Craft Wisdom and Know-How

Craft Wisdom & Know-How – Everything You Need to Know to Stitch, Sculpt, Bread, and Build
Published at Workman

About the book

The fifth book in the popular Wisdom and Know-How series, Craft Wisdom & Know-How covers dozens of the most popular crafts in one complete, all-encompassing resource.

The book is organized by type of craft and includes Sewing, Knitting, and Other Needlework; Paper Crafts and Bookmaking; Glasswork; Jewelry Making; Pottery and Clay; Mosaics; Candle-making and Decorating; and Woodworking and Furniture Making. The sections are further broken down into chapters that cover specific crafts, each with step-by-step directions and tips for projects for all levels of skill and ability, from beginner to advanced. Hundreds of projects are included, such as Super Sock Monkeys, Crocheted Hats, Etched Glass, One-Afternoon Skirts, and Beading Vintage-Style Jewelry, to name a few.

The material is hand-selected from dozens of publications from Lark Books, a leader in craft books. The information is tried, trusted, and true, and provides indispensable instruction and advice from the most accomplished crafters in the world. With hundreds of black-and-white illustrations and photographs, as well as essential resources for materials and tools, Craft Wisdom & Know-How is a must-have book for the aspiring and experienced crafter alike.

My Thoughts

This book is a gigantic source of ideas for any crafter out there.    Whether you like to knit, do beading projects or make cards, you will find something to either deepen your enjoyment of making crafts or to learn a new skill.   The first thing that will hit you when you see this book is definitively its size.    Why?   Well let’s just say that it is bigger than regular book on crafts out there.   The second thing that is impressive is the fact that it present ideas for ten different kind of crafts.

In this huge book you will find the basics as well as projects on how to do beadwork, candlemaking, polymer clay crafts, floral crafts, glass crafts, knitting & crochet, mosaics, paper crafts, swing and stitching as well as woodworking.   This book give you an introduction in how to start in a specific craft as well as give you a variety of projects from beginner to advanced.   This way not only will you discover a new skill to develop but you can practice and become better at it.  While flipping through the pages of candlemaking, I remembered some of the techniques I had learned while doing extra-curricular activities while in high school.    I used to do paraffin candles back then.  And when I got married, I took some classes at Micheal’s on how to manipulate beeswax and make fancy candles.    I don’t have much time anymore to do that but having this book in my hands I can relearn and rediscover how to make candles with my kids as a school project.

One of my desire would be to learn how to crochet.   I tried with this book but with nobody to guide me in it, I am uncertain of how good of a job I am doing.   I find it partly disappointing that all the pictures in this book are in black and white.   I wish they would be in color to help me to visualize the instructions.    Needless to say I am not abandoning the idea of crocheting one day.   I just need to persevere I guess. 

There are also small projects for kids in the woodworking section.   This would be interesting to keep them occupy during the summer season.

If you have an interest in learning a specific craft and wonder if you would enjoy it, this book is definitively the one I would suggest for you to consider.   There are numerous craft ideas with step-by-step instructions for you to dig into.   

The Craft Wisdom & Know-How is available at your favorite bookstore, even amazon.ca.

Disclaimer: I received the product from Workman for review purposes. I was not monetarily compensated for this review. Please note that the review was not influenced by the Sponsor in any way. All opinions expressed here are only my own.

Survival Wisdom and Know How

Survival Wisdom & Know-How – Everything You Need to Know to Subsist in the Wilderness

http://www.workman.com/products/9781579127534/

About the book

Survival Wisdom is a large-scale practical guide, jam-packed with information on every aspect of outdoor life and adventure.
Survival Wisdom & Know-How is the most complete, all-in-one volume on every aspect of outdoor adventure and survival ever, from orienteering to campfire cooking to ice climbing and beyond. Culled from dozens of respected books from Stackpole, the industry's leader in outdoor adventure, this massive collection of wilderness know-how leaves absolutely nothing to chance when it comes to surviving and thriving in the wilderness—and appreciating every minute of it.
Topics include Building Outdoor Shelter, Tracking Animals, Winter Camping, Tying Knots, Orienteering, Reading the Weather, Identifying Edible Plants and Berries, Surviving in the Desert, Bird Watching, Fishing and Ice Fishing, Hunting and Trapping, Canoeing, Kayaking, and White Water Rafting, First Aid, Wild Animals, Cookery, and much more. Useful illustrations and photos throughout make it easy to browse and use. With contributions by the experts at the National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS) as well as the editors of Stackpole's Discover Nature series, Survival Wisdom & Know-How is the definitive, must-have reference for the great outdoors.

My Thoughts

When I first saw this book at Costco, I was amazed by the size of it.  This book is fabulous with the information it contains but the size of it is a bit awkward...  way too big to pocket it in a backpack while in the wilderness.  

However, if you want to learn to build an outdoor shelter, track animals, do winter camping, read the weather, identify edible plants, survive in the desert, fish and ice fish, hunt and trap, navigate without a map and a compass, learn to handle canoe and kayak, tye knots, administrate emergency first aid, avoid dangerous animals, recognize poisonous snakes, and cook outdoor, then this book is for you!

Going through it it reminded me of my girl guide days when we were building fire tables and cook on the fire.   During those years I had learned to identify the weather just by looking at nature, identified plants, learned how to survive when lost, learned to use a compass and much more.    It was good times.

This book contains interesting tips on fishing which I will definitively share with my husband.   He is always looking for ways on how to improve his fishing.  

More recently, I have looked into the book to read more on poison ivy.   My third son has unfortunately being exposed twice to the plant around our RV in the past month.  The second time, it was limited to some of his fingers but boy did he had a reaction.  I have learned that symptoms can take a few hours to a several days before appearing.   That if you come in contact with a poisonous plant like poison ivy, poison oak or poison sumac, you should rinse you skin with water first to remove the oil from the plant and then wash it with soap.   In Ontario, we can encounter poison sumac or poison ivy.  

The book also contains some recipes, ways to collect water if needed, tips and tricks to do rock climbing, how to travel on land and water, great explanations and illustrations on how the weather happens  as well as first aid to name a few of the subject found in this book.

I was interested in this book because it can be useful for my kids to go through it as I don’t know what they will do in life and where they might end up.    As a homeschooler, I am always on the lookout to find books that will teach them skills that could be helpful one day.  This book is definitively one that can teach them quite a bit on survival and how to be wise while doing activities outdoors.

Survival Wisdom & Know-How is available at your favourite bookstore, even amazon.ca

Disclaimer: I received the product from Workman for review purposes. I was not monetarily compensated for this review. Please note that the review was not influenced by the Sponsor in any way. All opinions expressed here are only my own.

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