecture of the iron and glass exhibition palaces, strange, unprecedented, dream-like structures, almost all now lost, existing only as melancholy archive fragments; it traces the cultural legacy of these buildings through the heroics of the early 20th century, post-war radicals and recent developments, discussing related themes in art, literature, politics and philosophy. Critiquing the capitalist symbolism of the self-styled contemporary avant-garde, the book outlines a new history of contemporary architecture, and attempts to recover a radical approach to understanding what we build. Douglas Murphy blogs at http://www.youyouidiot.blogspot.com/
£11.39
Collective Ink Claude Cahun – The Soldier with No Name
Book SynopsisClaude Cahun is the most important artist you've never heard of - until now. Writer, photographer, lesbian; revolutionary activist, surrealist, resistance fighter - Cahun witnessed the birth of the Paris avant-garde, lived through two World Wars and, as 'Der Soldat ohne Namen', risked death by inciting mutiny on Nazi-occupied Jersey. And yet, she's until recently been merely a peripheral figure in these world-shaping events, relegated by academics to the footnotes in the history of art, sexual politics and revolutionary movements of the last century. Now more so than ever, Cahun demands a significant presence in the history of surrealism and the avant-garde - even, in the literary canon of early twentieth-century literature. Indeed her one major book, Disavowals, is a masterpiece of anti-memoir writing. Much has been made of her as a photographer, but Claude Cahun 'the writer' was one of the most radical and prescient leftists of the century. At a time when her star is rising like never before Claude Cahun: The Soldier With No Name represents the first explicit attempt in English to posit Cahun as an important figure in her own right, and to popularise one of the most prescient and influential artists of her generation.
£7.99
Collective Ink Animatic Apparatus, The: Animation, Vitality, and
Book SynopsisUnprecedented kinds of experience, and new modes of life, are now produced by simulations, from the CGI of Hollywood blockbusters to animal cloning to increasingly sophisticated military training software, while animation has become an increasingly powerful pop-cultural form. Today, the extraordinary new practices and radical objects of simulation and animation are transforming our neoliberal-biopolitical “culture of life”. The Animatic Apparatus offers a genealogy for the animatic regime and imagines its alternative futures, countering the conservative-neoliberal notion of life’s sacred inviolability with a new concept and ethics of animatic life.
£9.49
Titan Books Ltd The Art of Jim Burns: Hyperluminal
Book SynopsisThis is a new collection of art from one of the UK's most acclaimed sci-fi artists featuring everything from his initial sketches to his final works and published book covers. It includes covers from the SF greats - Greg Bear, Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett, Anne McCaffrey, Robert Silverberg, Joe Haldeman, John Meaney, Ricardo Pinto, Peter F Hamilton, and Timothy Zahn and many more.Trade Review"Sci-Fi and Fantasy artist looking for the next big thing to draw or paint, look no further than "The Art of Jim Burns."" - Retrenders "Visually stunning" - The Last Thing I See "Yet another visually stunning, well put together offering from Titan Books" - Giant Freakin' Robot
£21.24
Profile Books Ltd Art in History, 600 BC - 2000 AD: Ideas in
Book SynopsisIdeas in Profile: Small Introductions to Big Topics Art has always been part of history. But we often think of it as outside history. When we look at a painting by Raphael, Rembrandt or Rubens it speaks to us directly, but it's also an historical document, part of a living world. Renowned art historian Martin Kemp takes the reader on an extraordinary trip through art, from devotional works to the revolutionary techniques of the Renaissance, from the courtly Masters of the seventeenth century through to the daring avant-garde of the twentieth century and beyond. Along the way we encounter the great names of art history: Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo; Vermeer and Velasquez; Picasso and Pollock. We get under the skin of the many 'isms', schools, styles and epochs. We see the complex sweep of art history with its innovations, collaborations, rivalries, break-throughs and masterpieces. Above all, Kemp puts art in context; art isn't about disembodied images, art itself is history. Part of the Ideas in Profile series, uniquely enlivened with animations and illustrations from the award winning studio Cognitive Media, Art in History is an indispensable, accessible and richly detailed guide to our culture, our history, our heritage and our art. Also available in two ebook formats. Please note that ISBN 9781782831020 is for the usual ebook format and 9781781254110 is for an enhanced edition with additional video and audio which should be used only with tablet devices that are capable of playing this additional content.Trade ReviewA succinct subjective history of art. * Art Quarterly *
£10.44
Fonthill Media Ltd Merseyrail Electric: The Award-Winning Network
Book SynopsisThe self-contained, fully electrified Merseyrail system is an iconic part of the UK's railway network. With 75 route miles of track, sixty-nine stations, and over 800 services, it is the third largest rail system outside London and the South East, transporting around 100,000 passengers safely, efficiently, and to the highest environmental standards on any typical working day. Radiating from the city of Liverpool, it serves the Wirral and parts of Cheshire and West Lancashire, where it has gained numerous awards for reliability, punctuality, and passenger satisfaction. And the future of Merseyrail looks bright: state-of-the-art Class 777 electric multiple units are entering service and extensions of the network are being planned. 'Merseyrail Electric: The Award-Winning Network' is the definitive book on this magnificent network, examining with an expert's eye its development, its rolling stock, and its exciting future.Table of ContentsIn the Beginning; Onwards; Operations; Gallery-Northern Line; Gallery-Wirral Line; Merseyrail Miscellany; Bibliography.
£17.00
Fonthill Media Ltd The Railways of Northern England in the 1960s
Book SynopsisA photo-book created by an internationally renowned authority from his own archive that covers the railways of Northern England (both BR & Industrial) in the mid-1950s and 1960s. It is full of stunning images of yesteryear in both colour and black & white, virtually all unpublished, and is accompanied with extensive and informative commentaries.
£16.00
Octopus Publishing Group Creative Photography
Book SynopsisTo earn a living these days, your photography has to rise above a lot of noise, so you need all the advantages you can get. Here, Dan M. Lee gives you back-to-back hard-hitting ideas that are proven to make every shot in your portfolio a stand-out image that grabs attention and wins new clients.Clients recognize and reward creativity. It''s not enough to be competent with a camera: you need to experiment, find new perspectives, and innovate your workflow if you want to stay competitive. Whether that''s using drones for aerial viewpoints, or creating perfect 360-degree real-estate images, this book gives you the edge you need to make it as a professional photographer.
£16.19
Octopus Publishing Group Urban Photography
Book SynopsisThe urban environment offers an exciting array of subjects to photograph, even in the smallest of towns. In the time it takes to walk a street or two, you can photograph panoramic skylines, people up close, at work or play, abstract architectural details, frenetic street activity, peaceful park scenes and so much more. You can capture elements of the past and present through the city''s architecture in one carefully composed street scene, then, within minutes, frame up the most recognisable landmark in the city. This book gives you the practical skills and creative techniques you need to capitalize on the beautiful world right on your doorstep.
£16.99
Octopus Publishing Group Photography Now: Fifty Pioneers Defining
Book SynopsisIn the last century, photography was always novel. Now, it feels like our world is over-saturated with images. In the 21st century, what can photography do that is new?This extensively illustrated survey answers that question, presenting fifty photographers from around the world who are defining photography today. Their styles, formats, and interpretations of the medium vary widely, but in each case, the work featured in this book represents photography doing what it has always done best: finding new ways to tell stories, and new stories to tell.Artists featured include Nan Goldin, Wolfgang Tillmans, Hassan Hajjaj, Andreas Gursky, Juno Calypso, Ryan McGinley, Zanele Muholi, Shirin Neshat, Catherine Opie, Martin Parr, Cindy Sherman, Hiroshi Sugimoto and Juergen Teller.
£28.00
Octopus Publishing Group Tate: Contemporary Art Decoded
Book SynopsisWhat is contemporary art, and how did art come to be what it is today? How can we understand what a work of art means; and can't just about anything be called art these days?Contemporary Art Decoded takes ten key questions about contemporary art and uses them to what you're looking at, how it works, and why it matters. Steering clear of jargon, this book digs deep into the core ideas and concepts behind the art. It features some work you'll recognise, and some you won't, from some of the most exciting artists working today, such as Olafur Eliasson, Anish Kapoor, Yayoi Kusama and Zanele Muholi.This book is guaranteed to make your next trip to a gallery more rewarding.Chapters include:- What is contemporary art?- Where did it come from?- Where do you draw the line?- Does it matter who makes it?- Does it have to mean something?- Can anything be art?- What about art for art's sake? - Has it all been done before?- Does it have to be so serious?- What's next?
£24.00
Octopus Publishing Group In Camera: How to Get Perfect Pictures Straight
Book SynopsisWith amazing low-light capabilities, incredible definition, intelligent autofocus and a host of other features, digital cameras have now become so powerful that they have left their users behind. Most photographers can take competent shots in a range of conditions, or fix imperfect exposures in Photoshop or Lightroom, but very few have the skill to push their cameras to the limit and capture the perfect shot, under all conditions, with no post-processing required.In Camera is the perfect way to take your photography to that level; to master your camera, understand light, exposure and composition, and make amazing photographs, whatever your camera, without cheating after the event. One hundred of Gordon's beautiful photos are given with his own expert commentary; full settings and camera details are included, and a host of tips and tricks let photographers of any level learn something from every example. The shots are taken with a wide range of cameras, and the emphasis is on getting results by improving your own skills, not wasting money on expensive equipment.
£18.99
Octopus Publishing Group Shooting Film: Everything you need to know about
Book Synopsis'An ideal introduction for anyone looking to explore the medium of film' - Black & White PhotographyIn a world where we are bombarded with visual imagery, making your photos stand out from the crowd is getting harder by the day, but film will give you that edge - and let you discover a whole new way of shooting in the process. In this in-depth and inspirational guide, photography journalist Ben Hawkins and pro photographer Liza Kanaeva-Hunsicker reveal the techniques, tips and secrets for success when shooting film. - Learn to shoot on film, from the essential basics to advanced techniques- Make the right choices with an in-depth guide to buying second-hand cameras- Master the language of film with jargon-free guides to all the vital processes- Be inspired by advice from a top pro who shoots on film- Discover the amazing imagery of the new school of analogue photographers
£17.00
Octopus Publishing Group The Camera Bag Companion
Book SynopsisAn illustrated how-to guide that cuts through the jargon to deliver photography advice in a clear and friendly way.Are you ready for a completely new type of photography book? Imagine having your personal, professional photographer with you whenever you go out to shoot. There to guide you, share their knowledge, and inspire you to take better photographs. In his latest book, Benedict Brain puts himself in your kitbag, with a beautifully illustrated how-to guide that's as essential as any lens or tripod, and cuts through the jargon to deliver clear advice in a friendly, conversational style.
£18.70
Octopus Publishing Group Art is Life
Book SynopsisBestelling author and art critic Jerry Saltz is back, with an ambitious and enlightening survey of the art world over the past twenty years.
