The biological world under our toes is often unexplored and unappreciated, yet it teems with life. In one square meter of earth, there lives trillions of bacteria, millions of nematodes, hundreds of thousands of mites, thousands of insects and worms, and hundreds of snails and slugs. But because of their location and size, many of these creatures are as unfamiliar and bizarre to us as anything found at the bottom of the ocean.Lavishly illustrated with nearly three hundred color illustrations and masterfully-rendered black and white drawings throughout, Life in the Soil invites naturalists and gardeners alike to dig in and discover the diverse community of creatures living in the dirt below us.  Biologist and acclaimed natural history artist James B. Nardi begins with an introduction to soil ecosystems, revealing the unseen labors of underground organisms maintaining the rich fertility of the earth as they recycle nutrients between the living and mineral worlds. He then introduces readers to a dazzling array of creatures: wolf spiders with glowing red eyes, snails with 120 rows of teeth, and 10,000-year-old fungi, among others. Organized by taxon, Life in the Soil covers everything from slime molds and roundworms to woodlice and dung beetles, as well as vertebrates from salamanders to shrews. The book ultimately explores the crucial role of soil ecosystems in conserving the worlds above and below ground.A unique and illustrative introduction to the many unheralded creatures that inhabit our soils and shape our environment aboveground, Life in the Soil will inform and enrich the naturalist in all of us.

    He examines what really makes a caricature successful, what to look for in a face, and how to draw it. Readers also learn how to apply this skill, whether it's drawing live, theme-park-style caricatures, or creating caricature for publication work. Loaded with everything from basic theories and drawing instruction to professional tips and tricks, this book contains something for novices and experts alike. The Mad Art of Caricature! is the most comprehensive and complete how-to guide on the art of caricature ever published. With over 500 illustrations, it's the definitive guide to the art of caricature.

    Fortunately, Simple Soldering proves that does not need to be the case. This handy how-to guide is complete in its exploration of the craft of creating soldered metal jewelry, including tools, techniques, and 20 beautiful projects that beginners and enthusiasts can make at home.Author and teacher Kate Richbourg demystifies basic soldering for any home crafter, showing how to create sophisticated, polished, and professional-looking jewelry pieces through simple soldering techniques. First, she instructs how to set up a jewelry workspace that fits the confines of your budget and living space. Detailed step-by-step instructions walk you through the basic tools and materials you need, plus how to use them. A sample chapter gives a host of introductory exercises that teach solid skills, allowing you to test these techniques on a small scale. Finally, you'll discover 20 finished projects that include earrings, pendants, rings, bracelets, and clasps that may also include bead or wire embellishment.Kate also demonstrates how to combine and layer techniques to gorgeous effect. She also examines common mistakes, shows how to correct or adapt them, and gives advice on when it’s time to start over. Most of all, having taught thousands of classes on soldering, Kate has a "you can do it!" attitude that shines through to help even the most reluctant jewelry maker fire up the torch with ease.Paired with an instructional DVD, Kate’s expert teaching skills will help projects come alive, right in your own studio.With Simple Soldering, the art of metal working one-of-a-kind jewelry is now at your fingertips.

    Fans of the wildly popular “60 Knits” series are already into the lighter sportweight wool, exclusively from Cascade Yarns-and new readers will welcome its many advantages. Projects include the Paris Cardigan and Birdhouse Sweater from Pat Olski, Amy Barht's Bunny Blanket, and Veronica Manno's Smart Striped Vest.

    The method is simple and magical — knit the project large and loose, wash it in hot water, and see it transformed into a soft and cozy garment or accessory. Kathleen Taylor encourages you to explore the possibilities of felted knitting with 25 spectacular projects that include mittens, slippers, hats, bags, stuffed animals, and more. Embellish your life with unique and stylishly comfortable creations.

    It was there where she first saw a lamb being born, giving her the drive to defy her urban roots and become a professional shepherd. She never looked back.In this uplifting and inspirational memoir, Hannah shares how she broke the stereotypes of her 'townie' beginnings, took risks and faced up to the challenges of being a young woman in a male-dominated industry, and followed her heart to become the Red Shepherdess. But behind the beautiful landscape, talented sheepdogs and eye-catching red hair was a steep learning curve. The physically and mentally demanding conditions she faced as she chased her dreams to build her own Cumbrian farm taught Hannah the values the holds true, including community, leadership, patience and resilience.In Call Me Red, Hannah gives a unique insight into farming life and reveals a mindset and determination that proves no matter your background, with hard graft (and a loyal sheepdog) you can make your dreams a reality.

    Logically organized and packed with step photography, this will be the ultimate one-stop resource for both shopping and cooking.Have you ever wished that your kitchen came with instructions? Let the experts at America's most trusted test kitchen show you the ropes in this new illustrated compendium of techniques, tips, tricks, recipes, and reviews for the home cook. This is a handbook for everyone, beginner to expert, that is not only useful but also entertaining, thought-provoking, and utterly unique. It will appeal to longtime fans of the magazine who want to see behind the scenes as well as to novice cooks who want to get everything right in the kitchen from the beginning. Never before has America's Test Kitchen revealed the secrets behind our extensive testing procedures and exacting recipe development process; in this new book, come behind the scenes to see how we pick the best equipment and ingredients and create the most foolproof recipes out there. With dozens of equipment recommendations, hundreds of ingredient entries, mini lessons on basic cooking skills and useful kitchen science, plus illustrated step-by-step instructions for 50 of our most essential recipes.

