The current fashion for taxidermy is hard to avoid. It seems every trendy bar, restaurant or new boutique you walk into these days has the head of some animal or another gazing down from on high. For those of us who are reluctant for whatever reason to exhibit a decapitated mammal upon our walls, an alternative option has at last surfaced. Using sewing, crochet, knitting, paper mache, and in some cases just cutting and pasting, you can achieve the spirit of taxidermy without the morbid overtones. Combining the twin joys of craft and taxidermy, Craftydermy presents a cabinet of curiosities that will delight, amuse and inspire. Projects include a knitted fox stole, paper mache antlers, a crocheted moose head and a felted tiger rug. Craftydermy follows on from You Are Awesome, has a similar tactile quality, and will appeal to a gift/craft market.
“A delightfully weird . . . journey that includes crazed pharmacists, a guy named Buddha Cheese, and an interstate road trip with a trunk full of pot.” —A. J. Jacobs, New York Times–bestselling author Alfred Ryan Nerz is a Yale-educated author, journalist, and TV producer. He’s also a longtime marijuana enthusiast who has made it his mission to better understand America’s long-standing love-hate relationship with our favorite (sometimes) illegal drug. His cross-country investigation started out sensibly enough: taking classes at a cannabis college, hanging out with a man who gets three hundred pre-rolled joints per month from the federal government, and visiting the world’s largest medical marijuana dispensary. But his journey took an unexpected turn and he found himself embedded with one of the largest growers and dealers on the West Coast. He quickly transformed into an underworld apprentice—surrounded by pit bulls, exotic drugs, beanbags full of cash, and trunks full of weed. But while struggling to navigate the eccentric characters and rampant paranoia of the black market, he maintained enough equanimity to explore a number of vital questions: Is marijuana hurting or helping us? How is it affecting our lungs, our brains, and our ambitions? Is it truly addictive, and if so, are too many of us dependent on it? Should we legalize it? Does he need to quit? As entertaining as it is illuminating, Marijuanamerica is one man’s attempt to humanize the myriad hot-button topics surrounding the nation’s obsession with weed, while learning something about himself along the way. “These wacky accounts rival T.C. Boyle’s fine novel Budding Prospects in showing the highly misguided paranoia that can be cured—or accentuated—by consumption of the marijuana plant’s sticky blossoms.” —Pasatiempo
A timely activity book in which to explore ideas of mindfulness and self-acceptance. The journey of self-discovery starts right here! Aimed at a middle-grade audience, this delightful activity book asks young readers to explore the landscape of their own psyche. They are invited to visit their mountains of strength and wetlands of weaknesses. to confront their 'forests of fears', and to take comfort in their 'islands of interests'. Personality quizzes, coloring in, drawing and designing all feature. Self-examination has never been more enjoyable! At a time when the mental health of young people is a point of concern, this activity book offers a much-needed opening to ideas of self-awareness, empathy, well-being and mindfulness, with a refreshing optimism and lightness of touch.
"Written as a satire on the comic devices cartoonists use, [this] book quickly became a textbook for art students. Walker researched cartoons around the world to collect this international set of cartoon symbols. The names he invented for them now appear in dictionaries."--Page 4 of cover
An exhibition catalog for Critical Stitch presenting the work of contemporary artists who incorporate sewing, embroidery, knitting, and other related techniques in works which critically examine a broad range of social and cultural issues. Curator Lorraine Morales Cox brings together a diverse group of twelve artists who are linked by their approach to these once marginalized techniques. With thread, fabric, felt, and yarn, they offer social commentary and examine complicated nuanced ideas and truths of modern life. Working in media which have traditionally been associated with craft and with the domestic or the feminine, these young artists have moved beyond old stereotypes to construct new meanings on their own terms.
Make something meaningful for birthdays, baby showers, and more with these stylish embroidered gifts. From Jessica Marquez, founder of the popular blog and shop Miniature Rhino, Stitched Gifts offers irresistible embroidery projects for every occasion—weddings, holidays, baby showers, anniversaries, or just because. Each project is rendered in Marquez’s signature natural, modern style and can be easily personalized for truly meaningful keepsakes. Featuring an illustrated stitch dictionary, striking photographs, plus a section on creative finishing techniques such as staining hoops, framing, and more, this distinctly beautiful craft book has something for embroiderers of all skill levels.
Inspiration meets innovation when thirty contemporary artists push the limits of fiber art. A contemporary exploration of embroidery, needlecraft, quilting, and textile arts, this book will delight, inspire, and transform the way you think about these traditional mediums.
The Twitter Diaries tells the story of pen pals for the 21st century. Two parallel lives separated by an ocean but united over a social network. Tuesday (@Tuesday Fields), a sports reporter and Stella (@StellaCavill), a men's shoe designer, are Brit 30-somethings who are introduced in NYC on NYE by a mutual friend, a notorious transatlantic TV presenter. They strike up an instant bond. Over the next 365 days, @TuesdayFields and @StellaCavill put the world to rights, one tweet at a time. From Melbourne to Monaco to Magaluf, the girls flirt and fall out with sportsmen, movie stars... and TV presenters. And then there's their mothers... December 31st of the same year and @TuesdayFields and @StellaCavill meet again, for the first time since the last time. A lot can happen in a year. It turns out just 140 characters can change everything. The Twitter Diaries is an instantly recognisable yet fictitious tale all generations can relate to, whether they are one of the world's 140 million and counting transfixed Twitter users or not. Accessible, funny and heart-warming, it's this summer's must read.
