It’s easy, fun, and can be done right in your own kitchen! Self-taught dyer Gail Callahan shows you a variety of simple techniques to turn plain, outdated, or leftover yarn into vibrant “new” fibers using ovens, crockpots, frying pans, and other standard kitchen equipment. Detailed advice on color theory, self-striping, “grocery store” dyes, and handmade multicolor skeins make successful dyeing a cinch, even for complete beginners.

    As more and more crafters are discovering, dyeing your own fabric can yield gorgeous colors. Now master dyer Rebecca Burgess identifies 36 plants that will yield beautiful natural shades and shows how easy it is to make the dyes. Pokeweed creates a vibrant magenta, while a range of soft lavender shades is created from elderberries; indigo yields a bright blue, and coyote brush creates stunning sunny yellows.Gathering Color explains where to find these plants in the wild (and for those that can be grown in your backyard, how to nurture them) and the best time and way to harvest them; maps show the range of each plant in the United States and Canada. For the dyeing itself, Burgess describes the simple equipment needed and provides a master dye recipe. The book is organized seasonally; as an added bonus, each section contains a knitting project using wools colored with dyes from plants harvested during that time of the year. With breathtaking color photographs by Paige Green throughout, Gathering Color is an essential guide to this growing field, for crafters and DIYers; for ecologists and botanists; and for artists, textile designers, and art students.

    Angela Walters creates the complementary finish and surface texture for each design, resulting in the perfect marriage of color and style for each of the featured 17 quilt projects.Pairing one shape with one color family in each chapter, you'll step through quilts of varying sizes, at the same time enjoying a front row seat to the creative collaboration between these mavens of style.In addition to the 17 signature Tula Pink quilt designs and 42 quilt design motifs from Angela Walters, you will also be treated to useful tips on choosing fabrics and mixing up prints and approaching the quilt process.Featuring bold illustrations and gorgeous photographs, Quilt with Tula & Angela is the comprehensive approach to intuitive color choices you've been waiting for.

    In 15 projects organized in three levels, from novice to intermediate, Trish provides expert, easy-to-follow guidance on techniques for surface stitching that provide subtle shadings and a soft, paintlike blending of colors. Sections on materials, the long and short stitch, and helpful practice motifs lead to gorgeous projects like Burgundy Rosebuds, a Wild Pansy, and a Racquet-tailed Roller.

    This step-by-step book is divided into six chapters, each with seven daily exercises.  The Zentangle method was created by Rick Roberts and Maria Thomas as a way to practice focus and meditation through drawing by using repetitive lines, marks, circles, and shapes. Each mark is called a "tangle," and you combine various tangles into patterns to create "tiles," or small square drawings. Each of the six chapters explores a different aspect of Zentangle:Basics and EnhancementsTangles and Value PatternsGeometric and Organic PatternsUnderstanding and Using ColorDefining and Using StyleCreating the Rest of Your Zentangle JourneyEach exercise includes new tangles to draw in sketchbooks or on Tiepolo (an Italian-made paper), teaches daily tile design, offers tips on related art principles, and contains an inspirational "ZIA" (Zentangle Inspired Art) project on a tile that incorporates patterns, art principals, and new techniques.   Drawing Zentangles is a relaxing and replenishing diversion that can be enjoyed by people of all ages and skill levels. In addition to its soothing benefits, a Zentangle practice can also help with self-image, phobias, addictions, pain management, conflict resolution, and coping with grief. Step away from the daily hustle and untangle with a Zentangle.

    Using basic crochet stitches you can create stunning, contemporary designs for home decor items and accessories. C2C projects also stitch up super-fast so if you've been put off tackling a crochet blanket because it would take too long, this is the technique for you! Author Jess Coppom has brought a really fresh take to this style of crochet with a collection of 15 modern projects all made using the C2C technique. Choose from patterns for six different afghans or blankets including a monochrome chunky throw and a beautiful Mexican style blanket. Other projects include pillows, a bathroom rug and some stunning items to wear such as a poncho, shawl and cowl. Why not make some C2C projects for yourself and then stitch up some treats for friends and family?

