Review: Quilts, Baby! by Linda Kopp

Quilts, BABY! 20 Cuddly Designs to Piece, Patch & Embroider
by Linda Kopp
Lark Books (May 5, 2009) ~ 144 pagesNon-Fiction / Crafting / Quilting / Baby
Edition Reviewed / Special Thanks: Paperback - many thanks to the publisher for sending me a copy to review!
Perfect for : Personal Use, Gift for the quilter/crafter

In a nutshell: This is not your standard pink or blue fluffy bunnies and lambs baby quilt book. Instead, it has wonderful animals and designs that children (and babies) will love. The technical information contained within Quilts, BABY! was very helpful to me as a beginner in quilting using applique and piecing work. I found the directions to be easy to follow with plenty of helpful tips for saving time and making things easier. The book contains 20 designs with full color photographs, plenty of helpful illustrations and detailed instructions. Plus, the designers worked hard to design quilts that could be completed over the course of a weekend. . . for the seasoned pro and the beginner alike.

Not the biggest fan of the country feel to these quilts, with their earth tones and calico prints? Not a problem! It would be no trouble to use the patterns, making simple changes to the colors/fabric designs to give them a different feel (more modern, make them fit the color scheme of a nursery, etc) while keeping the fun aspect that will be so eye-catching.

Extended Review:
Content: From the table of contents: Introduction, Basics, [Listing of 20 projects], Templates, About the Designers, Index

Format: The Basics section contains explanations on assembling a quilt (quilt top, batting, backing), fabric, batting, thread, scissors or rotary cutting systems, sewing machine, needles for hand sewing, quilting frame, other supplies, and information on applique and embroidery supplies and tools. Next is a section on Getting Started (planning, sizing things up, using quilting charts and templates, cutting), Putting Things Together (sewing, piecing, attaching a border), Applique (fusing fabric, turning the edges, sewing the edges), Embroidery (transferring embroidery patterns, creating the stitches), a Stitch Glossary, Basting, Quilting (straight-stitch quilting, free-motion quilting, tying), and Finishing Up (binding, hanging, cleaning). Interspersed are some really great tips and tricks, as well as some facts and explanations.

Each project has a title, description, list of fabric needed (for the quilt top, appliques, backing, binding), notions and extras, and the finished size. it also has the name of the designer, plenty of pictures and illustrations, and step-by-step instructions.

Readability: The book is written for people with any level of quilting experience, and contains enough basic information to help both the novice and the expert.

Overall: A nice book with a more non-traditional take on baby quilts - with lots of shapes, animals, colors and patterns. With lots of helpful information, it may be geared more toward the beginner, but will surely provide even experts with fun projects and new ideas.

About the Book: (From the publisher's site)

Modern, innovative, and exciting: if you’ve never associated these words with baby quilts before, you will now! Here’s a collection of fresh designs that aren’t fussy, cutesy, or old-fashioned, but that still have that “aww” factor. Best of all, every one is easy to make, and most take only a weekend to complete. Try a round “Peekaboo” blankie with fanciful creatures hidden under fabric flaps, the clever two-in-one “Good Morning/Good Night” quilt, and a funny “Monkey Monkey” block quilt. Plus, there’s helpful information on choosing baby-friendly and safe materials.

If you have reviewed this book and would like me to add a link to your review, please include a link in your comment!

Review: Vickie Howell's Pop Goes Crochet by Vickie Howell

Vickie Howell's Pop Goes Crochet!: 36 Projects Inspired by Icons of Popular Culture
by Vickie Howell
Lark Books (May 5, 2009) ~ 144 pages
Non-Fiction / Crafts / Crochet

Edition Reviewed / Special Thanks: Paperback - many thanks to the publisher for sending me a copy to review!

Perfect for : Personal Use, Great gift for the crafty/crochet person in your life

In a nutshell: I've seen a few of Vickie's Knitty Gritty shows and absolutely loved them, so when I received this book, I couldn't wait to dive in and try out a few patterns. I'll start by saying they are fun and trendy, and Vickie has provided a wonderful variety of projects ranging from Beginner to Intermediate. All the designs in this book were inspired by pop culture's celebrities, including such notables as Cher, Bjork, Gwen, Giselle, Dita, Salma, etc. The projects are for all ages, including purses, hats, sweaters (children and adults), scarfs, gloves, a bikini set, poncho (Clint), shoes, belt, a shrug, lacy corset, dresses, etc. There is even a fun wire crocheted pendent with beads.