£15.29
Poetry Wales Press Try the Wilderness First: Eric Gill and David
Book Synopsis
£11.69
Poetry Wales Press A Hardy Breed
Book Synopsis
£13.50
Search Press Ltd Embroidered Treasures: Animals: Exquisite
Book SynopsisThis fantastic book showcases the prestigious Embroiderers’ Guild’s huge collection of embroidered animals through the ages. Featuring photographs taken especially for the book, items are displayed in full along with detailed images that show off the stunning variety of creatures at their best. Dr Annette Collinge's informative extended captions for each of the pieces give information on the provenance where known, and evaluate the quality of, and variety in, each of the works from her expert perspective. Rarely exhibited in public, these beautiful and important embroideries that span the centuries are now available for everyone to see.Trade ReviewThis a very informative and beautifully illustrated book. It covers a wide variety of styles of embroidery, describing embroidery from 16th century to modern times. It doesn't tell you "how to" but shows what could be possible! It is certainly inspirational! -- Trish Blincoe * Amazon *A visit to the Embroiders' Guild collection in book form! This is a beautiful book which allows the reader to explore a corner of the Embroiders' Guild collection based around the theme of animals. An excellent resource for anyone studying or researching textiles while also a collection of beautiful items to look at for the more relaxed reader. The range of methods and techniques in which the pieces on a theme have been created seems endless and is sure to provide inspiration for it's readers. The photography is clear and you almost want to touch the work. Where pieces are larger, close up photographs have been added to demonstrate the detail. This book does not teach the reader any techniques but does give a clear description of each piece. A range of information is provided with each piece such as date, source, size and the Embroiders' Guild reference number. -- Lisa Carson * Amazon *I loved this book. The illustrations were very detailed. It showed many different styles of work and proved very inspirational for ideas for my embroidery. The history and the details are fascinating. -- Sue Patricia Southwick * Amazon *A beautiful animal book. I enjoyed looking at the various projects and how the book demonstrates the details and methods in a easy to understand and create way. Loved the timeline as it gives a real sense of creation and development. The photos are excellent quality and illustrate how the stitches are created. Loved the illustrations allowing my creativity to flow. Overall I am looking forward to creating my own projects inspired by this awe inspiring book. -- Stephanie Ann * Amazon *I loved this book. It reveals the methods used (i.e. Appliqué, stumpwork and goldwork) in each piece and includes a wide range of adaptations used. It showcases the best of the collection's animal embroideries, dating from the 17th century to the present day. The skill and imagination is just beautiful I would definitely recommend this book. -- Jeanette Louise Leighton * Amazon *This the third book in the series exploring examples of embroidery held within the Embroiderers' Guild Collection. Annette Collinge has gathered together an inspirational variety of animal-themed hand and machine embroidered artefacts, which span the centuries and cover every technique - from petit point and samplers to metal thread work and three-dimensional needlework - each with a unique story of provenance. Beautifully illustrated throughout, these charming and important embroideries, rarely exhibited in public, are now available for everyone to appreciate. * Embroidery *For over 100 years the Embroiderers' Guild has amassed an incredible collection of textiles, rarely exhibited to the public. This third book in the series has Dr Annette Collinge turn her expert eye to animals. She makes for a knowledgeable guide through time and around the world, putting a spotlight on the best from the collection. Marvel at the skill, styles, colour and imagination on display. * Stitch *Table of ContentsHistory of the Embroiderers’ Guild and its Collection 6 Introduction 10 1. Embroidery in monochrome 12 2. Embroidery on evenweave backgrounds 20 3. Samples and samplers 28 4. Animals in art 38 5. Applied materials 46 6. Animals in three dimensions 58 7. The use of metal thread 66 8. Stitches and more stitches 74 9. Embroidery in silk and wool 88 10. made by machine 98 11. Animals from many lands 104 12. Fanciful animals 118 Index 128
£17.00
Search Press Ltd Half Yard™ Kids: Sew 20 Colourful Toys and
Book SynopsisThe latest title from sewing guru Debbie Shore has arrived – and it’s her most fun yet! Packed with 20 colourful, inventive projects, it contains something for children of all ages. It contains a fold-away easel for a budding artist, a magnetic fishing game for an intrepid naturalist, and a colourful backpack for the young explorer. Why not make some spooky Halloween bunting to get ready for trick-or-treating, make a pirate cuddle pillow for a swashbuckling bedroom, or line up some funky monkey skittles for a game or two? The book contains all the guidance a beginner sewer will need – containing useful tools and techniques sections at the beginning, and plenty of tips throughout – while its fresh, exciting designs will also inspire experienced sewers.Trade ReviewMost folks who sew end up with a wealth of scraps left over and are often looking for small projects so those scraps don’t go to waste. Most of the projects in this book use the ubiquitous 100-percent-cotton fabric preferred by quilters, but a few use wool felt. The techniques are for the most part standard and not overly complicated, but there are brief instructions for a handful of the most common. The projects range from practical and useful to purely fun. Unlike some books of projects for children, these are not too heavily stylized and leave plenty of room for interpretation and embellishment to suit any individual child’s taste. Included are a craft easel, drawing folder, Halloween bunting, hot-water bottle, ball, witch’s hat, kite wall hanging, coin purse, a few creatures, two games, several bags, and more. Each set of instructions is illustrated with crisp photographs, though the instructions themselves are brief. Those with some sewing experience will find them sufficient, but a beginner may wish for more detail. -- Anne Heidemann * Booklist Online *The next Half Yard sewing title from best-selling author Debbie Shore packed with 20 fun colourful, crafty projects to make kids for all ages. Each project requires only half a yard of fabric, and the book also contains templates, as well as helpful guidance on getting started * Hot brands, Cool Places *Half Yard Kids is a really charming book, suitable for both people who can sew or want to learn. The book contains bright beautiful pictures and fun ideas for every one to try. The projects are lovely and none of them are too complicated. I am even going to get my grandson to pick one and have a go with me as a family project. Enjoy and surprise your family when they see what you can do with this great book. * Jackie Tee *This is the second book in this superb series that I have got now. It certainly lives up to expectations and beyond! The suggestions are different to many similar books I've seen, beautifully presented and brightly illustrated. The instructions are clear and easy to follow. I have finished one project and am eager to begin another. The price is very reasonable. I can personally highly recommend this delightful book * Lesley Best *Love this book beautiful pictures good projects. My sewing club love the book * Monika Graham *This is a lovely new book from Debbie Shaw, The instructions are really easy to follow, each instruction is shown with a picture so even if you dont quite understand the written information the picture makes it clearer, I love all the projects and think the first one I make will be the pillow pal. * Sue McAndrew *Great book as you'd expect from Debbie Shore.. I've added this to my collection of her other books!! Plenty to keep me busy making things for my little ones! * Jenny Broughton *August 2016 The lateste title from sewing guru Debbie Shore has arrived and we think it's one of her most fun yet! Including 20 colourful inventive projects, it contains something for kids of all ages from a craft easel fopr a budding artist, to a magnetic fishing game for the intrepid naturalist, and a colourful backpack for young explorers. Why not make some sppoky Halloween bunting to get ready for trick or treating, stitch a pirate cuddle pillow for a swashbuckling bedroom, or line up some funky monkey skittles for a game or two? This inspiring book contains all the guidance you will need including useful tools and techniques secrions at the beginning together with tips throughout. * Sew *I am a huge fan of Debbie Shore. And this book has surpassed her previous books. The book is jam packed with 20 colourful toys and accessories. This is one book that will be used time and again for gifts for children. The projects are such fun and with Debbie's hints and tips you will find them so much easier. From the start you will find projects you really want to make. To be honest I might even make a few for myself. The craft easel is brilliant and would be ideal for any age. The bright colours are ideal for children and make each of the projects ones that they will want. They will make brilliant gifts. They are things that would be used time and again. My son is getting a little older now he is going to be ten. However there are still projects in the book that he wants me to make for him. My first project out of the book is apparently a pyjama eater. There are some projects for girls and for boys and there are quite a few that are unisex. Debbie's books are brilliant. The instructions are always clear and they have fantastic pictures to help you on your way. This book is worth every penny! Brilliant as usual. Debbie is outstanding. * Crochet Addict UK *TV sewing star Debbie presents her latest title in the series, brimming with fun items to sew for kids of all ages, using small quantities of fabric. With her eye for colour and simple but effective designs, Debbie demonstrates twenty projects ranging from a back-pack, caddy and art folders to storage ideas and games. As always, good colour photographs, detailed step-by-step instructions and Debbie’s hints and tips will make you eager to start sewing for the kids in your life. Good value for money. * East Kent Embroiderers Guild *I'm always looking for projects to use up some of my stash, and anything that I cam make for nephews, nieces, and grandchildren has to be good. This book has some great ideas - at first I wasn't so sure how many of them I'd make, but the more I looked through the book, the more opportunities presented themselves. I love the idea of the pillow pal (think this could work well when a child doesn't want to talk to you, but will talk to you through the pillow pall), the skittles - and the pyjama eater. The instructions are clear, with helpful photos to exemplify a point, and the 'shopping list' (What you need) at the start of each project is very helpful. The book has a crisp fresh look, with clear layout. Personally, I'd have liked to have seen a few more templates included (such as the pentagon shape), but this is a small thing - and whilst some prefer to work from templates, there are very clear instructions on how to use household items to make most of the required shapes, and this also allows for creativity and make the items individual. * Christine Hutchins *Find 20 projects that kids will love and you will love to make. Use your leftover pieces of fabric to create fun, lovable and useful items for kids. The projects are inventive, a bag that is a portable doll's house, a monster door tidy, monkey bowls as in ten-pin bowling, an art easel and more.Every project is brilliant. You will never stop sewing because friend's with their kids will be queuing at the door asking for one too. All the techniques are clearly shown and instructions are easy to follow with clear photos. * Karen Platt *June 2016 Debbie Shore started her career as a childrens TV presenter and with this latest title, she has gone back to her roots, creating 20 colourful sewing projects for kids of all ages. We think this book has to be her most fun book to date, packed with games to make - the monkey skittles are adorable activities to do - an easel for drawingy and kits to fly; bags for school and play and fun accessories for their rooms, including a pyjama eater! The book contains a useful tools and techniques section and plenty of tips throughout. * Love to Make *Another fantastic release from our very own Debbie Shore, this title offers plenty of tips and techniques for the novice crafter. Your little one will have plenty of reasons to keep stitching, as they will be treated to projects such as a fold-away easel and funky monkey skittles. * Sew Magazine *Table of ContentsIntroduction 8 Sewing kit 10 Before you start 12 The projects 16 Craft easel 16 Fish for fish, ditch the crab! 22 Foxy drawing folder 28 Halloween bunting 34 Crafty kids' backpack 36 Monkey skittles 44 Hot water bottle 48 Patchwork ball 52 Witch's hat 54 Pillow mate 58 Cube tidy 64 Chair pockets 66 Porthole curtains 70 Pyjama eater 72 Shoe bag 76 Roaring storing! 78 Kite wall hanging 82 Caravan caddy 84 Miss Monster bookend 90 Coin purse 94 Templates and index 96
£9.49
Search Press Ltd Jewelry School: Let's Start Beading
