Baskets Books

I had briefly seen this book at a quilt shop recently and was pleasantly surprised to find it on Amazon at about half the price. It's a great book with a lot of new, innovative ideas for using long, thin leftover fabric scraps. The photos are clear and explicit as are the instructions for making things with simple clothesline and fabric and a sewing machine. I am enrolled in a class in a few weeks to learn the process as well and this book was recommended by the teacher.

I bought this book and could not wait to get started! I made one bowl and showed it to my friends in our local ASG and they made bowls for an auction and they have not stopped dreaming up new color combinations and styles. The bowls make up so fast that I wish I had someone to wrap the fabric for me so I could just spend all my time stitching them together.

This book is awesome. Great gifts and so much fun to do.
Made a basket and it is so pretty and useful. Totes and baskets make good sense around the house.
Can't wait to make more different shaped baskets and even some trivets for the table. Who knew a hank of rope and some 1" fabric strips could be so pretty and useful. Well, I just found out. Try it you'll like it.

The book arrived very quickly and in excellent condition. I am very pleased with the service. Thank you

In the 1.3 years that I've had this book, and worked on this craft, I've gotten enormous pleasure combining fabrics and colors and shaping bowls, hot pads, totes, hats and more, most of which I've given to very appreciative friends and relatives.

Susan Breier makes the process easy to undertand and follow, and the bright color photos offer many jumping-off points for individual creativity! My only caveat is that it is imperative to have a heavy-duty sewing machine and thick, sharp needles to get through the layers of fabric and clothesline smoothly. I pretty much destroyed an old Singer Futura I used at the beginning - but liked the craft so much that I bought a refurbished Bernina with a stronger motor and more durable parts, and it handles these projects, over and over, like sewing through butter.

I enjoy that the craft isn't very exacting, like quilting, since I'm not fond of meticulous cutting and sewing tasks. I get loads of compliments on my own pocketbooks and totes that I've created, and it's fun to explain to folks how they're made.

If you love mangas and love a story that gives you every emotion a story can give you, then this is the book for you. The main part of the story is comedy but it does have a lot of other emotions to it and there are a lot of plot eliments that will keep you wanting to read. I don't want to give anything away so I wont, you'll just have to read it. ^_^

I own this series in Japanese, and it is a wonderful read! It has all the important elements of a good shoujo manga: it is romantic, twisted, with a shoujo (in the traditional meaning of the word) involved in finding a new family and love triangles galore. It is just a very fun read, no matter the language!

As an American whose undergrad studies revolved around European subjects, I am still quite ignorant of Japanese customs/cultures/naming conventions and so on. This book confuses me in a few different ways: 1, as another reviewer pointed out, several of the characters look nearly identical, and I had to go back and reread several portions to figure out who was whom. 2, the variations on naming are awkward to me. Tohru is variously referred to as Tohru, Tohru-san, Tohru-chan, Tohru-kun, Honda-san, sometimes even Kyoko-san, which is her mother's name. This isn't so bad, because Tohru is always Tohru no matter what is on the end of it, but for example Hatori is sometimes Ha'ri and sometimes Haa-san and this happens with all the characters who have more than 2 syllables in their names.

There are some weird cultural things drawn in here that I don't understand: a sketch of Tohru's mom in middle school, and she's wearing what looks like a surgical mask? (She was not a doctor.) One of Tohru's friends is referred to as a Yankee, but I can only assume this has a different meaning in Japan. Her name is Arisa Uotani-san (sometimes Uo-chan, which really threw me!) and that is definitely not an American name. So, here I am confused again.

Please forgive my ramblings but once I get started, it's hard to stop! I'll be continuing with Fruits Basket.

I think that the storyline is so nice and is definitely worth reading. I prefer reading it in Nihongo though. All in all the story is very enjoyable and it has a good balance of darkness and drama against lightheartedness and comedy. Ga suki furuuts basuketto!

