Projects Books

This is a good book for beginners and beyond. The quilts are lovely and the instructions are detailed with pictures to help you. There are several that I want to make. This is a good one to add to your quilt library collection.

Darlene Zimmerman is a major contributor in the quilting industry. I bought this book because I know this veteran will always teach me something new. And her color combinations are divine.

This book has a chapter for each month of the year, and most chapters include a simple recipe, motivating quotation, or household tip. There is nothing too complicated here, and color schemes range from 2-tone to too fabulously floral.

You might be familiar with Ms. Zimmerman's name from some quilting tools she has developed (the Tri Tool and the Recs Tool) and these tools, along with The Easy Angle and The Companion Angle) are featured in the very helpful last section entitled "Tool Tutorials". You might be able to make the patterns without these tools, using some you already have, but they do indeed help trim up and size those triangles and rectangles.

My favorite design is the month of June's "Wild Roses", not only for the color combo, but also for the peaceful photograph of two Adirondack chairs looking over fields and hills. This could almost become a coffee table book if it ever left my sewing room!!

I have been waiting for the release of this book for awhile,it has some fantastic projects in it, both for just starting and more experienced quilters, the photos are great and the instructions clear, I would recomend this to all quilters, do yourself a favour and get a copy, you wont be disappointed.

Return to Civility: A Speed of Laughter Project


This book will surprise and amaze you. Every page has kind and thoughtful surprises that will make the people you encounter smile and be glad for the moment you've shared. I bought one for my granddaughter and 8 other friends. This is Minnesota Nice in an inspirational little book which I love!

Too often in public spaces our co-inhabitants are not thinking but reacting. The reaction lacks consideration for all of us around the offender. I wish I had a copy of this book with me every time the cell phone addict attempts to check out of a retail store while carrying on at least two conversations. I gave copies to all my friends for entertainment and immediately one of them purchased ten more to give to his in-laws!

Jim-Western Bloomington

Anyone that's got a clue in Minneapolis knows the Brave New Workshop and what they do so well - improv and sketch comedy about the funny observations in everyday life. I've been a fan for years (the Holiday Show is a must-do) and even hired John Sweeney in 2004 to present at our annual conference.

I picked up this book in December 2007 (when I ran into the BNW to pick up their new bootleg DVDs) and I love it. It speaks the truth about the respect and civility that is draining from our everyday life, and that so many children are not being taught today. I am going back to buy 6 more copies, to give one to each of my nieces and nephews, as they graduate from high school and go out into the real world. A little common courtesy goes a long, long way in life.

Thank you to John and the BNW stafff for speaking about it! See you at the next show!

I think this book is excellent. I found the material accurate and easy to follow. I brought this book for my whole project team, I thought so highly of it meeting it's title claim. I was able to take a topic and actually learn it in the alloted time. The beginning chapters provide a good overview of the topics and using MS Project, setting up the project, and good structured project design. When I have a team I need to get up to speed quickly on MS Project, I will again use this book as the tool.

This is one of the best software manuals I have ever used. If you want to learn the essential basics of MS Project quickly and easily, buy this manual. He uses the online templates to walk you through the steps to build a project. It was easy to follow his instructions. I had the outline prepared for my own project. Begining with chpater 3, I used the manual to build my project as I progressed through each chapter. This was a great hands-on learning experience!

This is one of the best software manuals I have ever used. If you want to learn the essential basics of MS Project quickly and easily, buy this manual. He uses the online templates to walk you through the steps to build a project. It was easy to follow his instructions. I had the outline prepared for my own project. Begining with chpater 3, I used the manual to build my project as I progressed through each chapter. This was a great hands-on learning experience!

I am an elementary school teacher and the mother of three young children so I have read a lot of books that say they are filled with easy-to-do science experiments but this is by far the best of its kind that I have read. Within the first two hours my kids and I did three of the experiments AND had a great time together AND learned something!

Many science experiment books out there either have bad science in them, poorly designed experiments, or unclear directions (or, unfortunately, all three). This book has great experiments that are easy and fun to do. And, the science behind the experiments is accurate and clearly explained. As a scientist, science teacher, and parent, this book is the first one my list of recommendations!

I ordered several books to prepare for the experiments I wanted to present for the "Bring Your Kids to Work" Day. This was, by far, the most useful and most interesting book I received. You can use the experiments listed in the book, and tailor them for younger or older children very easily. I'm going to order the sequel, "Science Explorer, Out and About," today!

This is an excellent book! It is a fun way for children to learn about science with activities involving the sense of smell.

My child was never interested in science until I bought him this book. Now I can't get him to stop doing experiments! This brilliant book by the Rybolts has been educational and sparked a new love for learning in my son. Its also been fun for me to learn along with him. This book is one of a kind!

I am a 6th grade teacher and I read an experiment from this book to my class one day to give them an idea with their science fair projects. The class was fascinated! They beg me to read from the book 20 minutes a day, and they are always telling me about the experiments they do at home after hearing about the experiments in class. They are always talking about experiments of odors in and out of the classroom. Parents call and tell me how much fun they have learning from their children about the science of odors and the sense of smell. I would recommend this book to anyone, even if they were not doing a science fair project!

My kids got tired of their toys. i got tired of buying them new ones. So I found this book and discovered through it....new uses for the toys they already had. It was like buying all new toys. I cannot recommend this book enough if you don't want to go out and buy new toys. And, it teaches kids the science behind the toys, which is an added benefit.