Book SynopsisThis first book in the new series will get readers started in making beaded jewellery, similar to the hugely popular absolute beginner’s course that Carolyn teaches. It introduces people who have no experience whatsoever, and who may never even have tried a craft before, to the basic techniques, tools and materials involved through simple, inspiring projects. It includes a pictorial 'Jargon buster' glossary of the essential tools and materials used (with both UK and US terms); an index; and 12 step-by-step projects through which people can learn the basic techniques while creating beautiful pieces of jewellery they would want to wear. Clear instructions, step-by-step photography and diagrams where necessary create a user-friendly guide. Projects will take no more than a couple of hours, making them achievable in an evening. Learn how to use memory wire, beading wire, stretchy cord, chain and jump rings to make desirable jewellery pieces. Design tips throughout will encourage beginners to get creative and become jewellery designers in their own right.Trade ReviewClear instructions, step-by-step photography and diagrams where necessary create a user-friendly guide. Projects will take no more than a couple of hours, making them achievable in an evening. Learn how to use memory wire, beading wire, stretching cord, chain and jump rings to make desirable jewellery pieces. Design tips throughout will encourage beginners to get creative and become jewellery designers in their own right. We loved it! * Hot Brands Cool Places *Jewellery School: Let's Start Beading by Carolyn Schulz is a perfect book for everyone who wants to start making jewellery. It includes all the information we need to start making beaded jewellery. The projects are fun to follow and make fashionable, colourful jewellery that would go well with different outfits. The projects in the book are easy to make once you get the hang of it. It introduces those interested in learning the skill with no previous experience to the basic techniques, tools and materials involved for this craft through simple, inspiring projects.Jewellery School: Let's Start Beading book includes a pictorial glossary of the essential tools and materials used (with both UK and US terms); an index; and 12 step-by-step projects. The instructions are clear and has step-by-step photography and diagrams where necessary, so we can learn how to use memory wire, beading wire, stretchy cord, chain and jump rings to make desirable jewellery pieces. Projects in this book are achievable within a couple of hours. Once we prepare ourself with the necessary instruments, it is easy to understand and follow the instructions in this book to make our own designs. http://www.createwithmom.com/2017/01/making-our-own-jewellery.html * Create with Mom *Have you always wanted to make your own jewelry but don’t know where to start? This book is aimed at the beginner who wants to make some fashionable costume jewelry and learn how to use various tools and materials. Unusually it focuses mostly on working with wire, and the projects are sorted into chapters according to what type of wire they use. Learn how to work with memory wire, beading wire, chain and jump rings and if you fancy a break from wire there is also a chapter on using stretchy cord. I am all for something different and thought that this was a good way of grouping projects, all of which manage to look both contemporary and timeless. None are too daunting either, with bracelets predominating (eight out of twelve projects are for these) but there are also two necklaces and two rings. Each of the four chapters starts with a brief overview of the type of wire/cord being used together with some useful tips. The rest of the chapter contains three projects, each handsomely illustrated with several good-sized captioned photographs, a list of materials and a useful “what you learn” area so you know what you are going to be doing. There is also a list of the tools you need with handy photographs of them and an alternative idea showing how to make the project using different materials. Throughout the book there are also useful things like a list of birthstones for each month, wire gauges, how to tie various knots and a jargon buster so you can familiarize yourself with all the terms. Another nice touch is at the top of the first page of each project is a row of beads; these are all the beads used in that particular project. This is much more useful to a beginner than a mere list. I would recommend this as being a book that is genuinely useful to complete beginners rather than being aimed more at improvers like a lot of beginner books. * myshelf.com *Journal 122 This simple straightforward book by British Jewellery designer and tutor Carolyn Schulz is a good introduction for an absolute beginner to making bead jewellery and it gives swift results. The book is divided in gour main sections, each characterised by the methods and techniques of holding the beads together i.e. the memory wire, beading wire, strechy cord & the use of chain & jump rings. Each of these four sections has three projects within it. At the beginning of each section is an explaination of the properties of the materials used, useful tips on using it and pictures of the tools required to use the material. Following this general introduction, at the beginning if each project is a little section outlining the inspiration for the design, techniques which you will learn whilst executing it and the materials required. Good close-up photographs are used to support the written instructions with the occasional addition of diagrams. At the back of the book is a comprehensive 'jargon busting' glossary describing with words and pictures the frequently used components in both UK and US terms, something that i would have found useful when starting on this hobby over twenty years ago. A final chapter gives an outline, again in words and pictures, of the tools most commonly used in the techniques of the book. Overall, this is a good, simple, value for money introduction to some of the techniques where we can use those wonderful beads. * Bead Society of Great Britain *Those looking to learn how to make bead jewelry will find clear instruction here, mostly for making bracelets and necklaces. The jewelry is limited to bead stringing (other techniques, such as loom beading, single-needle bead weaving, or bead embroidery, are not included). Even within this one technique, though, there are a variety of pieces included in a number of styles. There are three projects for each of four types of jewelry construction: memory wire, beading wire, stretchy cord, and chain and jump rings. These four types are detailed individually, with advice for making that construction material easy to use and with specific tools that are especially suited. Each project includes a list of required supplies; step-by-step instructions for construction, with accompanying photos for each step; tips; and design inspiration for possible variations. As Schulz developed this book as a course instructor, a bulleted list of learning outcomes is also provided for each project. A photo guide to the tools used is included, as is a photo appendix detailing the types of materials and terms used. * Booklist Online *I'm not a beginner jewellery maker but I think that this would have been very helpful for me when I was starting out. It is literally a jewellery course in a book. I liked how the book shows you, step-by-step, how to achieve attractive pieces of jewellery such as the cha-cha and charm bracelets. There are nice clear pictures throughout. There are four sections each covering a different base – memory wire, beading wire, stretchy cord and chain/jump rings. Within each section, Carolyn shows you the tools that you will need and how to use them. She shares her tips and explains relevant techniques such as how to make a wrapped loop, how to tie a double surgeon's knot and how to use a bead design board. There are three tutorials in each section showing you how to make simple but effective bracelets, necklaces and rings. At the end of the book there is a 'jargon buster' section and one on tools, all with photos. I received this book as a gift and I'm pleased that I did. I think it would make the perfect present for someone who is interested in learning to make jewellery, or just a treat for yourself if you fancy giving it a go. * Jo Ives *This is the perfect book for a beginner. If you are looking for a beginner book for a new hobby I would recommend this. It will guide you through the basics of jewellery making and gives you suitable projects to build your skills. You start out with memory wire projects and then to stringing and a couple of basic chain maille projects. If you do have previous experience then this probably isn't for you but it is perfect for someone just starting out. Lots of clear step by step pictures to help you on your way. * Sarah Gage *A fab guide to beading with easy to follow instructions, clear pictures and helpful tips. Includes ideas for beaded bracelets, rings, earrings and necklaces. A great book for a beginner but also a useful guide for every jewellery maker to have. * Karen Salveta *So many new techniques to learn & master very easy to follow, advice given for all tools and requirements for each project, highly recommended if a beginner to beading. * Angie Noble *Looking through this book, it has plenty of good photographs showing the steps you need to make to create 12 pretty bracelets, rings or necklaces. It shows at the beginning of each chapter what equipment you need in regards to pliers, cutters & shears and explains about each of the type of wires or chains being used. It also gives a list of the materials required. Each design has photographs accompanying the steps, and for special loops or knots it has step by step pictures. * Samantha Stroud *Table of ContentsIntroduction MEMORY WIRE: Birthstone Bracelet Island Lagoon After Eight Cuff BEADING WIRE: Pretty in Pink Golden Satin Minted Noodle Bracelet STRETCHY CORD: Glitter Ball Ring Seashore Crystal Cha-Cha Ring Seashore Crystal Cha-Cha Bracelet CHAIN AND JUMP RINGS Sweeteart Charm Bracelet Chain Maille Bracelet Shaggy Loop Bracelet Jewellery Jargon Buster Tools Index
£7.59
Search Press Ltd Ready to Paint in 30 Minutes: Flowers in
Book SynopsisThis complete beginner’s guide to painting flowers in watercolour is ideal if you want to learn to paint but are short on time. Each of the 35 quick and easy exercises takes no more than 30 minutes to complete, and will teach you how to paint flowers of different shapes, colours and families – lilies, orchids and hellebores amongst others – or learn a key technique such as masking out, working wet in wet and colour-mixing. The exercises are all worked at postcard size – ideal for a 6 x 4in (A6) watercolour pad, and tracings are included for each study. The book is broken down into five chapters that focus, respectively, on working with watercolour, watercolour techniques, colour and tone, form and detail, and finally flowers in context. The final section of the book contains three complete paintings that demonstrate how to combine all the techniques and elements of painting flowers, as learned from the preceding chapters. These paintings, too, are accompanied by actual-size tracings. Trade Review Having just had a handful of ‘beginners’ watercolour lessons and finding them very challenging I was introduced to this book. Wow! I found it to be very exciting and inspiring. For people new to painting and to watercolour this is the book for you. You don’t even need to be able to draw! The book is full of ideas, tips and projects for you to work through. Each chapter leads on to new and interesting techniques to learn such as ‘spattering’, ‘wax resist’ and the use of salt. For those who find drawing difficult as I do tracings are provided of the flowers, leaves and seed heads featured so there is no excuse not to get started! Each ‘tracing’ is carefully cross referenced to the relevant project and page where you will find step-by-step instructions to lead you through the painting techniques needed to complete your chosen project. At the beginning of the book there is information about the basic equipment needed. A list of the paint colours used throughout is given but as well as their names there is also a colour chart. I found this a great help as it meant I could mix the colour I needed if I didn’t have the particular paint mentioned. As it is now autumn I decided to have a go at the leaf (see Pic 1). This involved painting ‘wet-in- wet’. I particularly enjoyed trying out the effect of ‘spatter spots’. Painting the ‘Anemone with shadows’ picture (pic 2) introduced the idea of using ‘negative space’ to keep areas white, and of using masking fluid to reserve areas of the paper from the paint in order to add a different colour at a later stage. The background to the flowers is achieved using the ‘wet-in-wet’ method whereas to deepen the shadow and add detail required ‘wet-on-dry’. My most successful picture was achieved using wax resist to paint a picture of Honesty seed heads (see Pic 3). I was very happy with the result at just my first attempt! If you love flowers and have always wanted to paint them then this book is for you. https://notcompulsory.blogspot.co.uk/2017/10/two-ready-to-paint-in-30-minutes.html * Not Compulsory *September 2017 The original Ready to Paint series sold well to more experienced artists who might have been expected to dismiss it as 'jumped up painting by numbers'. A complete re-think has produced this development which is a whole new departure. In place of complete paintings there are 30-odd half-hour exercises that concentrate on a single element -skies, shadows, trees, rosebuds, seed heads or leaves. There is also more emphasis on technique and therefore on the learning process. It's definitely worth a look. * The Artist *September 2017 Ready to Paint in 30 Minutes is a brand new series from Search Press aimed specifically at the complete beginner. The focus is to provide quick and easy instruction for anyone short on time, as each exercise is designed to take no more than 30 minutes. The series kicks off with two titles - Street Scenes by Grahame Booth and Flowers in Watercolour by Ann Mortimer. Street Scenes is broken down into eight chapters covering tone, colour, perspective, the wash. edge control, brush strokes, adding details and putting it all togethe. There are 32 easy exercises for you to work on, each of which covers an element of street scenes, such as doorways or people. The time is limited to 20 minutes spent on each and the size is limited to postcard size, which make them ideal for an A6 watercolour pad. Three finished paintings are demonstrated at the end of the book and are accompanied by actual size tracings to make it easier for the complete novice to get started with their painting. Ann Mortimer will be well known to Leisure Painter readers and in her 30 minute book she covers five main aspects of painting flowers in watercolour: working with watercolour, watercolour techniques, colour and tone, form and details, and finally, flowers in context. Once again the size and time is limited for each exercise and the final section, also accompanied by actual size tracings, demonstrates three paintings that combine all the techniques learnt. * The Leisure Painter *This is genuinely exciting evolution of a popular series. You'll be guided through some simple exercises and on to complete painting, gaining valuable insights that will develop and improve your skills. * Artbookreview.net *Table of ContentsIntroduction 6 Basic painting equipment 8 Working with watercolour 10 Washes 12 Working wet in wet 14 Layering 16 Blending out 18 Using the white of the paper 20 Techniques 22 Masking 24 Cutting out 26 Negative painting 28 White flowers with shadows 30 Spattering & scribbling 32 Salt & wax resists 34 Colour & tone 36 Mixing greens 38 Mixing dark colours 40 Mixing shadow colours 42 Mixing yellows 44 Mixing autumn colours 46 Contrast & tone 48 Backlighting 50 Form & detail 52 Drawing & composing 54 Flower shapes: star 56 Flower shapes: bell 58 Flower shapes: cup 60 Flower shapes: cone 62 Complex flower shapes 64 Buds 66 Painting leaves 68 Leaf shapes 70 Seed heads 72 Seed heads: ‘Honesty’ 74 Flower markings: orchid 76 Flower markings: hellebore 78 Flowers in context 80 Flowers in a vase 82 Mixed border 84 Woodland with daffodils 86 Flowers in pots 88 Dog roses in a landscape 90 Pansies in a vase 92 Clematis on a trellis 94 Index 96 Templates 97