Tohru Honda's adventures really get going in the second volume of "Fruits Basket," where the upbeat teen moves into the Sohma household. Natsuki Takaya's storytelling is stronger and steadier in these chapters, since she's introduced the main characters and can now get going on the plot.

Tohru is moving into her newly furnished room, and her pals (wave-reading goth Saki and toughgrrl Hana) decide to stay over to make sure that the guys will take care of their cheerful friend. And when New Year's rolls around, Kyo and Yuki find themselves wondering what to do -- go to the main house with the other family, or stay with Tohru?

And at the school, the students are planning a cultural festival, and Tohru encounters two other Sohmas -- the chilly doctor Hatori, and the effusive half-German Momiji, who is instantly pals with Tohru. But Tohru learns of a different side to the zodiac members' lives, when she hears about Hatori's tragic past.

The first volume of "Fruits Basket" was all about introducing the characters and getting them into the same house. And in the second volume, Takaya gets to flesh out the cast with new characters and new storylines, and hints about the more sinister aspects of the Sohma family's curse, and the family head Akito.

The storylines in general are darker here, especially the harrowing flashbacks of Hatori's love affair with his ex-fiancee, and the bitterly chilly way that it fell apart. But Takaya also sprinkles it with happier moments, such as the naughty novels, the preparations for the cultural festival ("She brought an IRON PIPE to school!"), and poor Yuki having to wear a dress, much to the delight of his crazed fangirls.

There are also some new dimensions shown in Tohru here. Sure, she's always cheerful and pleasant, but Takaya hints that she is actually quite lonely now, despite the presence of her friends. But the zodiac members also get some development -- including Tohru's whole talk with Kyo about the "umeboshi" on people's backs.

The second volume of "Fruits Basket" is even better than the first, and introduces the mix of tragedy and comedy that Takaya is so good at. And it will only get better.

This product showed up speedily and in very good condition. I am very happy with it.

I own this series in Japanese, and it is a wonderful read! It has all the important elements of a good shoujo manga: it is romantic, twisted, with a shoujo (in the traditional meaning of the word) involved in finding a new family and love triangles galore. It is just a very fun read, no matter the language!

reading this book makes me want more to read

for people who love fruits basket, this will probably be one of your favorites in the series. full of drama and revealation, i think it is one of the best. i like how there is drama, but not too much of it; it's just in the right spots. kyo realizes his feelings about toruh, and yuki does too, i believe. momiji has really grown up! and u finally realize things about akito. a great read for furuba fans, but i say if u haven't tried this series bfore, research a little on it before deciding to read it!!!!:) i know i can't wait for volume 14!!!!

Fruits Basket volume 11 is probably among the darkest volumes in the series. When you read this one, I can assure you that you will easily be moved to tears - and also part of what makes it dark is our finding out about the zodiacs' futures, particularly Kyo's.

It's obvious that this family holds lots of betrayal and backstabbing, and this volume makes that a big part of its aura. Parts of the book are rather surprising and catch you off-guard while you're reading it. I remember sitting on my bed while reading it, turning to the next page and going "WTF KYO KNEW KYOKO" because basically, this is the volume where we find out about that.

Akito finally confronts Tohru with her real attitude towards outsiders, and gives her a small wound in her anger (poor Tohru!). However, Momiji fans will love this volume, as we see his courageous and protective side towards loved ones.

And LAST but not least, the "love triangle" Between Tohru, Yuki and Kyo is certainly getting more complex. You'll know that in the previous volume, Yuki confessed to himself his love for Tohru. In this volume, the same happens with Kyo. I know who she ends up with in the end at this point (and also by reading spoilers! Haha), but I won't tell you for the sake of my poor head before getting hit by an iron skillet. VERY worthy of five stars, although my favorite volumes are still 1, 4, 6, and 13.