    Joe took toy soldiers to a whole new level by giving them the ability to pose via moveable parts, as well as interchangeable clothing and accessories, the business of creating pop sculpture icons for the mass market was off and running. Superheroes came next, followed by TV show and movie characters, most notably those from Star Wars. Today, action figures exist for sports stars, rock stars, even presidents.With today's blockbuster success of animated films, action figures and collectibles have become a behemoth industry--with a growing need for skilled artists who can bring these characters to life. So how do you get started?The trio of veteran industry insiders who authored this book take you on an incredibly thorough journey that begins with drawing conceptual drafts and continues through rough sculpting and honing the final product. Along the way, you'll learn how to research your character, shape casts from a variety of materials including wax and resin, make accessories, articulate characters so that they are poseable, paint them, and ultimately convince an art director to buy and manufacture them. Whether you want to make small PVC toys, collectible statues, or larger high-end collectibles, Pop Sculpture offers step-by-step demos and words of wisdom from the pros.

    Easy-to-follow patterns, beautiful photographs, and colorful step-by-step drawings help the projects come together quickly----many in less than an hour. Whether they are created in kimono silks or in contemporary cottons, these tiny boxes, purses, decorative toys, incense pouches, and good luck charms all make delightful gifts.

    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.

    The projects produce high-impact quilts made with simple cutting and construction, therefore no fussy cutting or Y-seams are required.

    In Uncommon Crochet, designer Julie Armstrong Holetz applies new ideas and unconventional materials--like wire, raffia, jute, sisal, recycled belts, fabric strips, and felted beads--to twenty-five patterns for bins, baskets, totes, handbags, clutches, jewelry, and more. Step-by-step instructions, detailed how-to photographs, and essential advice about creativity, design, and experi-mentation encourage you to play with fiber, add funky embellishments, and use your creative spirit to customize any pattern--even the ones in this book! From practical containers like Red's Goodie Basket (a stylish home for your WIP--works in progress) and Vintage Satchel (a sturdy retro messenger bag) to just plain fun projects like Petite Fleur Vases (tiny bud vases that hold water) and Sushi (crocheted California rolls, anyone?), Uncommon Crochet offers fresh twists on old-school techniques that turn simple projects into gift-worthy creations.

    Inside you'll learn all the secrets behind her exciting new fusion of traditional spinning and envelope-pushing creativity.The yarn styles explored in this comprehensive spinning guide are as well made as they are inventive. Jacey walks you through each of her techniques, with a refreshing mixture of quirky, fanciful, and unexpected designs that are always skillfully constructed. Inside you'll discover:*How to create innovative, eye-catching single and plied yarn styles, including wraps, beehives, bumps, racing stripes, loops, bubblewrap, multiplied, and more.*Detailed technical instruction with step-by-step photos with finished yarn and swatch close-ups.*Jacey's bright personality and motivational tips to inspire all spinning enthusiasts to unleash their creative spirit.Traditional spinners will love Jacey's adventurous spirit and attention to expert technique, while textured-yarn spinners will love Jacey's wild designs and solid construction.As a bonus, the instructional DVD provides additional handspinning demonstration and commentary to complement the techniques in the book. Jacey has bottled the energy and expertise of her highly sought after workshops into a personal, at-home workshop experience for you.

    Turning its pages, you will see the patterns grow from simple to more elaborate. You will find this to be the best arrangement for instructional purposes as well as a demonstrations of the orderly and scientific methods on which knitting patterns are based. You will be astonished at the great beauty and variety of these patterns, and you will come to realize the potential of knitting, in practiced hands, as one of the finest of crafts.The author begins with basics, with the distinction between knit and purl sides of the fabric and the use of simple black-and-white charts to present patterns. She then introduces a new motif or design in each chapter. Charts, diagrams, and photographs are used liberally along with the text to illustrate each pattern and steps in the creation of each, with special symbols to indicate critical points, so that you can guard against going astray. The patterns range from cross and cross-over motifs through slip-stitch patterns, eyelet patterns, faggot and lace faggot stitch, bias fabrics, lace knitting, embossed motifs and patterns, medallion knitting, picot point knitting, and filet lace. Concluding chapters are devoted to seamless garments and accessories, modern garments, and ornamental uses of increasing and decreasing. There are lists of French and German knitting terms and an index of textures.Special attention is given throughout to explaining the how and why of each pattern, and the properties of each in terms of horizontal and vertical stretching so that selection of patterns can be made practically as well as aesthetically. The beginner will find this book an excellent guide and instruction manual, and the experienced knitter will find it an almost inexhaustible encyclopedia of patterns, methods, and suggestions.

    The projects are built around a focal cabochon and incorporate seed beads and crystals in imaginative ways. Designers learn to make the jewelry shown in the book, and they also use the techniques learned to create innovative jewelry pieces of their own.

    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.