£11.69
Search Press Ltd The Encyclopedia of Oil Techniques: A unique
Book SynopsisA new, up-to-date edition of the popular and comprehensive encyclopedia by professional and award-winning artist, Jeremy Galton. Ideal for artists of all skill levels, this A-Z reference covers a multitude of topics concerning oil painting. The book is divided into two sections: the first provides step-by-step demonstrations that guide artists through a variety of techniques, from basic colour mixing through to creating special effects such as peinture a l'essence and sgraffito. The second part focuses on themes, illustrating how individual artists tackle a number of common subjects, including landscapes, buildings, portraits, still life, skies and water. This resource provides a wealth of stimulating ideas to help artists – both amateurs and veterans – develop their own oil-painting style.Table of ContentsIntroducing acrylics, Techniques, Alma Prima, Blending, Broken Colour, Brushwork, Building Up, Collage, Colour Grounds, Colour Mixing, Corrections, Dabbing, Defining Edges, Dry Brush, Fat Over Lean, Finger Painting, Glazing, Grounds, Impasto, Imprinting, Knife Painting, Masking, Mediums, Mixed Media, Monoprinting, Palette, Peinture a L'essence, Pointillism, Scraping Back, Scrumbling, Sgraffito, Supports, Texturing, Tonking, Transferring Drawings, Underdrawing, Underpainting, Wet into Wet, Wet On Dry, Themes, Architecture, Figures, Landscapes, Skies, Still life, Water, Index and credits
£13.49
Search Press Ltd Lettering with Love: The Simple Art of
Book SynopsisThis exquisite book by the founders of the studio May & Berry shows you how to create beautiful messages through the combination of hand lettering and watercolour. Broken down into easy-to-follow stages, you will soon learn how to use different pens and inks to produce gorgeous lettering, embellished with simple yet stunningly effective watercolour motifs. This practical book guides you gently through the materials and tools you need to get started, and sets you on your hand-lettering journey with some simple exercises. There are then ten pretty step-by-step projects for you to try, after which you’ll be confidently creating your own handwritten artworks that you can display on your wall, send as notecards to loved ones, or use to decorate your journals and scrapbooks. At the back of the book there is a treasure trove of gorgeous botanical-style motifs and borders along with four delightful alphabets created by the authors in a variety of scripts – perfect for gently encouraging beginners and inspiring more experienced hand-lettering artists to play with new designs and styles. This is followed by six handy worksheets on which to practise your letter-writing technique. You'll soon find that hand lettering with watercolour is quick and fun to learn, and a wonderful skill that will bring you joy for many years to come.Trade ReviewHand lettering - the art of combining beautifully drawn letters and watercolour illustrations - is becoming increasingly popular. Relatively easy to learn, the technique lends itself to creating lovely homemade artwork, beautiful journal pages or delicate painted notes and cards for friends and family. Lettering with Love advises on the basic tools and techniques, with step-by-step instructions for a range of different projects. * Woman Alive magazine *This exquisite book from the founders of the May & Berry studio shows readers how to create beautiful messages using hand lettering and water-colours. Broken down into easy-to-follow stages, the title explains how to use different pens and inks to produce gorgeous lettering, embellished with simple yet stunningly effective watercolour motifs. There are 10 projects inside, all with step-by-step instructions, and at the back of the book there's a treasure trove of botanical-style motifs and borders together with four delightful alphabets created by authors Sue Hiepler and Yasin Reddig. * Craft Focus Magazine Dec 2018/Jan 2019 *Say it like you mean it with a beautiful combination of hand lettering and watercolour painting. In an age of keyboards, printers and the Internet the very idea of writing something out by hand and decorating it makes it less “instant” and consequently a lot more special. Grab anything you can write with and some watercolours and get ready to make your mark. I confess to having had a go at real calligraphy using ink and a special pen and not getting very far with it. This book is all about a different method, known as faux calligraphy which is far simpler and less rule-bound. Basically it is about forming letters using first a pencil, and then any type of pen, brush or marker you like. The book starts by explaining all this and listing what you need; all fairly basic items most people (especially those into art or craft) already own. The faux calligraphy method is explained simply with a few examples, and then follows a short section about watercolouring. The rest of the book contains lovely projects which combine the two and are all about enjoying yourself and going with the flow when working, rather than worrying about perfection. Most of the painted embellishments are floral in nature, celebrating the garden. Instructions are given throughout on how to form the loose and flowing plants, and there are several lettering styles to try too. The book has hard covers so opens out neatly and stays obligingly flat for easy reference when working. Turn to the back for several alphabets to copy for practice plus some floral wreaths, pot plants, single blooms plus a few cacti. Working through all this is a great way of getting into the style, and it is a fun way of relaxing and producing something beautiful. The projects in here include pictures for walls and greetings cards, all of which can be resized and used as a starting point for your own ideas. I love something that is a bit different, and I haven’t seen a book on this subject before. A great way of saying what you want and getting creative that does not need a lot of outlay for materials. -- Rachel Hyde * myshelf.com *Not only is this a beautiful book to look at, it is filled with some stunning examples of watercolour artwork and hand lettering, that is both inspiring and easy to achieve with a little practice. Simple step by step instructions show you how to create a piece of artwork that will be perfect to give as a gift or to decorate your home. You do not need an expensive array of tools, just a pencil and some watercolour paints to get started will suffice. I love the idea of decorating journals, my love of papercrafting will really benefit with what I learn from this lesson in paint and ink. There is a gallery of painted flowers to encourage creativity and also included are lettering in both upper and lower case, as well as practice pages to help you develop your style. Lettering with Love is exquisite. It is wonderfully presented and would make a delightful gift. It is definitely on list of things to buy for my crafty friends. -- Tracy Shephard * Postcard Reviews *Written by Sue Hiepler and Yasmin Reddig, Lettering with Love shows readers how to create beautiful messages using a combination of hand lettering and watercolours. Broken down into easy steps, the guide demonstrates ways in which to use different pens and inks to create stunning effects. There's also 10 step-by-step projects and useful worksheets on which to practice. The book retails at £12.99. * Craft Focus *Table of ContentsIntroduction 3 Chapter 1: Good to know Anatomy of letters of letters are explored along with essential materials, techniques and handy advice Chapter 2: Let's get started Discover ten stunning projects to paint yourself and learn how to hand letter and paint as you go Chapter 3: Creative Treasure Trove Exercises for drawing and painting your letters included, along with several alphabets for different script styles. In addition is a gallery of gorgeous botanical motifs, from flowers to cacti, for inspiration and tracing. Materials The authors Publication details
£11.69
Search Press Ltd Ready to Paint in 30 Minutes: Animals in
Book SynopsisThis complete beginner's guide to painting animals and birds is ideal if you want to learn to paint in watercolour but are short on time. Broken down into 32 quick and easy paintings measuring just 15 x 10cm (6 x 4in), this basic course will teach you all the skills you need to paint domestic and wild animals and birds, in home settings or in nature. Best-selling author Matthew Palmer shows you how to paint a diverse range of animals and birds, including a parrot, cat, dog, zebra, stag, cow and swan, and teaches you how to paint realistic markings, fur and feathers, and how to create faces filled with character and personality. Tracings are provided for all the paintings, including the three projects at the end of the book. Simply trace them off onto your watercolour paper and paint with confidence, without the need to make an initial drawing. Each painting takes just 30 minutes to complete and teaches you a different technique, so by the end of the book you will be equipped with all the skills you need to complete one of the three full-size projects: a King Charles cavalier spaniel, a snow leopard and a hummingbird. Trade ReviewHere’s an ideal subject for this nicely-maturing series. Matthew presents simple exercises that cover just about every type of animal and coat from hide to hair, fur and feathers (birds are included). Some of the backgrounds are plain, allowing you to concentrate on the subject, others include wider settings that provide context. Nothing is over-complicated, however, and the idea of working quickly on a single idea is never compromised. Each of the 29 exercises is accompanied by an outline tracing that allows you to get the basic shapes down quickly and you’ll be working at A6 size, so you won’t need to make elaborate preparations or clear a working space. 30 minutes is probably best seen as a target rather than a limit – if you want to spend a bit more time, that’s fine, just don’t get too tied up with details and land up over-working. -- Henry Malt * Artbookreview.net *Animals in Watercolour by Matthew Palmer is added to the Ready to Paint in 30 Minutes series and provides 29 postcard-size exercises that cover wild and domestic species and highlight fur, feathers, structure and features along with pre-drawn outline tracings to get you started. -- Henry Malt * The Artist *This book is a perfect introduction to painting with watercolours for those with little or no experience. The tracings that are provided make it simple to get started if you’re not confident at drawing freehand, and each of the 32 projects helps you to learn a new painting technique so you can gradually build on your skills as you work your way through the book. Everything is well explained and easy to follow even for novice painters. I hadn’t read any of Matthew Palmer’s books before this one, and I wish I’d discovered them sooner. -- Dawn Andrews * Amazon Customer Review *This is my first time trying out one of these books and I was incredibly impressed. Not only were the images great for practicing drawing the animals myself but the watercolour steps were broken down in a way that were easy to follow. I will definitely be trying the other books in the series! -- Dale Dow * Amazon Customer Review *Table of ContentsTracings, Introduction 6, Basic painting equipment 8, Basic techniques 10, Parrot at sunset 16, Bird in flight 18, Koi carp 20, Zebra 22, Swan 24 Key features 26 Cat’s eyes 28, Peering tabby 30, Curious kitten 32, Tiger 34, Dog’s eyes 36, Puppy 38, Highland cow’s muzzle 40, Cockerel’s head 42 Textures and markings 44 Penguin’s wing 46, African elephant 48, Lamb 50, Ram 52, Great tit 54 Portraits 56 Drawing a portrait from a photograph 60, Alsatian 62, Rabbit 64, Chimpanzee 66, Meerkat 68 Animals in the landscape 70 Cat on the lookout 72, Sheep in a field 74, Flamingos paddling 76, Penguins 78, Asian elephant 80, Stag in woodland 82, Robin on a branch 84, Stag in winter 86, Giraffe 88, ‘Max’, Cavalier King Charles Spaniel 90, Snow Leopard 92, Hummingbird 94 Index 96
£11.69
Search Press Ltd A Beginner’s Guide to Watercolour with Mixed
Book SynopsisAdding other mediums to your watercolour paintings is a fantastic way to take your work in new, more exciting directions. However, the vast array of painting mediums and materials on the market can be daunting, especially for the beginner. This book introduces the reader to the range of media that is available, explains briefly and clearly how to use the materials and provides six step-by-step projects and inspirational finished paintings to encourage you to take a definitive leap into the exciting world of mixed media art. Author Alison C Board covers a multitude of topics in her work, and this book features flowers, animal portraits, dancers in motion, cityscapes and landscapes. She explores how to combine wet and dry media, and how to create vibrant collages from man-made and natural found objects. There are no mistakes in mixed-media artwork, and Alison encourages the reader to be unafraid and embrace the experimental.Trade Reviewi found this book from Alison C Board to be very inspiring. She takes you on a journey to explore a variety of watercolour and mixed media techniques and includes detailed photographed stages to guide you through 6 very different projects. I can see it will be a resource book I’ll enjoy dipping into to help further my knowledge & skills. -- Claire Harding * Amazon *There are no mistakes in mixed-media artwork, and Alison encourages you to be unafraid and embrace the experimental! Adding other mediums to your watercolour paintings is a fantastic way to take your work in new, more exciting directions. This book introduces the range of media that is available and will open your eyes to new and inspirational ways of creating. The book provides six step-by-step projects to encourage you to take a definitive leap into the exciting world of mixed media art, covering a multitude of subjects including flowers, animal portraits, dancers in motion, cityscapes and landscapes. Alison explores how to combine wet and dry media, and how to create vibrant collages from man-made and natural found objects. * The SAA *Mixed media is all too often an excuse for playing with technique to no specific end. Alternatively, it’s a footnote in a book about another medium – “you can always add a bit of gouache to create highlights” or “how about rolling up some cling film and seeing what happens?” Alison has made something of a career out of working with a huge variety of techniques and media and her armoury is huge. So huge, in fact, that if she wasn’t absolutely on top of it, this would be the messiest book ever, both in terms of results and organisation. She