If you wish to escape reality for a few hours into the realm of impossibility this is the read for you. This is the first book I have read of this kind and surprisingly I enjoyed it. I found myself laughing out loud at some of the most impossible antics that went on in this book. You won't be disappointed even if this is not your usual read. So, go ahead, try it and take a walk with the fairies in 'A Basket of Wishes'!

An enchanting tale of a fairy princess who is sent out into the human world to marry and get with child. If you're in the mood to read something different -- this is splendid. I adored the characters.

The only thing iffy was how near (right under the ground of this Barons land!) she lives to her human betrothed. Having watched him as they grew up - she is already knowing him (but not he her) before the Fairy King sends her off. She just steps out from the woods ... & bam!

Rebecca Paisley is my all time favorite writer. I own all of her books miss her writing very much. I would highly reccomend anything is has in print. You willnot beable to put it doen. I read most of her books within 5 hours. Sooo funny!!

The fairy tale story was cute and sweet, but it was a little too...fairytaleish? There was too much magic going on, like the part where Splendor's sister turns Jourdian into a slug? However there are also some very funny parts. If you like the fairy tale side of a story, then this is for you. To me, it just didn't seem real or "real-like."

237,000 book sales can't be wrong! I loved this book. Splendor is such a wonderous fairy with gentle nature and the way she cries tiny diamonds as tears and disappears into a mist when she's troubled. She's been in love with the human Jourdian all of her life and now she finds she must marry him and conceive his child in order to save her fairy kingdom ... but it will mean leaving the man she loves.
While she has managed to get herself into his mansion, can she ever get this hard headed and hard hearted man to fall in love with her?
This story is filled with much humor as her pet Delicious, who can and does turn itself into any animal it wants to, reams havoc on the servants at Jourdian's mansion. Also causing alot of fun is Splendor's sister, Harmony, who loves to spread every but! How fun when she turns Jourdian into a slug and leaves it to Splendor to find him!
This book is great fun and I found myself up until the wee hours of the night reading, unable to put it down.

Enjoy and I'm sure it's one you'll not easily forget!

Really, there isn't a better way to describe this series (especially this volume). The characters are cute, the situations (minus the dramatic parts) are cute, and their reactions... CUTE! While that may not be enough for some readers, it's enough for many of us. And to be honest... the ones who aren't into cute really would never get into this series in the first place.

In this volume we meet a rather persistent admirer of Kyo & get a little more of his background before Tohru. It's great development & is sure to please fans of the series.

I own this series in Japanese, and it is a wonderful read! It has all the important elements of a good shoujo manga: it is romantic, twisted, with a shoujo (in the traditional meaning of the word) involved in finding a new family and love triangles galore. It is just a very fun read, no matter the language!

Yes, the "Best Manga Ever According to Me" award goes to.. FRUITS BASKET!! It's absolutely WONDERFUL!!!! I loved it so much, I've read it 5 times already!
I must admit, sometimes I love Kyo so much it scares me, and this book didn't help.. now I feel bad for him too! This book has lots of character development for Kyo. It was good timing on the writer's behalf. I find myself drawn to the pages where Tohru encounters Kyo in the forest, it's such a perfect scene for him and Tohru.... oh, it makes me want to swoon.....

Alright, now i've been reading manga for about 2 years now and i haven't been hooked on one as much as Fruits Basket! It's amazing, it combines romance with comedy, it's a definate page turner! This one may in fact be my favorite one out of the series so far...it's absolutely amazing! You get to see a side of Kyo you haven't seen yet and this particular manga has alot of character developement in it. It's a definate buy for anyone that wants a good romance/comedy! Not only do you get to see an emotional side of Kyo you haven't seen before, but you also get to see his "true form." Overall, the 6th volume of Fruits Basket is a must read! Kyo is personally my favorite character and you really get to see a side of him you don't normally see and you get to see the relationship between Kyo and Tohru deepen and become alot stronger! Definatly a 10/10!
~alexis~

