I know from experience. In the summer of 2016, I decided to learn hand lettering to create coloring pages for my book, Broken Crayons Still Color. I watched every video I could find and tried all the recommended techniques. However, no matter what I did, even with the best of pens, my lettering looked horrible. Let's admit it: Learning calligraphy is not as easy as some of the artists online make it look. And I was frustrated. I continued my research and discovered faux calligraphy. I decided to use it, along with block lettering, to create my hand-drawn coloring pages. What is Faux Calligraphy? It's fake calligraphy. In my opinion, it is the easiest way to get started. You can achieve a beautiful outcome almost right away, even with your own handwriting. In this book, Calligraphy for Beginners, I will walk you through the steps of how to get started as well as the mistakes to avoid. In calligraphy, your letters will have thick downstrokes and thin upstrokes. With faux calligraphy, you simply add the thickness to your downstrokes after you write the letters. It's a three-step process you'll learn in chapter three. Traditional calligraphy and brush lettering require months of consistent practice to train your hand and develop the muscle memory required to achieve the thick and thin strokes. Even after years of practice, I continue to improve every day. And, honestly, I notice the difference in my lettering if I don't practice consistently for several weeks. Therefore, if you want to achieve a beautiful outcome right away or need to use lettering for a project immediately (like I did), faux calligraphy is a great way to get started. It's a fun way to add text to coloring pages and create beautiful artwork, hand-lettered cards, bookmarks, and so much more. Bonus: As a bonus to this book, you get free access to my faux calligraphy online class ($39 value). To make it as easy as possible for you, I filmed a video demonstrating every letter in the alphabet. Plus, you can download my practice sheets to print off for reference and blank practice sheets for your own lettering. Click the buy button and let's get started!

    The 52 sketches, instantly recognizable as Becky's clean, classic style, give you a new design to sample each week of the year! This must-have book is divided into sections according to how many photos you have to scrap—saving you time! If you have six photos, flip to the six photos layout section and glean inspiration from layouts crafted by Becky and readers. 162 pagesYou'll get: 52 sketches in Becky's signature style. Tips on becoming a "sketch" artist from Becky. A recipe for perfect pages every time!

    Collected by renowned quilt authority and collector Roderick Kiracofe, they represent a 20th-century quilt movement that remains mostly undocumented. Unlike the familiar quilts that replicate traditional patterns of earlier centuries, these surprising textiles represent a freer, more casual, utilitarian style that departs from (and returns to) a multitude of norms and standards. Peppered with essays by renowned experts that help to contextualize the quilts’ surprisingly modern aesthetic, Unconventional & Unexpected is a groundbreak­ing celebration of 20th-century quilting that picks up where most other quilt histories leave off.

    This book contains techniques for creating the tiles such as painting and glazing, stamping, and, embedding items like beads and buttons.

    Using only pen and paper, you will learn to make 24 basic Zentangles as well as inspiration for incorporating these designs into your art. Zentangles can be used to decorate wearables and home decor objects as well as cards, scrapbook pages and journals. Best of all, you can do this even if you have never drawn anything before.

    The stylish design of this book, along with the interior photographs, illustrations and diagrams, make the learning process simple and fun for beginning painters and provides useful tips for more advanced artists.This book is divided into three sections. In the first section, you will find practical advice on choosing the necessary tools and equiopment as well as hints on mixing colors€”one of the trickier skills to master until you have learned some of the basic properties of color. Next, the techniques used in watercolor painting are explained in detail, from the most basic like laying washes and reserving highlights to some of the more unusual and exciting methods like wax-resist or spattering paint. Tutorials and more than 100 step-by-step sequences demonstrate how to paint a wide range of subjects, including landscapes, buildings, people and still life. Over 180,000 copies sold worldwide.

    Projects include jewelry, thigh-high stockings, retro bags, scarves, sweaters, shrugs, camis, and home décor objects, exploring color, texture, design, embellishment, and how to customize patterns to fit personal style. Basic crochet techniques are covered along with tutorials on sizing, design, and special techniques. Up-and-coming designers are profiled throughout the book to give an entertaining and inspiring insight into this new generation of crocheters, what inspires them, how they find community with other crocheters, and creative ideas for breaking the rules and representing their individual crochet style.

    For aspiring artists who want to draw and paint but just can't seem to find time in the day, Gregory offers 5– to 10–minute exercises for every skill level that fit into any schedule—whether on a plane, in a meeting, or at the breakfast table—along with practical instruction on techniques and materials, plus strategies for making work that's exciting, unintimidating, and fulfilling. Filled with Gregory's encouraging words and motivating illustrations, Art Before Breakfast teaches readers how to develop a creative habit and lead a richer life through making art.

    Needlework encyclopedia gives all there is to know about your favorite hobby.

    Pretty cool! The popularity of these resins for jewelry making has soared with the introduction of easy-to-mix, low-odor products, ideal for crafters. Now best-selling author Sherri Haab shows how to put the miracle of modern technology to work making necklaces, bangles, bracelets, pins, earrings, and rings. Projects range from simple to sophisticated, from Bakelite-style heart pins to faux amber earrings to glitter gem bracelets, from scrimshaw bracelets to cloisonné pins to transparent resin necklaces backed with gold leaf. Packed with tips on tools, supplies, finishing, and creating special effects, including ideas on combining resins with polymer clay, The Art of Resin Jewelry is a beautiful and practical introduction to an exciting craft.

    On this painterly journey, Tracy Verdugo leads you from self-doubt to self-appreciation by helping you find your voice through a myriad of vibrantly-hued mark making, painting and self-reflection techniques. There are no mistakes here, only opportunities to learn and grow.- Learn the language of your own sacred marks by painting with personal symbology. - Discover the inspiration that exists around you, in your home, your community, the present moment. - 19 step-by-step exercises use popular mixed media materials such as pastels, acrylic paints, inks and more! - See how to use art making to plant creative seeds and cultivate your wildest dreams. Turn on your Paint Mojo and make an awesome, shiny, perfectly imperfect mark of you.

    With doodles of food, nature, animals, architecture, fashion, and more, you will learn to draw cute artwork from countries all over the world! Learn how to draw a darling Eiffel Tower, macaron, and beret from France. Or master how to draw precious natural wonders Like Australia’s Great Barrier Reef and enchanting architecture like India’s Taj Mahal. Or sketch fashion fun like a K-pop skirt from South Korea and charming transportation like a tuk tuk from Vietnam. Kawaii Doodle Cutiesfeatures over 100 lovable, huggable characters and includes simple step-by-step illustrations and instructions, search-and-find puzzle patterns that you can color, and inspiration pages. Thanks to this adorable crash course in doodling all things kawaii, you’ll soon be enhancing your notebooks, stationery, artwork, and everything with unbelievably adorable illustrations! Learn how to draw even more cute things with these other fun books in the Kawaii Doodle series: Kawaii Doodle Class, Kawaii Doodle Cuties, Mini Kawaii Doodle Class, and Mini Kawaii Doodle Cuties.

    Need some pillows for your new couch, and have a bunch of old wool sweaters? Turn those sweaters into felt! Knitting, felting, leather tooling, glass and metal work––it's all here. CRAFTIVITY is filled with 60 amazing DIY projects that make the most of what you have by taking old stuff and turning it into functional, breathtaking art.

    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

    Simple and easy step-by-step instructions with clear understandable line drawings.