is, however, absolutely confident with her methods and this is a masterpiece. Its main merit is that it isn’t a technical book at all. Or, rather, it’s absolutely about technique, but only for creative ends. You don’t put paint on paper to cover up the surface, you do it to create an image that satisfies both you and the viewer. You might want to convey the tranquillity of a rolling landscape, or the play of light and colour in a flower or plant, but the point is that it’s all about the end result, not how you got there. A chef creates a dish that delights the diner and, if another chef admires the method of cooking, that’s just a sideshow. So, buckle up and prepare to be astounded. The projects here include flowers, landscapes, people and animals. Materials include both wet and dry media as well as accessories such as hessian, bubble wrap and even chicken wire to create texture. All these things you’d expect, but look at the results – they don’t scream “clever” at you, they invite you to study the inner character of the subject. Less is more, the invisible is the first thing you see. Oh, and by the way, the figure demonstration is of a dancer: the sense of movement Alison (a trained ballet teacher) gets into a static pose will just take your breath away. If you haven’t already gathered that I’m calling this the best book ever on mixed media, well, I am. * Artbookreview.net *A Beginner's Guide to Watercolour with Mixed Media encourages beginners to energise their watercolours by using other media, and takes the fear and confusion away from the often bewildering array of materials on offer. In this clear and practical guide, Alison shows readers what's available and how to use these painting mediums and materials, with six step-by-step projects to work through. Subjects include flowers, animal portraits, dancers, cityscapes and landscapes. * Leisure Painter *Table of ContentsIntroduction Watercolour Hellebore – Step-by-step project Dry media Riley – Step-by-step project Wet media Naomi – Step-by-step project Found objects Natural found objects Man-made found objects Poppies & Physalis – Step-by-step project Collage and text The West Side – Step-by-step project Surfaces and textures Towards Hod Hill – Step-by-step project Taking inspiration Index
£11.69
Search Press Ltd Beginner’s Guide to Screen Printing: 12 Beautiful
Book SynopsisScreen printing is a print process involving the forcing of ink through a screen of fine material to create a picture or pattern. It has been around for many years, and has long been perceived as a specialist subject accessible only to professional printers and textile artists due to the high cost of the screens and inks. Recently, however, screen printing has entered the mainstream and the equipment and tools have become more affordable and accessible. In this Beginner's Guide to Screen Printing, Erin Lacy shows you how to make your own screen using an embroidery hoop and silk fabric, and demonstrates how to create beautiful designs that are easy to achieve. Discover how to print onto different surfaces such as wood, cork and fabric, and create twelve stunning, coastal and botanical-themed projects through bright and colourful step-by-step photography. The book includes templates and inspiration on how to design your own screen printing motifs.Trade ReviewWith well laid out content and index of projects, and a useful glossary, this book provides a friendly and reassuring introduction. The projects are varied and build in difficulty level as the book progresses. Several projects are practical, rather than just decorative. You will learn how to print with gradients, overlayed techniques, and repeat patterns. The text is thorough and informative, but also easy to understand. I felt anyone with an interest, from teenagers upwards, would find this book valuable. I was struck by the genius idea of repurposing embroidery hoops as printing frames. I also liked how the projects are all geared towards being able to wash your screens in a household sink and without any pricey specialist detergents. Perhaps some of the craft tools could have been labelled more specifically in the photographs, but the step-by-step photos used for the actual projects are clear and helpful. Similarly, the instructions are thorough. The list of tools and materials is not overwhelming, and they don’t seem offputtingly expensive. I appreciated the advice on selecting inks. This is something I’ve investigated in the past, but I’ve just ended up confusing myself. There are good tips regarding assessing fabric and shrinkage, and the interesting suggestion of using a vegetable steamer to fix the inks. There is also useful advice about equipment, surfaces, the positioning of objects, and tips on cutting out stencils. I particularly liked the method for printing a repeat pattern on fabric. With projects covering printing on wood and cork as well as fabric - along with the use of “found” objects such as leaves - this book encourages the reader to venture further than just printing a tea towel. Several pages of templates are provided – my favourites being a dragonfly and a shell. -- Sophie Hudson * Customer review *What can l say about this little but not so little book? It’s packed full of information and handy tip for screen printing to making stencils and how to use them. You probably have most of the materials needed at home with exception of screens and a squeegee. The templates at the back of the book are nice and are great for cutting and practice prints it also show how to print in 2 colours which is great as expected; great book and the pictures speak a thousand words - and can sometimes explain better than words. -- Anne Hill * Customer review *What Can I say? I got this book as I was super interested in screen printing! All the local courses to me were too expensive so I figured I would go for a book. The step by step guides are amazing. The templates are really useful! And I learnt so so much from all the tips and tutorials. -- Emma Brown * Customer review *I am really pleased with this book. It gives step by step guidance for the beginner and there are photos of each step which I find incredibly helpful as I can refer to them whilst working on my ideas. What I like most is that although it is a beginner's guide it is is not so basic as to be insulting and a short-lived read. I can see that I will be able to come back to it regularly as I learn more about screen printing. I had bought a kit and the instructions were neither clear nor detailed enough so this was just the book I was looking for. Would recommend to anyone and it is also not too expensive. -- Barbara Strange * Customer review *I thought the book was very informative for a complete beginner. It explains about everything you will need, how to make screens, what paint to buy and most useful, how to clean up. The stencils were a surprise in the back of the book. Overall this is a very good book and a nice addition to my craft book collection. -- Jan Hudson * Customer review *I have always thought of Screen Printing to be very difficult to do and very expensive to start doing. This book certainly takes you from the beginning and starting with easy things and not needing particularly expensive equipment. I like the personal way it is written with lots or tips and advice as you go along rather than straightforward do this and do that with no further explanations as to why. The author definitely is sharing her personal experience which is what makes the book so effective. There are lots of illustrations that clearly show you what and how to do things. I like the way that the book also includes templates for the project shown inside so that you can replicate those projects exactly as shown in the illustrations rather than have to make your own alternative patterns or templates. -- Zena Kate * Customer review *A great book with all the information needed to start your new hobby. There're some projects and patterns to use from basic to a little more intricate. Can't wait to try the dragonfly motif. -- Tammy Harris * Customer review *I got the opportunity to receive a free copy of this book in exchange for my review and I’ve got to say I am so happy I was able to! I had previously bought a screen printing kit from a craft fair but have been a bit stuck as to how to get started. I also wanted to make my own stencils but didn’t know where to begin... This book by Erin Lacy is a fantastic guide for beginners! It’s full of pictures and useful how to guides and each of the projects are well described and very cute. An added bonus was the wooden triangles and lilac printing paint that was included to try out the bunting project! In summary: I definitely recommend this book if you want to get started with screen printing it covers all the tools you need and some great projects to try out! -- Rebecca Ridyard * Customer review *Brilliant little book - well presented with loads of ideas for projects. Clear, easy to follow instructions, including photos of each step, with plenty of diagrams and designs to trace around. Perfect for anyone wanting to learn a new hobby. Would make a great gift. -- Sue Rowland * Customer review *Very clear instructions aimed for beginners, as the title states. I particularly like the fact that an embroidery hoop can be used to begin with whilst you are learning how to screen print. This book will provide you with invaluable skills whilst working your way through this book's activities and instructions, the addition of templates towards the back of the book is a huge help to start you on your way. I also love the section about creating your own designs, how wonderful to personalise your own work. -- Pamela Hainsworth * Customer Review *With over 300 illustrations in 112 pages, Erin Lacy's Beginner's Guide to Screen Printing takes you through 12 stunning projects of coastal and botanical themes in this perfect introduction guide. Erin shows you how to make your own screen using and embroidery hoops and silk fabric. This book also has templates and inspiration on how to go forth and create your own wonderful designs and motifs. * Simply Cards and Papercraft *Although primarily aimed at the craft market, this is such a good introduction to screen printing that it is worthy of inclusion in a journal aimed at fine art and work on paper. While it is true that this will mean a mental adjustment from working with textiles, the processes are much the same and little practice should be required to make this transition. What makes the book attractive is that it is based around 12 projects. This means that you are producing results while you work, rather than wading through a lot of technical information before you have anything to show. The danger, of course, is that it can be easy to skip over the necessary techniques, but the projects are simple and you should find that you pick the basics up fairly quickly. Simple projects and equipment keep investment to a minimum and make the whole thoroughly enjoyable. * The Artist *Erin Lacy demystifies the art of screen printing, with inspiring photography, beautiful projects and easy-to-follow techniques. You'll learn how to make a screen using an embroidery hoop and silk fabric, print onto different surfaces such as wood, cork and fabric, and create 12 coastal and botanical-themed projects with your printed designs. * Simply Sewing *Make your mark with this primer on screen printing. Even if you have never done any before you will soon be printing like a pro on not only fabric and paper but cork, wood and more. I’ve done some screen printing in the past, but not recently so was keen to see if the book was suitable for a beginner. Buying the kit is not cheap and one of the main concerns anybody has before taking up a new hobby is whether they will take to it or not, so laying out money on costly equipment is often the reason they don’t bother. The author of this book wisely suggests having a try first with an embroidery hoop, a sponge dabber and a silk habutai scarf; this is also a very portable way of doing it. After introducing the materials and tools the book goes on to explain how the process works from drawing, to cutting the stencil, attaching it to the screen, printing and fixing. This is a lot to take in, but it is broken down into sections and there are plenty of staged photographs with reassuringly short captions which make it all seem doable. If the drawing part is rather a challenge, not to mention rendering your art to make it suitable for printing you can use found objects like leaves and of course the templates at the back. The projects cover not only fabric items but postcards, wooden bunting, cork coasters and a card print for the wall. Fabric projects include a skirt, a bag, tea towel, table mats and a runner. Each one teaches a different lesson so you can amass useful and gift quality items while learning. The theme is mostly nature with an emphasis on the seaside as the author lives in Cornwall, and she sells her own range of paints for printing. At the back is a short gallery of items plus a handy glossary. I found this to be a very user (and purse) friendly primer on the sometimes rather daunting process of screen printing and look forward to taking it up again. -- Rachel A Hyde * MyShelf.com *Screen printing has recently entered the mainstream, with the necessary equipment and tools becoming more affordable. It has never been easier for you to explore a new discipline, printing your designs on surfaces such as wood, cork, and every stitcher's favourite... fabric! The ultimate companion on your crafting journey, Beginner's Guide to Screen Printing by Erin Lacy will guide you through the basics and introduce you to 12 attractive yet accessible projects. * Sew Magazine *Table of ContentsIntroduction Inspiration and ideas Tools and materials Before you print After you print Making a hoop screen Exposing: Working with resists Print production Repeats and borders Tessellations Multilayered screen printing Placement motifs Printing gradients Creating your own designs Templates and motifs Glossary Index The projects Botanical postcards Cork coasters Wood bunting Calico tote bags Swallow-print tea towel Feather-print fabric Feather-print skirt Printed cushion covers Dragonfly placemats Dragonfly table runner Shell motif beach blanket Pebble print
£9.49
Search Press Ltd David Bellamy's Arabian Light: An Artist’s