I'm continuing with Fruits Basket since I have been enjoying the character interaction. Now that I've gotten to volume 6 it's getting easier to recognize the characters, but there's still a lot of cross-cultural stuff that eludes me. The most irritating part to me is...I don't even know how to explain this, but here goes:

Someone (usually a Sohma) is thinking about something. So the words are on the page, not inside thought bubbles or anything, just words on the page. But the pictures are of other people (usually Tohru, or Tohru plus other Sohmas). The thinking person is not always present at the scene being shown. For example, the book has Hatori and Shigure in a conversation. Then we have a few pages of this "someone's thinking" with pictures of Tohru et al. having a fun time. Then at the end of these 5-6 pages, we find that it was Hatori doing the thinking. So I have to go back and reread from the point where he and Shigure were talking, so that I understand what is intended. These books really are a lot of mental work to process at times.

I have picked up the first volume of Ouran High School Host Club to see if it's a problem with me, or a problem with manga in general, or a problem with Fruits Basket. I'll report back after a few more volumes of Fruits Basket!

This is an excellent book. It gives detailed instructions for beginners and lists all the supplies needed. Then it also has instructions for more intermediate and unusually designed baskets.

This is an exquisite book worth the price. The details are very easy to follow. I highly recommend this book for the beginner and advanced.

I purchased this book for my daughter's home school science project. She was learning about different types of trees. She brought back home a whole bunch of pine needles to use. She loves to weave, so we decided to make a pine basket with them.

First, I went on the internet and found one instruction to make a pine needle basket. It was OK, but not clear enough for a beginner like me. The site linked me to this book. I am so glad that I found this book! The instruction is very concise and easy to follow with well illustrated diagrams. Also, it has many beautiful pictures of gorgeous works by the author for your inspiration.
I definitely recommend this book to someone who wants to start a pine basket weaving. Also, for teachers, it is the MUST to have book in the classroom.

The instructions in this book are well written and clear, but what makes "Pine Needle Basketry" worth owning are the beautiful color photographs that are liberally sprinkled throughout the book. The book starts with a discussion of the required tools and materials and pretty quickly jumps into directions on how to make a simple pine needle basket. From there the author describes additional techniques such as: the different stitches used to bind the coils, adding beads and shells for embellishment, and using a gourd for the base of a basket. Next comes the "Projects" section where you are shown a photograph of a finished basket. Beneath each photo is a list of the techniques used and the pages where the technique descriptions can be found. The projects range from the first simple and functional basket to purely decorative pieces. Next comes the truly inspiring "Gallery" section. This is pure "eye candy". There is example after example of how other artists have transformed this simple craft into an art form. If you love baskets, then this is a great book to put on your shelf.

I love this book! I made pine needle baskets years (20) ago and just started back with this hobby again. I just wish Judy Mallow would write another book with more of her basket inspirations in it. It is the best book on the subject! Thanks to you Judy!!

This product showed up speedily and in very good condition. I am very happy with it.

I'm a big fan for Fruits Basket, the anime, but I started to read the Manga out of curiosity to continue the story and I have to admit that the Manga never failed to amazes me. This volume is so great. We see the relationship between Tohru & the others grows during the summer break, Tohru in her swimsuit, Yuki kissing her and Kyo's care and hidden love for her. It is so much fun to read.

I own this series in Japanese, and it is a wonderful read! It has all the important elements of a good shoujo manga: it is romantic, twisted, with a shoujo (in the traditional meaning of the word) involved in finding a new family and love triangles galore. It is just a very fun read, no matter the language!

the best anime i ever had try it you will never regret (:

This book and all the others totaly rock! I don't know what I would do without them!

This product showed up speedily and in very good condition. I am very happy with it.

This epidsode will make you want to continue on to the next issues. Its fun, its sad, and it's entertaining.

I own this series in Japanese, and it is a wonderful read! It has all the important elements of a good shoujo manga: it is romantic, twisted, with a shoujo (in the traditional meaning of the word) involved in finding a new family and love triangles galore. It is just a very fun read, no matter the language!