    Irish makes it easy for beginners to learn the creative craft of woodburning in Pyrography Basics. All that aspiring beginners need is this book and an inexpensive woodburning tool to start adorning wood, gourds, leather, paper and more with beautifully burned images and patterns. The author provides a thorough introduction to basic tools, materials and techniques. Readers learn how to set up a practice board to experiment with strokes and settings before moving on to working projects with confidence. Six skill-building projects provide step-by-step exercises in using temperature, time, layering, and texturing to create artistic tonal values.

    Like the previous edition this new edition still contains everything you need to know about loom knitting, like gauge, yarn thickness, increasing, decreasing, color work, different cast on and off methods, and more. Additionally, it includes Isela's precise and easy how-to instructions, now newly updated, for making basic stitches and variations, and for using all the different types of looms, round and long looms, currently in the market. The project section is also updated to include more specific information about the looms used, with a handy chart of all the looms, with their gauges, currently on the market.But what hasn't changed is the straightforward information and the need for this book, making it the one to have for all loom knitters. If you only purchase one loom knitting book, this is the one to get!

    In Running to Extremes, she attempts to answer that question and many more about ultramarathon running. In the past few years, Lisa has taken part in some of the most gruelling races on earth. Not content with having run the Badwater Ultramarathon once, she's been back and done it a second time. She's also completed the Gobi March and a race in the Egyptian Sahara. However, none of these could have prepared her for her greatest challenge to date: La Ultra, a 222-kilometre non-stop race over two Himalayan mountain passes. Running to Extremes tells the stories behind these races and provides plenty of advice for runners of all levels and distances. Filled with training tips, gear lists, information on nutrition and supplements, advice on mental preparation and, most importantly, a focus on how to keep yourself healthy while training and racing, it will inspire and motivate runners and non-runners alike.

    Yet lost are the stories on the other side of these history-making moments, the athletes who experienced not transcendent glory but crushing disappointment: the cornerback who missed the tackle on the big touchdown; the relief pitcher who lost the series; the world-record holding Olympian who fell on the ice.In Losing Isn’t Everything, famed sportscaster Curt Menefee, joined by bestselling writer Michael Arkush, examines a range of signature "disappointments" from the wide world of sports, interviewing the subject at the heart of each loss and uncovering what it means—months, years, or decades later—to be associated with failure. While history is written by the victorious, Menefee argues that these moments when an athlete has fallen short are equally valuable to sports history, offering deep insights into the individuals who suffered them and about humanity itself.Telling the losing stories behind such famous moments as the Patriots’ Rodney Harrison guarding the Giants' David Tyree during the "Helmet Catch" in Super Bowl XLII, Mary Decker’s fall in the 1984 Olympic 1500m, and Craig Ehlo who gave up "The Shot" to Michael Jordan in the 1989 NBA playoffs, Menefee examines the legacy of the hardest loses, revealing the unique path that athletes have to walk after they lose on their sport’s biggest stage. Shedding new light some of the most accepted scapegoat stories in the sports cannon, he also revisits both the Baltimore Colts' loss to the Jets in Super Bowl III, as well as the Red Sox loss in the 1986 World Series, showing why, despite years of humiliation, it might not be all Bill Buckner's fault.Illustrated with sixteen pages of color photos, this considered and compassionate study offers invaluable lessons about pain, resilience, disappointment, remorse, and acceptance that can help us look at our lives and ourselves in a profound new way.

    Jessica Alexandrakis has traveled the world with her on-to-go sewing kit and small stash of fabric, creating strikingly modern patchwork along the way. Now she shares everything she's learned about this addictive, beginner-friendly technique. • Sewing kit essentials that you can slip in your bag so you'll always be ready to stitch • Color theory and stash organization tips for dramatic effects or scrap-happy results • Creative patterns to combine hexagons, half-hexagons, diamonds, stars, squares, and triangles • 10 step-by-step projects, including the hand-pieced Laptop Bag, Tanuki Stripe Throw, Falling Stars Baby Quilt, and Jessica's signature Travel Quilt • 10 customizable quilt patterns with 40 vibrant color palette suggestions Whether your style is classic or modern, Jessica offers a range of stunning projects, from small home accessories to full-size quilts, for all skill levels. So leave the sewing machine at home. Take your quilt to go.

    A selection of 30 beautiful designs suggests the range of this increasingly popular material, and the illustrated instructions make the craft's fundamentals easy to learn. Because the simplest projects come first, beginners can work their way through the book progressively, building on their skills. Novices will have fun making the carved trough, sandcast bowl, and elegant relief panel. More sophisticated projects, including a decorative walkway and polished table, come next, and they'll bring charm to any outdoor space. More adventurous artists can unleash their creativity on a "Garden Guardian" sculpture or water feature. A Selection of the Crafters Choice and Homestyle Book Clubs.

    In Venetian glassmaking, slender rods of molten glass are shaped, then cut to reveal amazingly detailed patterns: flowers, geometric shapes, dancing colors. These slices are called millefiori, “thousand flowers,” because they form a carpet of flowers when placed side by side. Now celebrity author Donna Kato shows crafters exactly how to re-create these intricate, fascinating designs in polymer clay. The Art of Polymer Clay Millefiori Techniques reveals the entire process: how to work with the polymer clay, the basics of planning and creating a cane, and using color effectively. Dozens of canes, from simple to simply stunning, are included, and everything is clearly explained and illustrated with full-color photos, the Donna Kato way. Throughout the book, examples of stunning work by such millefiori artists as Kathy Amt, Pier Voulkos, and Kathleen Dustin provide inspiration. There must be a thousand ways to make beautiful millefiori . . . explore them all in The Art of Polymer Clay Millefiori Techniques.