Book SynopsisExplore the deserts, mountains and souks of the Middle East, with best-selling author and artist David Bellamy. Following on from David’s highly acclaimed Arctic Light, this book provides an intriguing and often entertaining insight into South Arabia and the Swahili Coast, Jordan, Lebanon and Oman. It describes the history, culture, customs and geography of the region and the daily life of its inhabitants, as viewed through the eyes of a world-renowned watercolour artist and life-long adventurer. Filled with personal anecdotes and humour, David Bellamy’s unique account shines a light on the Middle East and highlights the incredible beauty and fascinating culture of this much-neglected region. David’s stunning artwork, that he painted during his various expeditions, features throughout the book and captures perfectly the diverse and majestic nature of the region. Watercolourists will be inspired by the author’s awe-inspiring ability to depict sweeping vistas and create a sense of space in his paintings, and to capture the very essence of a place through his art.Trade ReviewIf you thought the Middle East was just sand and showy ziggurats, think again. David Bellamy has always been a travel writer at heart and this book explores the spirit of a region the West often dismisses. His skill lies in finding the hidden corners that define the character of a place rather than its public faces and spaces. He also explores the life of the region through its people as they go about their daily lives; again, these are things done for practical purposes rather than public show. Thus, we get a quiet corner of Cairo at night (David doesn’t completely eschew the larger settlements), the eerie light of midday heat among the rocks of a wadi (a dry valley), where scale is provided by middle-ground figures. At the same time, David also visits Petra and Abu Simbel, somehow managing either to avoid the crowds, or at least edit them out. These results typify his ability to capture atmosphere – in words as well as pictures – with an assuredness that betokens both familiarity and understanding. David is no wide-eyed first-time tourist, and the book tells the stories of several journeys, giving each section an effective narrative arc, for he is also a master storyteller whose words and pictures are part of a whole, rather than one being an adjunct to another. Travel books are often separated between a writer and a photographer whose visions are – even if subtly – different. As a result, you look at the pictures as one piece of the jigsaw and the words as another, the illustrations being a counterpoint to what you are told. When the author is an artist, the images are not necessarily a blindly faithful record, but rather an assemblage that captures both the essence of the scene and the impression it made on the painter. That eerie light would be almost impossible to capture with a camera, but responds perfectly to the subtle hues and granulation of watercolour. The overall impression of this beautiful book is of the narrative arc I referred to before. It’s the story not just of a journey, but of a place and its people and David has done it supreme justice. -- Henry Malt * Artbookreview.net *Following Bellamy's highly acclaimed Arctic Light, this book goes to the other extreme in terms of heat, with a fascinating look at South Arabia, the Swahili Coast, Jordan, Lebanon and Oman. With his usual humour and personal insight, David creates a unique account in words and beautifully captured watercolour and sketches, of this ancient region, its history, culture, customs and geography. There's plenty to inspire the watercolourist here with a dedicated chapter and practical advice on capturing the essence of place and working in the heat with a fast-drying medium. * Leisure Painter *If you thought the Middle East was just about sand and glass skyscrapers, think again. David Bellamy is one of the best travel guides around and he introduces a world that’s filled with variety, colour and spectacle. As well as being an accomplished painter, David is a very capable writer and his career as a popular teacher has always been punctuated by books that absolutely capture the character and essence of a place. Here, he describes and illustrates the landscapes, culture, history and people of a region that will probably be unfamiliar to many. David works in a variety of weather and lighting conditions. He also finds the hidden corners as well as the wide vistas and includes traditional buildings and boats, as well as mountains, monuments and busy markets. Above all, he meets and talks to the people, learning about legend and tradition and bringing to life a world that teems with animation. The book is written as a journey and we learn about all corners of this fascinating area, as well as some of the practical aspects of painting in hot places – how to deal with washes that dry too quickly, blinding glare, suitable palettes and quite simply the etiquette of working with people to whom you are a complete stranger. Merely describing facts can be as dry as an empty oasis, but David is a canny narrator and he’ll take you with him on a journey of discovery that’s full of colour and light as well as stories and anecdotes, many of them more than a little amusing. When I knew this was coming up, I wasn’t at all sure what I was going to say about it: my interest in the Middle East was limited at best. But David has converted me. I’m more of an armchair traveller and I have every intention of reading this from cover to cover. * Paint Magazine (SAA) *David Bellamy is a master of travelogue. Take a journey with him here into a world that will be unfamiliar to many, but which presents riches for both the artist and the enquiring mind. In this enthralling book, he explores a wide area of the Middle East, examining landscapes, buildings and settlements. He meets its people and explains much of its history, illustrating both wide vistas and intimate corners. Although not a traditional tuitional book, the secret to its success is the symbiosis of words and pictures, for David is a compelling writer as well as a master of watercolour and drawing. While many travel books have a tension between the writer and the illustrator, here you are in the same sympathetic hands throughout. David's work is often dramatic, and there is indeed drama here, but also quiet views and corners. Above all, there is light, for the region is about so much more than sand and deserts and presents broad skies, varying weather and deep shadows in both towns and mountains. This is an eye-opening book, filled with beauty, information and anecdote that satisfies the enquiring and creative mind in every way. * SAA Catalogue *David Bellamy is fast establishing himself as a travel writer of the very finest quality. His publishing career began that way, of course, with The Wild Place of Britain, but this and his Arctic book are of a different order altogether. If you think the Middle East is all about glass skyscrapers and sand, think again. There are mountains, gorges and landscapes of breathtaking beauty as well as villages, markets, and above all, the people David meets on his travels. There's light and colour too, but this is a narrative that's told through words as well as pictures, with eloquent descriptions, narrative and anecdote complementing the images of stunning quality that the production here does full justice to. It's easy to dimiss the Middle East as perhaps of only passing interest, but tour de force makes it clear that it's a region whose beauty and variety should not be ignored. -- Henry Malt * The Arist *Table of ContentsIntroduction South Arabia & the Swahili Coast Egypt Jordan Oman Gilf Kebir Expedition Lebanon Painting in hot places Afterword Glossary Select bibliography Index
£21.25
Search Press Ltd Debbie Shore's Sewing Room Secrets: Essential
Book SynopsisPacked with key skills and friendly know-how, this essential guide is ideal for anyone taking their first steps into dressmaking. The latest title in Debbie Shore's Sewing Room Secrets series, this essential guide is packed with key skills and friendly know-how and is ideal for anyone taking their first steps into dressmaking. It covers the important basics such as: how to read and adjust a pattern; how to choose, mark and cut fabric; how to add zips, pockets and buttons; how to adapt old, misshapen or over-sized garments, and how to do some basic mending – all shown step-by-step. This book is a toolkit designed to equip you with all the dressmaking skills you need; it contains ten inventive projects for you to try your hand at using your own pre-loved clothes, and gives you all the knowledge you need to make your own clothes from scratch using the pattern of your choice.Trade ReviewI just adore Debbie Shore books. They are informative and give practical as well as technical advice. Perfect for the beginner but also ideal for the advanced sewist, Debbie Shore holds your hand and enables you to make a wearable and beautiful garment. This book is a brilliant addition to the collection, and if like me you collect them all, you will also know that they are the books that you frequently go to for your ideas and inspiration. Her tips are brilliant and the visuals are truly a help. There is no jargon with the instructions so you will know exactly what to do and what you need. -- Tracy Shephard * Amazon *If you're looking to develop your sewing and dressmaking skills, Debbie Shore's latest release is a perfect place to start. Her Sewing Room Secrets: Essential Skills for Dressmakers not only feature 10 projects to try your hand at, she also gives you tricks for altering and upcycling garments you already have in your closet. * Crafts Beautiful *Before opening this book, I expected it was going to be a beginner’s guide to working with commercial patterns. This is very useful, but there are quite a few of these already on the market, so what’s new with this one? A better description is that this is a beginner’s guide to making garments for the 21st century dressmaker. Not only does it give helpful tips for working with patterns, it also tells you how to upcycle clothes you already own or have bought from charity shops and how to make repairs. You don’t even have to buy your fabric from fabric stores. I was instantly hooked by all this. Starting from scratch is great, but what about all the resources already in existence? Looking after our planet should come first whatever we are doing, and this is very much a book for the modern, responsible crafter. The book starts by having a look at what tools and supplies you need to purchase before embarking on your new hobby. What machine feet and needles you require, sewing box basics and choosing a machine. Learn about fabrics and different types of interfacing as well as how to choose garments in charity shops for repurposing. Measure yourself, decode pattern terminology and learn the basic skills such as cutting out, pattern positioning, what symbols mean and fabric preparation. The rest of the book contains several projects that teach you more skills as you make them from putting in elastic to pockets, closures, and appliqué. Draft your own basic pattern for a loose-fitting kimono jacket, attach a skirt to a jumper and make a sweater dress, make a skirt from a man’s shirt, and use a length of cloth for a simple wrap skirt. Mend your own jeans and make a poorly fitting blouse fit by adding some darts. This is dressmaking with the lid blown off, freed from rules and too much reliance on brand new resources. I’m not a beginner but I have a lot to learn from this book. This book is highly recommended for anybody who wants to learn dressmaking the modern way. -- Rachel A Hyde * myshelf.com *Table of ContentsAbout this book 5 About me 6 my quick tips 7 dressmaking essentials 8 Tools & equipment 9 Fabrics 20 Fabric terminology 23 Interfacing 24 Threads 25 Dressmaking know-how 26 Pressing vs ironing 27 Measuring yourself 28 Choosing a pattern 31 Understanding pattern symbols 32 Cutting your pattern 34 Transferring pattern symbols 36 Cutting fabric 38 Making a toile 39 Machine stitches 40 Special stitches 42 Darts 43 Seams 44 Hems 46 Project Kimono Jacket 48 Bindings 50 Zips 52 Closures 57 Project Tunic Sweater Dress 60 Pockets 62 Project Shirt Skirt 64 Project Old to New Joggers 66 Shirring 70 Sewing elastic 71 Project Sweater Skirt 72 Project Wrap Skirt 74 Project Circle Skirt 76 Project Off-the-Shoulder Top 78 Appliqué 80 Project Child’s Shirt Dress and Headband 82 Project Batwing Dress 84 Make it fit 88 Mend it 92 Index 96
£9.49
Search Press Ltd Paint Pad Poster Book: City Scenes: 5 Beautiful
Book SynopsisFill your home with original, professional art – and learn to paint at the same time. This innovative new series is a poster book, an art pad and a step-by-step painting book all rolled into one! Each of the five posters is ready to pull out, frame and display. In addition, you can enjoy the calming pursuit of painting each of the pictures yourself using the pre-printed outlines – so no drawing required. The large, landscape format of the book allows each stage of painting to be clearly and comprehensively explained with innovative annotations. Simply pull out the stage-by-stage tutorial pages and pin them to your easel, then paint directly onto the watercolour outline for fantastic results. In this title, City Scenes, learn to paint iconic scenes of London, Paris and New York, and enjoy five masterclasses in painting from renowned artist Geoff Kersey.Trade ReviewThe Paint Pad Poster Books from Search Press are aimed at beginners and designed to produce fast results. Each book includes five posters to pull out and frame, as well as a watercolour outline and step-by-step instructions so that you can have a go at painting the subject yourself. The books are printed in a large, landscape format, which helps to present each annotated stage clearly, and the instructions are east to remove from the book and pin to your drawing board for reference. This new poster book focuses on city scenes painted by popular artist and tutor, Geoff Kersey, including London, Paris and New York. * Leisure Painter *The first thing that’ll strike you on opening this is the sheer amount of detail in the source images. These are not simply blow-ups of the ones that appeared in the original books, they’ve been completely re-originated so that colours, marks and even granulation are immediately visible. It’s striking, as it should be. The five scenes here cover bridges, statues, vegetation and street furniture as well as water, buildings and other structures. The instructions are simple and you should be able to produce results you can be proud to display for only a little over £3 a time. -- Henry Malt * Artbookreview.net *This is the third entry in Search Press’ innovative series for novice watercolour painters. The large format (A3) book contains five sheets of watercolour paper with outlines printed on them, plus fully illustrated tutorials, and a brief overview. When you have finished you will have learned a lot about working in your chosen medium plus a set of five elegant cityscapes to hang on your walls. This is a great idea for anybody who is keen to make a start with watercolour painting but is not sure where to begin. It also eliminates the need for buying a pad of suitable paper and an instruction book; just purchase paints and brushes. There is a handy page which shows you a shopping list of everything you will need for each painting, plus a section at the beginning which tells you a bit about each item. Discover how to use masking fluid, what forms the paint comes in and the basic types of brushes as well as how to prepare your paper and what size frames to buy. To show you what your picture will look like there are exact size pictures of all five paintings which is helpful. Each project is built up in four stages, and for each stage an A5 sized image has arrows leading to captions describing what has been done, plus smaller pictures show details in close-up. This eliminates having to read a lot of text and there is nothing quite as good as an image to show rather than tell. If you don’t want to use watercolours these pictures can also be completed using pastels, coloured pencils, or acrylics. Thus, the book is also ideal for somebody who wants to try a new medium or who can already paint but wants to try a new subject. The pictures show the Arc de Triomphe, Tower Bridge, a London skyline, Statue of Liberty and Brooklyn Bridge. I hope that soon there will be more additions to this excellent series. -- Rachel A Hyde * myshelf.com *Table of Contents- Introduction to the book and general instructions - 5 pull-out posters - Brooklyn Bridge tutorial - The Arc de Triomphe tutorial - The London Eye tutorial - Tower Bridge tutorial - The Statue of Liberty tutorial - 5 ready-to-paint outlines on watercolour paper
