Arts, Crafts & Photography

 

 

Recommendations from our staff that appeared in our 2009 Winter Newsletter










By Rebecca Yaker, Patricia Hoskins, Rebecca Yaker
$20.95
ISBN-13: 9781603424493
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Storey Publishing, 10/01/2009

From the people who created One-Skein Wonders comes a book for fabric enthusiasts everywhere. One-Yard Wonders is an excellent collection of sewing projects, complete with easy-to-follow instructions, illustrations, and patterns. The best part is that each of these projects can be completed with just one yard of fabric. A perfect book for fabric hoarders and lovers, like me, or for those just beginning to sew, One-Yard Wonders offers a brilliant selection of projects to make and enjoy. —josie


By Mandy Moore, Leanne Prain
$19.95
ISBN-13: 9781551522555
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Arsenal Pulp Press, 09/01/2009

Knitters and crocheters: Take it to the streets!
Yarn Bombing is a completely fantastic guide to the international guerrilla movement of “knit graffiti.” Practitioners create stunning works of art out of yarn, then “donate” them to public spaces. Yarn bombing can be
political, it can be heart warming, and it can be funny. From “tagged” parking meters to street signs, rocks, and tree branches, this rockin’ new book showcases stellar examples of them all. —S.B.


By Katherine Bell, Thayer Allyson Gowdy
$19.95
ISBN-13: 9781584798040
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Stewart, Tabori and Chang, 10/01/2009

Sewing a quilt is an act inherently infused with love and care: During the many hours it takes a quilter to stitch together patches of fabric and sew tiny quilting stitches (whether by hand or by machine), they know that what they are making will, at the very least, bring someone warmth and comfort. Quilts also have a place in our country’s political history (concealed directions to the Underground Railroad; the overwhelming power of the AIDS Memorial Quilt). Quilting for Peace showcases individuals and groups that quilt for causes that matter to them. In additional to its inspiring message, this terrific book includes projects for novice and experienced quilters, so that anyone can stitch “to comfort those who need solace, provoke
positive change, and provide hope.” —S.B.


By Jenny Hart, Aimée Herring
$24.95
ISBN-13: 9780811867016
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Chronicle Books, 09/01/2009

I am so excited about Jenny Hart’s new book because it encourages me to push the envelope with my embroidery. A bunch of her signature iron-on transfers are included in Embroidered Effects, and the focus is on tackling new frontiers with thread. Hart covers everything from
embellishing fabric patterns to shower curtains, bringing whimsical stitches into corners of my life I never thought stitchable. If you haven’t checked out Jenny Hart’s embroidery books yet, start here. She makes you feel like the world is your crafty oyster. —K.M.S.


By Todd Oldham, Charley Harper
$200.00
ISBN-13: 9780978607654
Availability: Usually ships from warehouse in 1 - 5 days
Published: Ammo Books, 06/01/2007

I am obsessed with
contemporary American artist Charlie Harper and you will be, too, as soon as you get one look at the cover of this new compilation of his work. This coffee-table tome is a beautiful tribute to Harper’s singular style, which he referred to as Minimal Realism. Charley Harper: An Illustrated Life is the
perfect gift for artists, graphic designers, bird and nature lovers—adults and children, alike. Once you dive into Harper’s work you’ll never want to reemerge. —R.M.


By Ansel Adams, Andrea G. Stillman, John P. Schaefer
$35.00
ISBN-13: 9780316056410
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Little, Brown and Company, 10/01/2009

Most of us associate Adams with majestic black-and-white photography, so it’s a bit of a surprise to learn that the famed
photographer produced more than 3,500 spectacular color photographs. This revised collection is updated with 20 unpublished photos and improved fidelity to the original prints. A lovely gift for the nature and photography enthusiast. —M.M.


By Amit Gupta, Kelly Jensen
$21.99
ISBN-13: 9780307451422
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Potter Craft, 09/01/2009

This book is stuffed with great tips on how to take
better photos, along with 50 awesome DIY projects that will allow you to turn those photos into creative, easy art projects. Gupta and Jensen show you how to take bottle caps and turn them into tripod heads, make fish-eye lenses, and assemble photo
“chandeliers”—and it’s all totally doable and totally fun. —M.M.


By McSweeney's
$35.00
ISBN-13: 9780811867160
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Chronicle Books, 09/01/2009

This book is so many kinds of ridiculous
awesome; my words are an insult to its glorious pages of sheer brilliance. If you haven’t dropped this newsletter to go and flip through More Things Like This, here’s a bit more convincing. More Things Like This is a concept book where artists, writers, and musicians contribute drawings or text, which is collaged together, page by page. A sample page might have a drawing by David Shrigley, another by Henry Darger, text by Kurt Vonnegut, and different text by Leonard Cohen. All of these people are actually in this one collection, bound together by paper, ink, glue, and sheer magnificence. —Z.G.R.