A nice plus to the book is the cover - it has a folded edge that allows you to "bookmark" the page you are on while working on a project.

The only thing that would really make this book better would be a section actually showing the basic crochet stitches. As a crocheter/knitter/craft person, I generally know what I'm doing, but occasionally have to jump online and "remind" myself how to do a certain stitch. On her website, she does include the basic instructions.

(The picture is of my wonderful niece, wearing the Beret from page 94, which I knitted over the course of two days off-and-on)

Extended Review:
Content: The book includes an Introduction, and the patterns/projects are broken down into five sections, and are followed by a section of helpful tips (yarn weight chart, abbreviations, crochet hook equivalents, etc). The Sections are: Rebels (Dita, Marc, Sean, Bettie, David, Johnny), Icons (Esther, Clint, Serena, Grace, Doris (see example below of green scarf), Shirley), Fashionistas (Anna, Vera, Giselle, Yohji, Betsey, Harlow, Paris, Heidi), Starlets (Angelina, Gwyneth, Mary-Kate, Cameron, Dakota, Drew, Helena, Salma, Sandra, Kate) and Rockers (Cher, Madge, Bjork, Erykah, Selena, Gwen)

Format: Each project includes a little description, the difficulty level, size information, finished measurements, a list of items you will need, the stitches used and the gauge. These lists are followed by the detailed instructions. Each project has at least one full-color photograph, and many include multiple photos.

Readability: The instructions are fairly easy to follow, and seem to be consistent with the difficulty rating. Having plenty of pictures help as you can compare your project to them.

Overall: This is a fun and trendy crochet book that has plenty of projects to choose from. All of these projects could be created for gifts or personal use.

About the Book ~ From the Publisher's Press Website:

(The project shown to the left can be found on pages 50-51, as well as on Vickie's blog)Needlework dynamo Vickie Howell is back with a high-spirited, playful collection of goodies to crochet. Vickie Howell’s Pop Goes Crochet! pays creative tribute to popular culture past and present with 40 projects inspired by celebrities in fashion, music, film, and television. Howell has whipped up a spectacular array of hip clothing, jewelry, and accessories, ranging from an intriguing “Yohji” asymmetrical sweater (in homage to designer Yohji Yamamoto) to a funky striped “Cameron” hoodie with the laid-back California style of actress Cameron Diaz. Everything’s fashionable and as fun to make as it is to wear.

About the Author: (From the Vickie Howell's website)

A self-proclaimed crafty gRRRL, Vickie Howell has been involved in the creative arts for as long as she can remember.

Before becoming the mother of two boys, she worked in the entertainment industry at companies including International Creative Management (ICM) and Alliance Atlantis Entertainment.

Post motherhood, she’s acted as owner, designer, web-mistress and CEO of three craft-based businesses. Mamarama, founded in 2001, offered cool hand-made garb for hip moms and their kids. In 2003, after relocating to Austin, Texas, Vickie co-founded Ruby Goes Retro (RgR) with her sister-in-law. RgR furnished hipsters worldwide with authentic, embellished and inspired by vintage clothing and accessories. In 2005 she founded VickieHowell.com under her company Vickie Howell, Inc., as a homebase for her many crafty endeavors. Networking for her businesses lead her to nine other crafty entrepreneurs and, together, they co-founded Austin Craft Mafia (ACM), an organization whose sole purpose is to promote and support independent, female-run, craft based businesses.

In efforts to do her part in the mobilization of the feminist-based knitting movement, she founded successful chapters of the irreverent but socially conscious knitting group Stitch n’ Bitch, in Los Angeles, CA and Austin, TX. Vickie’s on a personal quest to assist in breaking the negative social stigma that knitting and crafting have attached to them by bringing more recognition to the hip, creative and edgy sides of these forms of expression.

Currently, Vickie can be seen on the DIY Do-it-Yourself Network as the host of the successful knitting series, Knitty Gritty, which is currently airing all 8 seasons; and on the new Lifetime Television web series, Crafted. Her DIY Network 1-hour special, Knitty Gritty Knitsters, airs in July 2008. In 2006, she and her ACM partners debuted Stylelicious, another series for DIY that focuses on edgy, hand-made fashion.