£14.39
Search Press Ltd The Build a Bag Book: Backpacks: Sew 15 Stunning
Book SynopsisPraise for the Build a Bag series: "These books are ideal for those new to bag making and will help readers grow their bag-making skills and confidence as they work through the projects. The plastic templates are a brilliant idea and a great bonus." - The Sewing Directory New to the highly acclaimed Build a Bag series, Debbie Shore brings you a selection of 15 brilliant backpacks! The 15 designs are created using the full-size rigid template contained within the book. It is easy-to-use, durable, reusable, wipe-clean and perfect for fussy cutting, plus it is simple to position and use – there is no need to pin it. The backpacks are made using different techniques, pockets, straps and fastenings to create 15 very different results. But why stop there? The template can also be used for your own design variations. As you mix and match the techniques covered within the book, Debbie gives advice on how to adapt and create your own unique designs. Each project in the book is explained using Debbie’s friendly style and easy-to-follow step-by-step photography, and there is also a comprehensive techniques section and a guide to using the template.Trade ReviewThere are now four pattern books in the Build a Bag series, each one containing a reusable plastic pattern and at least 15 projects. The best thing about sewing with Debbie Shore is that she makes things so easy. From beginner to advanced skill levels, every stitcher can enjoy these books and create something wonderful. The projects are beautifully photographed, and the instructions have a stunning visual and written step by step guide. Techniques, tips and what to do if things go wrong are included and the whole process from start to finish is jargon free. This makes it easy to understand and you know exactly what to do without the aid of other explanations. The Plastic Pattern is brilliant, and the instructions colour code the pattern piece you need. Each Backpack is beautifully designed and really are fit for purpose. Each one is different, and have a unique and stylish look. Highly recommended * Postcard Reviews *These two stunning brand-new titles from Debbie cover on-trend satchels and backpacks. Each book comes in an attractive hard-back folder which also encloses a wallet containing durable plastic templates, from which, by following Debbie’s impeccable instructions, it is possible to construct fifteen different bags from each book. There is a bag for every taste and occasion, each beautifully presented in full colour, showing Debbie’s inspiring fabric choices. All techniques including zipped pockets, magnetic closures and piping are covered in detail, making these projects suitable for every level of sewing expertise. Debbie also includes inspiring suggestions on adapting the templates to expand the design possibilities and create even more bags! Outstanding value for money, these books are a definite must-have for every bag-loving sewer. * East Kent Embroiderers' Guild *I have some of the other Debbie Shore books, and this is another excellent one. Clear instructions for the basics such as "making a zip panel", for the individual patterns, and even help with things that can go wrong (oops! section). I especially love the plastic templates. There is no need to copy and cut any patterns, because they are included in the book and can be used over and over again. * Customer review *I have considered this series of books for some time and I’m so delighted that I now have a copy especially of backpacks which I regularly use. The templates which are included ensure correct cutting and as well as the various projects, I find the other sections including materials, techniques, oops and Debbie‘s top tips extremely useful too. After trying some of the projects involved the next decision will be which of the other build a bag books to buy! * Customer review *Table of ContentsIntroduction 6 Understanding the template 8 Materials 10 Tools 12 Hardware 14 Techniques 14 Debbie’s top tips 20 Oops! 21 The Projects 22 Clip pocket rucksack 22 Drawstring button backpack 30 Laminated crossover bag 34 Piped rucksack 40 Nautical backpack 46 Bear pocket backpack 50 Simple drawstring bag 56 Quilted backpack 60 Bound rucksack 64 Bear drawstring bag 68 Tie pocket rucksack 72 Two-tone drawstring backpack 76 Cuddly bear backpack 80 Zipped backpack 84 Convertible tote bag 88 A little extra something 92 Glossary 94 Index 96
£16.19
Search Press Ltd Stitch, Fibre, Metal & Mixed Media: Inspiration,
Book SynopsisAlysn Midgelow-Marsden shows how to use both textile-based and mixed media techniques to create beautiful artworks using metal in the form of shim, foil and woven fabric alongside many other materials. She shares her expertise in an inspiring variety of techniques from free machine stitching to gilding, embossing, needle felting, beading, printing, appliqué, making stitched foil fabric and using dry decal transfer images. There are seven beautiful projects to inspire and instruct textile artists everywhere, including a lampshade, bauble pods, decorative panels and a tablet cover. Artists can take inspiration from the individual surfaces that make up the pieces, the completed projects, and from the developments from each project, which have full, instructive captions. This is an invaluable resource for textile artists looking for new and beautiful ideas. This book was previously published as part of the Textile Artist series.Trade ReviewDiscover how to use textile-based and mixed media techniques to create beautiful artworks, using metal and woven fabric alongside many other materials. There are seven projects to inspire and instruct textile artists everywhere, all with full instructive captions. It's an invaluable resource for textile artists looking for new ideas. * Machine Knitting Monthly *Issue March/April Metal is not an obvious companion for cloth but for those looking for a new challenge, Alysn Midgelow-Marsden reveals how to combine fibres and stitch with various forms of metal, using both textile and mixed media techniques, from free machine stitching to gilding, embossing, needle felting, beading, printing, appliqué, making stitched foil fabric and using dry decal transfer images in seven projects. * Embroidery *Feb 14 This book is worth the price for the beautiful colour photography alone! The author obviously loves metallic surfaces and produces some incredible pieces, using a wide variety of materials. The chapter on materials is very detailed and extensive; such can be new or re-cycled items ie sweet wrappers, coverings from champagne bottles ( of course, why did I throw away the last batch), drink cans and take-away food containers. Some metals are also woven which are very useful in designs. The “Key Points” section is a lesson in itself, with the warning of having a practise before starting a project. Once familiar with materials you just need to be inspired and sew! The first project is based on pomanders. There is a comprehensive equipment list then clear, step by step instructions with enhancing pictures. The original design is extended, showing how one basic idea can grow. The author finds inspiration from nature and historical embroideries held by our Guild. To all those who wish to extend their range and let loose their creative side this book is a must. * Merseyside Embroiderer's Guild (megonline.co.uk) *Feb/Mar 14 This is an exciting new book from Alysn which takes embroidery with metals to a higher level. The first chapter deals comprehensively with suggested materials and then seven separate and varied projects follow, each covering different methods and techniques. The book is fully illustrated in colour and each project has detailed step-by-step instructions, with suggestions from Alysn on expanding the theme further. An experienced textile artist would enjoy the challenge of developing their work using the ideas and inspiration presented. * East Kent Embroiderer's Guild *Mar 14 Alysn Midgelow-Marsden explores a variety of mixed media techniques with metal backgrounds and uses stitch to embellish and decorate. There are seven projects adopting a variety of techniques, from dry needle-felting to stencilling and stitching and all are united in some way by the use of metal in the pieces. It is a good way of showing how to use this material in stitched mixed media, particularly where thin metal shim, metal fabric or knitted mesh are able to be manipulated in a way that easily incorporates them into textile work. Many influences from the past are referred to, such as a Japanese nuihaku kimono, an Elizabethan panel held by the Embroiderers’ Guild, or 19th Century metalwork, which are all photographed and referenced. Using these as a springboard, it leads to projects with wonderful names such as Samurai Romance or Vain Devices. In addition to the projects, there are a large number of samples which demonstrate some of the techniques covered and these showcase some fabulous work. Some of the finished articles look a little too assembled, rather than all the elements coming together naturally to create a cohesive piece. I felt that the range of additional work reflected the techniques better and created more visually appealing work. Some of the techniques are not new and a seasoned textile enthusiast may have come across them in other books, but Alysn Midgelow-Marsden’s work in combining techniques reflects how work can be moved in a new direction. Projects are always a good way of tackling new approaches and the variety here gives a good starting point for expanding your repertoire. Samantha Packer * Workshop On The Web *May 14 In this book Alysn shows us how metal can be used in textiles and mixed media to create a variety of imaginative effects. She describes metal as being like a fabric, stiffer than calico but thinner and easier to work with than leather and demonstrates a variety of ways in which it can be used to create stunning textile art. The seven inspiring projects show techniques from free machine stitching to gilding, embossing, needle felting, beading and making stitched foil fabric and artists can take ideas and skills from these projects to create their own individual work. Each project has easy to follow instructions and there are lots of unusual and interesting materials used. A fantastic book for textile artists looking for innovative ideas and new directions for their work. * SEWING WORLD *June 14 This book is part of the Textile Artist series. Inside you’ll find out how to use mixed media textile techniques to create stunning work. There are seven projects which demonstrate the techniques in a how-to style with equipment lists and clear instructions. I like the fact that the author gives the reader a challenge for extending the original idea and to move off at a tangent. She talks about her approach to developing work. The materials used are metal, fabric, fibre and thread, paper and card as well as digital printing processes. Discover how to create unique surfaces. Lots of new ideas here and easy to use techniques. Excellent photography throughout with many close-up images. * Karen Platt Yarnsandfabrics.co.uk/crafts *Jun/Jul 14 No longer are heavy metals the preserve of hard rockers and welders. Many of today's embroiderers are as familiar with a soldering iron as they are with an embroidery hoop. A diversity of methods is covered in Alysn's guide, which add a mercurial quality to textiles. Alysn shares her experience of working with metals of every kind with the sort of practical detail that will save stitchers time, money and patience. For example, when describing the creation of needle-punched pieces, whether by hand or machine, Alysn gives advice on how particular fibres behave, and how to sidestep common pitfalls, such as your fabric disintegrating and felting needles breaking. Advice is given on everything, from what threads to use and which to avoid, to which needles to use on your sewing machine when stitching through metal – in short, everything you need to know but didn't even know you needed to ask. The projects demonstrate a wide range of the methods described, helpfully divided up into 'surfaces' for stitchers who are keen to use a method for a different application. Memory Lampshade, for example, features eight different surface methods, including monoprinted brass fabric, dry decal transfer images, and scrunched, painted and embossed heat-darkened brass. * Stitch *Table of ContentsIntroduction 6 Materials 10 PROJECTS 26 Bauble Pods 28 Samurai Romance 44 Silvered Bark 66 Vain Devices 80 Fernery 96 Floral Tablet Cover 112 Annie and Albert Memory Lampshade 128 Index 144
£11.69
Search Press Ltd How to Draw: Mountain Animals: In Simple Steps
Book SynopsisCapture a sense of grandeur when you draw this diverse collection of mountain-dwelling animals and birds. Prolific author and artist Susie Hodge teaches you to transform simple shapes into a majestic grizzly bear, a graceful cougar, or a shy mountain hare in easy-to-follow stages. Choose from a shaggy yak, a cheeky marmot and much more. There are 28 different animals to create, in a variety of poses and styles. Each project starts with a few basic outlines and progresses into a finished tonal drawing, and a final watercolour version shows you how to develop your drawing even further. Perfect for beginners, as well as budding artists, you’ll be amazed how easily you too can draw mountain animals with this inspiring guide. Table of ContentsIntroduction 4 Grizzly bear 5 Elk 6 Bearded vulture 7 Ibex 8 Mountain goat 9 Llama 10 Snow leopard 11 Accentor 12 Bald eagle 13 Mountain wolf 14 Grey wolf 15 Chipmunk 16 Yak 17 Bighorn sheep 18 Capybara 19 Wild ass 20 Rocky mountain horse 21 Marmot 22 Antelope 23 Beaver 24 Markhor 25 Andean mountain cat 26 Gold mantle ground squirrel 27 Mountain hare 28 Pine marten 29 Snowy owl 30 Great horned owl 31 Cougar 32