This volume was definately one of the best so far. It was so good, it surprised me! No part of this volume is boring. I loved the parts with Kureno (he's one of my favorite characters), and the class trip was the best! This volume raises LOTS of questions, those of which you'll have to find out for yourself. But trust me, this volume is so worthy of the $10 you'll have to spend, that I'll read it again after just reading it yesterday! Take my advice, you will love this volume. Fruits Basket really does put all else to shame!

I absolutly love this series. While at first it may seen strange you just can't help falling in love with the characters (<3 kyo) and their whole story. Before you know it you end up rooting along with the characters on their journies. While they are aimed at a teenage audience my mom aunt and 12 year old brother even enjoy them! This series was the first Manga I had ever read and its what actually got me started on reading manga and enjoying it. I Absolutly cannot wait until the 14th book comes out...
I highly recommend this series to everyone of all ages.

I own this series in Japanese, and it is a wonderful read! It has all the important elements of a good shoujo manga: it is romantic, twisted, with a shoujo (in the traditional meaning of the word) involved in finding a new family and love triangles galore. It is just a very fun read, no matter the language!

This was my favorite volume so far. I love Haru so much he is my favorite character. I got to read more about him and I also got to read about sorry-ful Ritsu and his childhood.......I love Fruits Basket so much. This is the best manga ever written.

I love the Fruits Basket series. I love how the book is well written and the humor in it. The characters personality is perfect chosen for each character and they all fit it great! I can't wait for the next volume!

Fruits Basket book 8 is the best one so far. I've read it about 12 times. If you're a fan of Haru, you'll love this book. You also meet Ritzu in this book . it's a must buy!

Haru Sohma's personality suddenly goes black in school and he begins tearing up the classroom for no obvious reason. Yuki attempts to get the reason for these actions only to learn of some dealings with Akito that Haru has had to suffer from lately. Ritsu Sohma shows up, dressed all in a pretty kimono, this Sohma member dazzles Tohru with her good looks, and horrifies her with her inherent anxiety attacks. But the truth of Ritsu lies under the surface, and Tohru is surprised to learn it. Besides that, Ritsu is also a zodiac member, the monkey, born in 1980 I estimate. Ritsu and Tohru bond after Ritsu confesses some personality flaws to Tohru. Yuki also checks up on Haru, to see how he is doing after turning black at school.

School parent/teacher conferences are coming up, and the Sohma house is all in a panic over it. Kyo and Yuki don't know who to ask to attend, and much time is spent agonizing over what their future plans are. Tohru also breaks down a bit under the stress of all of this.

A reoccurring dream of Yuki's past puts him into a foul mood, as does a surprise visit from his brother Ayami. In an attempt to heal their broken past Ayami offers to attend the school conferences in place of Yuki and his parents.

Summer vacation begins with a trip to the haunted mansion for everyone. For Tohru this is a disturbing experience, as she is terrified of haunted houses. Haru helps her through it with some creative thinking, much to Yuki and Kyo's annoyance.

More Haru...sigh... there simply isn't enough Haru in this series I'm afraid. But fans of him will get just enough of a peek into his life to be satisfied. Ritsu is a bit annoying, but you need that to balance out the strength of all the other characters... Still in love with this series though, who isn't by this point?

I love the Fruits Basket Series and this is the third two manga installment. For those who haven't read the series it's the best ever a must read series for manga fans. The fact that they have made the more affordable 2 book hardback volumes of the series speaks more than anything I could say.