Vickie, her projects, and her businesses have been featured in such mediums as: The Today Show; USA Today; Tease!: 50 T-shirt Projects from Superstars of Art, Crafts & Design; E! Network's Singled Out; BBC Radio Scotland; TV Guide; Interweave Knits Magazine; Knitty.com; BUST Magazine; DIY Jewelry Making; Weekend Entertaining, Real Simple Magazine; and “Celebrity Scarves II” book. She also writes a regular celebrity column for Vogue Knitting’s Knit.1 Magazine, an Eco-Craft column in the healthy parenting magazine, KIWI, and is the Knitting Editor for CraftGossip.com. In October 2005 her first book, New Knits on the Block: A Guide to Knitting What Your Kids Really Want, hit shelves and was nominated for a Craft Trends Magazine Award of Excellence. In June 2006 came her second book, Not Another Teen Knitting Book, followed by her 3rd book, Knit Aid: A How-to Helper for the Knitter on the Go, which debuted in May 2008. Coming from Vickie in 2009 and 2010, are three more books: Pop Goes Crochet, Eco-Stitch (co-written with Adrienne Armstrong), and Craft Corps.

If you have reviewed this book and would like me to add a link to your review, please include a link in your comment!

Review: Hip Handbags by Valerie Van Arsdale Shrader

Hip Handbags: Creating & Embellishing 40 Great-Looking Bags by Valerie Van Arsdale Shrader
Lark Books (March 3, 2009) ~ 128 pages
Non-Fiction / Crafts / Sewing / Handbags



Edition Reviewed / Special Thanks: Paperback - many thanks to the publisher for sending me a copy to review!
Perfect for : Personal Use, Gift for a crafty person

In a nutshell: Hip Handbags is a fun and helpful book that will provide instructions to make 40 handbags, all based on seven basic bag designs (Messenger, Clutch, Tote, Tuck, Flirt, Vessel, Traveler).

The book includes helpful sections designed to give the reader some basic information on fabric, bag style, design, embellishment, preparations, and sewing basics. All of these are helpful in completing the included projects, as well as giving the reader the ability to veer off and start creating their own handbags based on the basic bag styles.

Extended Review:
Content: The book includes an Introduction, Design Your Bag, Handbag Basics, Beautify Your Bag, Embellished Bags, Prepare to Sew, Sewing 101, Project Key, Meet the Hip Handbags (Sections for projects under each of the seven handbag types: Messenger, Clutch, Tote, Tuck, Flirt, Vessel, Traveler), a Gallery of Totally Hip Handbags, Metric Conversion Chart, Meet the Designers, Acknowledgements, Index and Artist Index

Format: The informative sections prior to the actual projects are very helpful, providing some great basic information that I found particularly helpful (I am not a novice to sewing, but I'm close). Each project includes: a title, a Hip Index, the bag pattern the project is based on, a list of special materials or tools, fabric suggestions, a section that tells how the project differs from the basic pattern, hot tips, cool alternatives, and helpful tips for sewing. There are plenty of illustrations and photographs to help in understanding what to do.

Readability: With the included instructions, pictures and illustrations, the projects seem fairly easy to follow, and look like they will have great results.

Overall: This book provides crafty people with some very creative designs for handbags, all based on seven primary designs, and shows how changing small elements like the handle can give the handbag an all-new look. I love the designs in this book and can't wait until I've got the time to sit down and make some of them.

About the Book: (From the publisher)

Now it’s easier than ever to make your totes totally chic! Forty projects offer a wide variety of fabulous choices featuring great fabrics and design options, including novelty threads, raffia ribbon, straps made of jeweled necklaces and bracelets, embroidery, and more. Crafters will find 25 simple sewing projects, all originating from seven basic patterns, ranging from a flat folding purse to a pocketbook made from iridescent ruched silk. Another 15 designs use plain store-bought bags as a canvas for creative embellishments, such as transforming a simple black clutch with elegant silk flowers.

Examples from the Book:
















About the Author: (From Amazon)

Valerie Van Arsdale Shrader works as an editor and is the author of Fun & Fabulous Curtains to Sew 9781579907945, Stylish Skirts 9781579907242 and many other books.

If you have reviewed this book and would like me to add a link to your review, please include a link in your comment!