new diy, how-to, and crafty nonfiction, 4.23.08

Amigurumi!: Super Happy Crochet Cute, Elisabeth Doherty
rochet is not just about ponchos and scarves anymore: it’s about amigurumi, a hip new craft trend! These Japanese-inspired dolls have motivated crocheters everywhere to grab their hooks and create collections of irresistibly funky-cute creatures. Elisabeth Doherty, one of today’s hottest amigurumi designers, is here to show readers how they, too, can get in on the fun. She explains basic and advanced stitches; shows how to make the critters’ forms by crocheting in the round; gives advice on yarns and stuffing; and offers tips on embroidering facial features and embellishments. Start with an easy cupcake, move on to a palm-sized mouse, and work up to the more challenging and spectacular projects, like a punk rock bunny or a beatnik kitty—complete with black turtleneck, beret, and goatee.

Knitting New Scarves: 27 Distinctly Modern Designs, Lynne Barr
Scarves are often the first garments beginning knitters try. Then, when they feel ready for a greater creative thrill, they move on to other types of garments. In Knitting New Scarves, Lynne Barr beckons all levels of knitters back to their humble beginnings and then wows them with 27 spectacularly modern designs, each created using an innovative new technique or a unique take on a traditional one.

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Japanese Temari: A Simple Spin on an Ancient Craft, Barbara Seuss
For centuries, temari balls have been decorative additions to the Japanese household, and this introduction for the beginning temari-stitcher features straightforward directions and detailed sketches for recreating their bright colors and intricate designs. Each section introduces a new stitching technique, guiding the reader through the temari repertoire, until he/she has become a temari master by the book's conclusion. These crafts are inexpensive and fast to make—half of the 26 designs can be completed in less than two hours each. Sidebars throughout the book are loaded with beautiful watercolors and notes on Japanese culture and poetry, and colorful pictures and rich text make this unique craft book appealing to buyers both as a how-to guide and as a beautiful gift book.

Bag Style, Pam Allen
Featuring 22 innovative patterns for all skill levels, this book includes projects from 20 top knitwear designers, including Veronik Avery, Norah Gaughan, Mags Kandis, and Kristin Nicholas. From a zenith carpet bag to a felted messenger bag to a delicate purse with handles made of bracelets, each project features gorgeous photographs and step-by-step instructions, and all techniques are explained in easy-to-understand detail. Whether an avid bag knitter or creating one for the first time, this book has all the inspiration, technique, and details crafters need.

Hardwear: Jewelry From a Toolbox
24 striking, easy-to-make pieces of jewelry fashioned from nuts and metal washers, S hooks and O rings, rubber sheeting and rubber tubing, and other inexpensive, readily available hardware. Most of the projects for necklaces, bracelets, and earrings featured in this unique and unexpected book can be completed in just a few hours, and all of them can be made on a minimal budget.