I bought this book at a bookstore and liked the content. It is a very easy to use book to use with children. I have used it with my kindergarten kids and my kids who are older at home. There are so many good ideas and concepts to learn that even we teachers can learn from it! I like the book very much...in fact so much that I am going toget this author's other books through Amazon!

My kids got tired of their toys. We do not have the money to buy new ones, so my eye caught this book. I LOVE IT!!!. The book gives a whole new adventure to our kids toys. They not only learned some important science concepts with them...they now look at all of their toys and try to think of other ways to use them. This book saved me money and taught my children some important academics! I highly recommend!

After thoureauly reviewing the experiments in this exceptional book, I've come to identify with the auther's implicit philosophy: get'em while they're curius! With collections like this unique lab manual for children in every field, the education crisis in America would be solved!

This is a collection of simple, yet unusual, science experiments for the elementary classroom using easily available materials. Presentation plans and exlanations accompany the experiment.

Herb Strongin was lightyears ahead of other science educators when he published SOS (1976). He recognized that there are a few big ideas in science, and if students organize their investigations around topics of interest that are sequenced to support those big ideas, then science content understanding will emerge from DOING science. The activities in this book are simple, at times unusual, and they really work! Elementary teachers with little content background in science will find these activities to be understandable and doable. Experienced teachers will find lots of suggestions for how to take their kids deeper into subjects. This is a GREAT book, and with it, Herb Strongin has left a lasting mark on science education.

It sounds so easy when someone explains it to you. How to observes your child and determine his or her strengths so you can help him develop naturally. Or as they say in the Army ads, become all that he can be.

In these days of hyper-parenting where we race around from activity to lesson and then back to activity, never knowing if we are doing our kid good or stressing him out, getting tangled up in the competition of quantity verses quality, it is a tremendous relief to finally have some guidance re how to relax and do the right thing -- for your child and for yourself.

Thanks.

This book is an excellent source of activities for families who want their children to be thinking, solution-oriented and independant people. The author obviously has had a great deal of experience with children, and is looking to build the multiple intelligences - based on Harvard Professor Howard Gardener's information. I have given this as a gift to many friends, and they love it, too!

Wow! I wish my parents had a book like this when I was growing up! Then again, maybe they did. The lost art of creative parenting is unearthed in the diggings of this study of human learning and growth. This book will make you smarter, and anyone that you are brave enough to lend it to. To be on the safe side, you might want to buy two copies. It makes a great gift.

well put together sewing book.
I like the pictures and the fabrics used.
I hope to try many of the projects.

My favorite craft magazine is Marie Claire Idees even though I speak very little French. When I see a project in the magazine that I'd like to make, I painstakingly translate the instructions with the help of a French/English dictionary.

Looking through this book reminds me of Marie Claire Idees projects with English instructions! It turns out the author, Emma Hardy, does in fact contribute to that magazine.

The projects in the book are simple designs using beautiful choices of fabrics with easy embellishments. Ms. Hardy's projects are well designed. Compare her design for a laundry bag with Amy Butler's pattern and you'll see a more interesting balance of bands of fabric and of fabric choices.

The projects in the book include a very cute covered hanger embellished with a fabric, ribbon and button flower, beautiful bed linens, a useful doorstop, pillows, blinds, notebook cover and much more. I did not like every project in the book but I found 9 projects I'd like to make. Most books rarely have more than two that catch my eye.

The instructions are clear, the photos are beautiful.

I purchased this book based solely on the one review on Amazon! I am completely pleased with my purchase now that I have it in my hot little craft-book-junkie hands.
The bright photographs of projects using a wide variety of patterned fabrics are inspiring alone.
The projects are broken into the following categories: Relaxation Spaces, Kitchens and Dining Rooms, Bedrooms, Work and Play, Laundry and Bathroom, Outside Spaces.
There are clear instructions with nice colored drawings to go along with the description.
The projects are basic, and yet the instructions are so nice and just a little bit different enough to make me want to follow them to make a placemat, floor covering, pillowcase,sewing kit, fabric-covered storage box (using cardboard and fabric) and MORE!
I highly recommend this book for the person who has fabric to use and gifts to give...or gifts to give and wants to have an excuse to buy cute new fabrics...
Update: My first project from the book--a cute bathmat. The fabric requirements listed do not match what is needed and the picture is different than the instructions..ie, the bathmat has terry cloth framed with a narrow border and then a wide border. No instructions are ever given for the narrow border--just instructions that are the same as the wide border. It was frustrating, but I was able to figure out a way around the instructions. Hopefully the next project lets me just go through without having to figure my way around the instructions!

I'm really enjoying this action packed series. Also when you think one mystery is solved a new on pops up. Also I love the two new villains introed (the Raven and the Wolf). They are Life Closers (assassins). Did I say action packed? Plus the two main characters (Kim and Kat) can kick butt!!

I loved this second book! I really liked getting to know the two main characters better. The mystery surrounding Kat makes her that much more interesting. The new characters are great too. The Raven and the Wolf are perfect as the new adversaries. I couldn't put this book down. The action scenes are VERY well done. I can't wait for the rest of the series! There is so much that I'm looking forward to finding out.

I love this series. And book two just makes it even better. I love the twin Closers in this novel, they are wickedly evil. The action again is none stop. And there are more and more mysteries to uncover like who is Kat? And just who murdered Kim's mom. I can't wait for book three.