£6.23
Search Press Ltd How to Draw: Cute Kawaii: In Simple Steps
Book SynopsisKawaii is a Japanese word meaning ‘super-cute’, and it’s a trend that’s sweeping the globe. Anything can be drawn in the kawaii style, from animals, people, vegetables and flowers to food, vehicles and household items. Expert comic book and manga artist Yishan Li shows you how to achieve amazingly cute characters in a few simple steps. Do you want to draw a singing cactus, a cheeky camera, a crying onion, or a playful panda? The choice is yours! How to Draw: Cute Kawaii uses material from the best-selling How to Draw series, plus 32 brand new projects! There are over 100 projects to choose from, each full of character and charm. Each one is developed in eight easy stages from a rough sketch of the basic shapes through to the finished, coloured drawing, making this book appealing to adults and children of all ages and abilities. Trade ReviewAuthor and artist Li returns with another in the How to Draw in Simple Steps series. More than 100 kawaii (cute) drawings are provided in eight steps each, allowing the reader to sketch along with the book and practice until they’ve mastered the item, person, or creature of their choice. The drawings fall into a few categories: animals, everyday objects, vehicles, food, and chibis (cute, stylized, miniature characters). Though instructions are not written out in words, the familiar technique readers will learn here is to identify the basic shapes that make up the item one wants to draw, start with a blocky sketch using those shapes, and refine the sketch gradually. As usual, the only instruction for the final step of coloring in is the example, so readers may wish to look to other sources to learn about shading, color choice, and other related aspects. Fun and cute, this will appeal to those wishing to learn how to draw in a kawaii style. -- Anne Heidemann * Booklist *This book is amazing. It breaks down the steps of drawing to create a very cute character. There is a massive range of things you can draw from animals, food, and people to everyday objects. The book is for my daughter who is learning to draw and she absolutely loves it and can't wait to show me what she has drawn next. 100% will get her more books like this to help her with drawing. -- Claire Sturdz * Amazon Customer Review *Lovely book which the whole family will love. I loved this book, although I know how to draw cartoon characters its fantastic to learn new techniques. Over 100 projects to choose from which is great and will keep me busy for a long time. For both adults and children, my daughter is eight and just starting to draw fantastic little pictures so I'm sure she will appreciate this after mummy! I was unsure what kawaii meant and have learnt from this book it means "super cute" -- Jeanette Leighton * Amazon Customer Review *This was really surprising. I wasn't sure if I would be any good at drawing and find it frustrating but the steps are so simple and easy to follow it was actually a very calming activity. The book has separate sections for kawaii categories like food/animals/objects etc so you can easily navigate your way through and find a drawing that suits your mood or task! I would definitely recommend. -- Rebecca MacBain * Amazon Customer Review *Table of ContentsIntroduction Chibis Schoolgirl with backpack 9, Boy in jeans 10, Roller skater 11, Teacher 12, Café waiter 13, Elf 14, Hip hop boy 15, Girl soldier 16, Boy runner 17, Baker 18, Girl with handbag 19, Firefighter 20, Scientist 21, Office worker 22, Cook 23, Girl in kimono 24, Gardener 25, Girl jogging with dog 26, Schoolboy 27, Girl with bunny ears 28, Footballer 29, Basketball player 30, Witch with wand 31, Witch cuddling cat 32, Artist 33, Girl with sword 34, Butler 35, Nurse 36, Princess 37, Ballerina 38, Maid 39, Detective 40, Fairy 41 Animals Cat 43, Cat and kittens 44, Leaping dog 45, Dog and bone 46, Hamster 47, Bird 48, Rabbit 49, White rabbit 50, Chameleon 51, Parrot 52, Fox 53, Running fox 54, Mouse 55, Frog 56, Horse 57, Sheep 58, Cow 59, Chicken 60, Elephant 61, Bear 62, Lion 63, Tiger 64, Sloth 65, Panda 66, Gorilla 67, Hippo 68, Meerkat 69, Koala 70, Beaver 71, Racoon 72, Shark 73, Whale 74, Seal 75, Turtle 76, Snow leopard 77, Alpaca 78, Penguin 79 Everyday objects Old TV 81, Vacuum cleaner 82, Camera 83, Electric kettle 84, Lamp 85, Toaster 86, Umbrella 87, Teapot 88, Marker pen 89, Loudspeaker 90, Broom 91, Bucket 92, Cactus 93, Refrigerator 94, Washing machine 95, Hand soap 96, Clock 97, Gloves 98, Cassette player 99, Drum 100, Bowling ball and pins 101, Old phone 102 Vehicles Car 104, Bus 105, Helicopter 106, Rocket 107, Yellow submarine 108, Flying saucer 109 Food French loaves 111, Sliced bread 112, Hot dog 113, Hamburger 114, Popsicle 115, Ice cream cone 116, Sandwiches 117, Cupcake 118, Doughnut 119, Macarons 120, Swiss roll 121, Gateau 122, Tomatoes 123, Pumpkins 124, Onion 125, Kiwi fruit 126, Lollipops 127, Rum baba 128
£11.69
Search Press Ltd Passport to Painting: How to Paint Retro-Style
Book SynopsisStylish retro travel posters bring to mind summer holidays, happiness and fun. Perennially popular as wall art, their strong designs and clean, flat colours are perfect for hobby artists to emulate. A complete guide to producing your own travel-poster art, this book includes guidance on composing a strong design, selecting colours to make sure your artwork pops, and adding lettering for a picture-perfect finished poster. Learn to create key poster elements such as clouds, skies, water and architecture, and discover how to add your own stylized lettering. There are six striking international projects to complete, or you can use your newfound skills to celebrate your own home town or treasured place. This book is packed with examples of Susie West’s inspiring artwork and a short history of travel posters. Since 2015, Susie West has been working her way around the UK recreating the upbeat, retro charm of travel posters in the modern world. This book shares her techniques and secrets for producing fun, charming artwork. Suitable for beginners, this is a great way into art for those who want to develop their skills, or for experienced artists wanting to try something new.Trade ReviewIf you like the idea of working with bold colours and geometric shapes to capture the essence of a place in an interpretation, rather than a slavish imitation of the classic travel poster, this delightful book will give you all you need. It is almost certainly unique – I've never seen one before and I doubt I will again, so it needs to be a good and its pleasing to be able to report that it is both. Susie provides plenty of advice, both basic and advanced - how to take photographs as well as use them, for instance, and how to hold brushes as well as distil detail and colour to create striking images. Just leafing through the pages gives a sense of a job not only well, but completely done. This might be a niche book, but the results are intriguing and it's hard not to be encouraged to experiment. -- Henry Malt * The Artist *This book is probably most useful for beginners in acrylic painting and contains much useful information and tips on what essential equipment to buy and good alternatives to expensive kit too. More experienced painters could usefully use the book to try out, what for most, would be a different style of painting. There are six step-by-step exercises to enable you to put into practice the suggestions given earlier in the book. I intend using some of the techniques (which are transferable) to working on a textile art quilt at some point in the future. The book is colourfully set out. -- Heather Brialey * Amazon Customer Review *Posters have long been a way for artists to communicate with others, but the travel posters as we know them emerged in the early 20th century born out of the desire to travel and improvements in printing processes. Artist Sue West, has been working her way around the UK since 2015 recreating the retro charm of travel posters in the modern world. So far she has painted over 150 different places, from village greens to city architecture. In her new book, Passport to Painting, she shows us how to create our own travel posters, looking at elements such as equipment and materials, how to paint skies and water, foliage, architecture, lettering and the impact colour can have on your work. Susie has also designed six of her own travel posters that she presents as step-by-step projects so that we can have a go ourselves. As she writes in her introduction: 'Once, like me, you start seeing the whole world as a travel poster, there'll be no stopping you!' * Leisure Painter *If you are new to painting or have not painted for a while, the exercises are easy to follow. If you enjoy doing poster art and love trying a new medium, great to do with your acrylic paint pens or posca pens. -- Helen Shepherd * Amazon Customer Review *Table of ContentsIntroduction 6, Before you set out 12, Planning the trip: Designing your own travel poster 18, Getting started 36, Adding lettering 66 Projects 72 Amsterdam Canals 74 Sydney Opera House 80 London Tower Bridge 88 Mount Rainier National Park, USA 96 Lisbon Trams 104 Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco 112 Onward travel 120, Afterword 124, Lettering templates 125, Index 128
£13.49
Search Press Ltd The Eco-Christmas Craft Book: 30 Stylish Festive
Book SynopsisIf you love Christmas, you'll love this book! It's the perfect antidote to the traditional tinsel and glitter that shed harmful microplastics, polluting our oceans and waterways. The Eco-Christmas Craft Book is filled with lots of ideas to create your own stylishly beautiful, eco-friendly Christmas. All you need to do is save up some recyclable or foraged items such as cardboard, newspaper, wine bottle corks, twigs and pine cones. You can choose your own colour scheme to match your home and, because the materials are recyclable, you could make new ones every year! Including all the things that make Christmas special, such as tree decorations, advent items, Christmas cards, table decorations, wreaths and many more, there are 30 fabulous projects to make, and ideas for many more. So start collecting and learn how to make gorgeous, professional-looking decorations cheaply, without harming the planet.Trade ReviewFrom the first to last page this book is so easy to follow. Great for children to grannies to make Christmas decorations to last for years. All these projects can be made at minimum cost as like me many will have a crafts box full of bits and bobs just waiting for this book to inspire you. -- Pauline Forster * Amazon Customer Review *This bright and approachable selection of Christmas crafts evokes old-timey warmth updated with contemporary sensibilities. Introductory notes discuss tools, reusing supplies, reducing purchased items, using biodegradable adhesives, and foraging for natural craft elements like pinecones; after which the crafts unfold with simplicity and a reliance on neutral tones. Especially useful to craft groups in libraries are several ideas that reuse book pages, and many smaller decorations like hanging ornaments or ribbon-wrapped candles that can be made from remnants left over from past craft activities. Some projects, like Advent calendars and wreaths, will be more time- and supply-intensive and may require more purchased materials if the crafter desires a unified look. But on the whole, projects like tiny gift boxes made from last year's holiday cards, folded book trees, and fragrant dried oranges offer low-cost, low-waste, joyful crafting options for new or experienced crafters. -- Heather Booth * Booklist *Learn to make beautiful Christmas decorations using eco-friendly materials that won't break the bank or harm the planet with Marrianne Mialls The Eco-Christmas Craft Book. Save up recycled or foraged items to make tree ornaments, advent items, cards, wreaths and more! With 30 projects to make, its never been easier to create professional decorations. * Crafts Beautiful *Love presents, but hate the waste that comes hand in hand with packaging? Look no further - The Eco-Christmas Craft Book is here to offer some genius crafty alternatives to wrapping and more. Choose from 30 fabulous projects, including wreaths, baubles and table decorations. All you have to do is collect everyday recyclable and foraged items, and you're good to go! * Sew Magazine *This book is filled with ideas to create our own stylish and eco-friendly Christmas using recyclable or foraged items such as cardboard, newspaper, wine bottle corks, twigs and pine cones. There are 30 fabulous projects and ideas for many more, to make professional-looking decorations at little cost, without harming the planet. * Machine Knitting Monthly *Table of ContentsIntroduction 6 Materials 8 Tools 10 Techniques 12 Making an origami star 12 Making a tassel 16 Making a bow 17 The Projects 18 Christmas Crackers 18 Ribbon Tree 22 Felt Bauble 26 Milk Bottle Fairy 30 Yarn-wrapped Cardboard Tree 34 Foliage-filled Bottle 38 Cork and Rosemary Place Cards 42 Cardboard Star Garland 46 Cardboard Tube Snowflake 50 Cardboard Angel 54 Christmas Cards 58 Napkin Rings 62 Origami Star Wall Hanging 66 Paper Strip Bauble 70 Cork Christmas Tree 74 Cork Rudolph the Reindeer 78 Cotton Twine Tied Wreath 82 Hessian Ruffle Wreath 86 Branch Christmas Tree 90 Mini Envelope Advent 94 Cardboard Tube Advent 98 Decorated Jars and Tins 102 Santa Sack Fabric Advent 106 Gift Wrapping 110 Hanging Twig Star 118 Folded Book Tree 122 Pine Cone Tree 126 Cork Wreath 130 Concertina Christmas Tree 134 Dried Orange Slice Decorations 138 Templates 142 Index 144
£999.99
Pushkin Press Young Rembrandt: A Biography
Book SynopsisRembrandt's life has always been an enigma. How did a miller's son from a provincial Dutch town become the greatest artist in the world? With his formative years shrouded in mystery, the only remaining evidence of Rembrandt's life as a young man is his work. Deeply rooted in the turbulent changes that his hometown was undergoing, Rembrandt's early paintings tell a fascinating story of artistic evolution against the backdrop of the widening horizons of Leiden's cultural and commercial life during the Dutch Golden Age. Leiden's good fortune facilitated Rembrandt's. But who was that young man inventing himself as the city around him grew and prospered? How did Rembrandt become Rembrandt? To find out, Leiden native Onno Blom immersed himself in the world, the country, the city and the house in which Rembrandt was born in 1606 and where he spent the first twenty-five years of his life. The result is a fascinating portrait of the artist as a young man, rich in local and biographical detail, and restless in its efforts to seek out the roots of his genius.
£17.00
