Envision handmade books to hold your writings, poems, photos, and keepsakes. More than 170 photos to inspire, and hundreds of illustrations to guide readers through the basics of an almost infinite variety of imaginative styles.

    Art Starts with a Line is approachable for artists of any skill level, no prior drawing experience needed! This form of art requires minimal tools, making it both affordable and portable.   Following a brief introduction to tools and materials, as well as some easy exercises and techniques for warming up to basic drawing tools, you will explore a variety of subject matter. You'll draw plants and flowers, architecture and cityscapes, animals, and everything in between. These projects aren't restricted to black and white either! You'll find techniques for adding color with colored pencil, marker, pen, even digitally.  Art Starts with a Line presents everything you'll need to know to learn how to successfully create line drawings of all types. Whether your goal is to create a custom logo for a client, or to simply decorate your planner, it's all here.

    It is the product of preparation and effort, and it's within reach of everyone who wants to achieve it. All it takes is the willingness to make creativity a habit, an integral part of your life: In order to be creative, you have to know how to prepare to be creative. In The Creative Habit, Tharp takes the lessons she has learned in her remarkable thirty-five-year career and shares them with you, whatever creative impulses you follow -- whether you are a painter, composer, writer, director, choreographer, or, for that matter, a businessperson working on a deal, a chef developing a new dish, a mother wanting her child to see the world anew. When Tharp is at a creative dead end, she relies on a lifetime of exercises to help her get out of the rut, and The Creative Habit contains more than thirty of them to ease the fears of anyone facing a blank beginning and to open the mind to new possibilities. Tharp's exercises are practical and immediately doable -- for the novice or expert. In "Where's Your Pencil?" she reminds us to observe the world -- and get it down on paper. In "Coins and Chaos," she provides the simplest of mental games to restore order and peace. In "Do a Verb," she turns your mind and body into coworkers. In "Build a Bridge to the Next Day," she shows how to clean your cluttered mind overnight. To Tharp, sustained creativity begins with rituals, self-knowledge, harnessing your memories, and organizing your materials (so no insight is ever lost). Along the way she leads you by the hand through the painful first steps of scratching for ideas, finding the spine of your work, and getting out of ruts into productive grooves. In her creative realm, optimism rules. An empty room, a bare desk, a blank canvas can be energizing, not demoralizing. And in this inventive, encouraging book, Twyla Tharp shows us how to take a deep breath and begin!

    Packed with art and advice from Marc Taro Holmes, artist and co-founder of Urbansketchers.org, this self-directed workshop shows you how to draw inspiration from real life and bring that same excitement into your sketchbook. Inside you'll fi nd everything you need to tackle subjects ranging from still lifes and architecture to people and busy street scenes.15 step-by-step demonstrations cover techniques for creating expressive drawings using pencil, pen and ink, and watercolor.Expert tips for achieving a balance of accuracy, spontaneity and speed.Practical advice for working in the field, choosing subjects, coping with onlookers, capturing people in motion and more.Daily exercises and creative prompts for everything from improving essential skills to diverse approaches, such as montages, storytelling portraits and one-page graphic novels.Whether you are a habitual doodler or a seasoned artist, The Urban Sketcher will have you out in the world sketching from the very first page. By completing drawings on the spot, in one session, you achieve a fresh impression of not just what you see, but also what it feels like to be there . . . visual life stories as only you can experience them.

    You'll learn how to explore the use of color theory in abstraction and to use underpainting to bring structure and depth to your art. In addition you'll begin to understand how to work in a series and how this can help you develop your own personal style. A sampling of what you'll add to your creative toolbox: Pastel and acrylic techniques to use to complete your own paintings The benefits of expressing your ideas abstractly How to loosen up by using your nondominant hand and drawing to music Ways to express emotions through mark-making Using color and symbolism for expression Working with photos for inspiration Tips for using color studies Step into your own abstract frame of mind today!

    Inspirational. Entertaining. One thousand blank journals are currently circulating throughout the world, beckoning contributors who find the journals by chance on trains, in cafés, and anonymously left on doorsteps. Artist Someguy shares more than 250 of the best entries: a collage of African countries repositioned into a new continent; the musings of a teen trapped in a drug- ravaged community; a student's humorous personal ad for his ideal girlfriend ("C-cup required!"). A faux leather cover and two beautifully embroidered pages bring the look and feel of the original journals to life. The perfect gift for journalists, aspiring artists, designers, and anyone who can't wait for one of the journals to magically appear in their lives.