Natsuki Takaya, Fruits Basket, vol. 3 (Tokyopop, 2000)

After a quick re-read of vol. 2 to get my head back into the right place, I decided to continue on with Fruits Basket and see if I liked it any more than I did the first time I tried the series a few years ago. I started reading manga with Fruits Basket and Tarot Cafe, and I wasn't very impressed with either of them. I now realize this is because they're not for beginners; manga conventions are such that, at times, an entire issue of a manga can seem like an in-joke, and an artist's style can be such that most of the characters look similar, if not identical. Takaya and Sang-Son Park (of Tarot Cafe) have both these traits (I'm not sure I can call them drawbacks, but you know) in spades. Now that I have a lot more manga experience under my belt, this is a little easier going, but I'm still having problems telling some characters apart (though Takaya has hinted that in at least one case, this is intentional), and it keeps me from fully immersing myself in the story. I'm going to keep on with it, but where shojo is concerned, I have to say Godchild and Fushigi Yugi really do seem to do it better. ***

If you love mangas and love a story that gives you every emotion a story can give you, then this is the book for you. The main part of the story is comedy but it does have a lot of other emotions to it and there are a lot of plot eliments that will keep you wanting to read. I don't want to give anything away so I wont, you'll just have to read it. ^_^

I own this series in Japanese, and it is a wonderful read! It has all the important elements of a good shoujo manga: it is romantic, twisted, with a shoujo (in the traditional meaning of the word) involved in finding a new family and love triangles galore. It is just a very fun read, no matter the language!

Valentine's day is creeping up on the Sohmas, and for a family that turns into animals when they're hugged by the opposite sex, this could be a problem.

Fortunately Natsuki Takaya doesn't resort to the obvious gags, in the third volume of "Fruits Basket." Instead, she introduces some new members of the Chinese zodiac, brings a couple back into the picture, and sheds some light on Shigure's shady motives for keeping Tohru in his house.

While on an endurance run, Tohru sees a white-haired man lying by the roadside, and rushes to help -- only to find that he's Hatsuharu Sohma, a punky teenager. He and Kyo soon get into a martial-arts (and verbal) free-for-all -- until Yuki collapses from an asthma attack. To get him back home, Haru uses Tohru to change into his cursed form.

Things get even more awkward when Valentine's Day rolls around, and Kyo finds himself being violently wooed by Kagura. And while the four teens go off on a double date, Shigure pays an old visit to his pal Hatori, and hints at the lengths he's willing to go to... for the sake of a "dream of love" he once had. When, of course, he's not torturing his suicidal editor.

And a month later, Momiji unveils a surprise for Tohru -- a trip to a hot spring resort, run by a very easily upset "concubine." Tohru and Yuki are given a chance to relax and unwind in the luxurious surroundings -- and Tohru makes a very surprising discovery about Momiji's future.

Having introduced five zodiac members -- plus the cat -- Takaya keeps introducing new characters, and showing us facets of the established ones. And that takes up most of this volume -- it's one of the lighter "Fruits Basket" volumes, with lots of comic relief ("LOOOOOOOOOOOOVE!") usually provided by Momiji, the violently adoring Kagura, and the sickly onsen lady.

Most of the plot is light, frothy character development with a crazy double-date, lots of chocolate, and Haru's story about how Yuki won him over despite his prejudices. But there is some melancholy meditation on how cruel people take advantage of selfless people like Tohru, and some of the secrets that older zodiac members are keeping from our teen heroes.

Of course, this volume also introduces us to Haru, a teen who looks like a raver, but acts like a dignified gentleman. Of course, he has a lecherous, gleefully violent dark side if he's pushed too far. We also get Mitchan, the long-suffering editor who threatens suicide of Shigure doesn't start turning in new books on time ("Then do your job for your own sake! Because if you don't, you're forcing me to make your life as miserable as MINE!").

Shigure himself shows some new facets beyond "lovable pervy troublemaker" -- his intentions are revealed to be almost sinisterly selfish, and though he feels regret he won't change his plans. It's a striking, almost haunting scene, and it shows us a lot about his true personality.

The third volume of "Fruits Basket" is mostly fluffy fun and new characters, but it also shows some of the darker currents that run through the series. Definitely a good read.