    Encouraging you to make journaling a part of your daily routine, Keeping a Nature Journal is full of engaging exercises and stimulating prompts that will help you hone your powers of observation and appreciate new aspects of nature’s endlessly varied beauty.

    With Emmy award-winning, longtime PBS host Mark Kistler as your guide, you'll learn the secrets of sophisticated three-dimensional renderings, and have fun along the way -- in just twenty minutes a day for a month. Inside you'll find:Quick and easy step-by-step instructions for drawing everything from simple spheres to apples, trees, buildings, and the human hand and faceMore than 500 line drawings, illustrating each stepTime-tested tips, techniques, and tutorials for drawing in 3-DThe 9 Fundamental Laws of Drawing to create the illusion of depth in any drawing75 student examples to encourage you in the process

    Build a career doing what you love. In this practical guide, professional artist Lisa Congdon reveals the many ways you can earn a living by making art—through illustration, licensing, fine art sales, print sales, teaching, and beyond. Including industry advice from such successful art-world pros as Nikki McClure, Mark Hearld, Paula Scher, and more, Art, Inc. will equip you with the tools—and the confidence—to turn your passion into a profitable business.LEARN HOW TO: • Set actionable goals • Diversify your income • Manage your bookkeeping • Copyright your work • Promote with social media • Build a standout website • Exhibit with galleries • Sell and price your work • License your art • Acquire an agent • And much more

    Originally a paper/collage-based art form, ATCs have caught on with crafters working in a range of mediums and are now just as popular among fabric and mixed-media artists. ATCs are mini art works, the size of a playing card, often created as limited editions. The back of each card contains the artist's name and contact information. The idea behind the cards is to make them and then give, trade, or share them with others. This collection inspires with 1,000 original cards in a beautiful pageant of color, composition, and creative use of materials. The book also includes a special section devoted to explaining what ATCs are, how to get started, and includes some exciting technique information. Curated by Patricia Bolton, founder and editor-in-chief of two of the most exciting creative magazines on the newsstands, the book meets the Quarry Books mission of offering artistic and challenging new ideas to traditional paper artists, scrapbookers, mixed-media artists, and quilters by merging paper, fabric, and surface embellishment through experimentation and discovery.

    Chapters cover composition, abstraction, texture, layering, using found objects, encaustic, integrating text, and adding digital imagery.

    Dare to Sketch is filled with practical tips about which materials to use, a variety of subject matter ranging from easy to more challenging, and wisdom about overcoming creative blocks and fear of making mistakes. A whimsical beginner's guide to sketching, covering all of the important basics: what kind of notebook to buy, what drawing materials to use, ideas for subject matter, and daily exercises. Includes inviting, inspirational, and idiosyncratic tips (don't start on the first page of your sketchbook!), Dare to Sketch is gorgeously illustrated with the author's unique and contemporary art style.

    In this captivating guided journal, readers are encouraged to explore their world as both artists and scientists. The mission Smith proposes? To document and observe the world around you. As if you've never seen it before. Take notes. Collect things you find on your travels. Document findings. Notice patterns. Copy. Trace. Focus on one thing at a time. Record what you are drawn to. With a series of interactive prompts and a beautifully hand-illustrated two-color package, readers will enjoy exploring and discovering the world through this gorgeous book.

    204 pages.

    You can gather materials from just about anywhere, glue them down on a surface and magically create a work of art. There are no mistakes, only discoveries. What could be more exciting?In Collage Discovery Workshop, acclaimed collage artist Claudine Hellmuth shares 15 of her favorite collage techniques and invites you to play with basic collage materials in new and imaginative ways. Along the way, Claudine guides you with friendly advice on how to develop your artistic voice and turn an ordinary collage into something special.Learn how to:Overcome "blank canvas" syndrome with recipes for four luscious backgroundsCombine words and images to capture a mood or tell a story in your collageIncorporate buttons, old photos, game pieces and other found objects in your artExplore the magical appeal of collaging with beeswaxLayer patterns and images in your collages with amazing transfer techniquesHonor a special friend with a personal keepsake collageUse a written journal to grow as an artistDon't wait another day to express yourself with collage. You never know what surprising discoveries await!