Tuesday, September 30, 2014

Book Review :: Little Book of Book Making by Charlotte Rivers, Foreword by Esther K. Smith

The Little Book of Book Making by Charlotte Rivers is a great book for anyone who is interested in making handmade books. This is a hardcover book in a handy little size (approximately 7.5" x 7").
The first 4 chapters in Little Book of Book Making are more inspirational than they are instructional. They show examples of "Folded Bindings" (Chapter 1), "Sewn Bindings" (Chapter 2), "Page & Cover Treatments" (Chapter 3), and "Experimental Packaging" (Chapter 4). In each chapter there are photographs of sample works from various artists. There is also information about each artist/studio and about each piece of work that is shown - something that I can only think to compare to a short press release. (As a note, not every stitch/technique mentioned in the text is addressed in the how-to section.) If you were curious, "Experimental Packaging" (Chapter 4) refers to concepts for covers/cover treatments/cases that various artists have used for their handmade books. These chapters (1-4) show a variety of ideas, but do not give you the how-to. 

"Bookmaking in Practice" (Chapter 5) is where you will learn the actual stitches and techniques for creating your own handmade books. 

Let's take a look at what is covered:

Book Styles:
  • Instant Book
  • Accordion Book
  • Flag Book
  • Dragon Book
  • Carousel Book
  • Secret Message Book
Stitch & Binding Styles:
  • Pamphlet Stitch
  • Long Stitch
  • Japanese Stab Stitch
  • Coptic Stitch
  • French Link Stitch
  • Case Binding
Page & Cover Treatments:
  • Suminagashi Paper Marbling
  • Paste Papers
  • Frottage
  • Natural Plant Dyeing
  • Book Cloth
  • Woven Cover
  • Fabric Cover
  • Pillow Book

Although the actual how-to portion of the book is relatively small (just over 50 pages), it really packs a punch. The techniques are clearly explained with step-by-step illustrations (where necessary).

For me, the Little Book of Book Making will be a great resource in my future handmade book endeavors (such as scrapbooks, mini albums, and other craft projects). 
FTC Declaration: The publisher has provided me with a complimentary copy of this book or advanced reading copy through the Blogging for Books book review bloggers program. This does not change the fact that I will give my honest opinion in my reviews.

Friday, September 26, 2014

Book Review :: The River by Beverly Lewis

The River is the newest book from popular Amish fiction writer Beverly Lewis. I have enjoyed many of Beverly Lewis' novels in the past, and The River is no different. 
If you have read other Beverly Lewis stand-alone novels, you tend to see a typical storyline running through her novels - an individual(s) in an Amish community coming-of-age and/or coming face-to-face with a life altering situation/decision. The River, however, doesn't necessarily follow the standard format, which I appreciated. 

In The River, we are first introduced to two sisters who left the Amish community and are now comfortably living life among the English. The sisters, Tilly & Ruth, are invited home for their parents' anniversary celebration...and in coming home they are brought face-to-face with their past.

I don't want to go any further into the story (no spoilers here!), but I will say that The River has a great flow and a few twists and turns...just like...a river.

The only thing I wasn't sure about with this book was the cover photo. After reading the book, I am not sure the cover image fits well, but was probably used more to be an instant sign that this is an Amish fiction novel. 

If you enjoy Amish fiction and/or Beverly Lewis' novels, I encourage you to pick up a copy of The River.
FTC Declaration: The publisher has provided me with a complimentary copy of this book or advanced reading copy through a book review bloggers program. This does not change the fact that I will give my honest opinion in my reviews.

Tuesday, September 23, 2014

Book Review :: Get To Know Jesus, Apostle Paul, Mary, and King David (4 books) by Nancy I. Sanders

The "Get To Know" books by Nancy Sanders are fantastic books for kids who are wanting to learn more about the "heroes" of the Bible. 

The first four books in this series are:

Each book gives background information about the person (Jesus, Paul, Mary, and David) and includes a lot of bonus material to really get to know the person and what their life would have been like. There are full-color illustrations, maps, photographs of land/artifacts, and more. 

As biographies, these books follow the person from birth and/or childhood, through their life, death, and even what that means for their "future". If there are not specific instances from their personal history to reference, the author gives an idea of what it was probably like due to the cultural traditions and/or standards of the time. 

Each book has a variety of additional features to help further the study - scripture references, additional "Did You Know?" facts, biblical and extra-biblical eyewitness accounts, and definitions for words that may be new for kids. (The definitions are listed at the bottom of the page where the word is found and also in a glossary at the back of the book.)
Although the writing feels a bit choppy to me, the sentences are short and easily digestible - which will be great for kids. I appreciate simplicity - but even for me the writing can feel a little dumbed down at times. I am guessing this is just to make sure it is very easily understandable for kids, but there were a couple instances where I think it may have worded things a little too simply.  

All in all, I think these are great resources to have on hand for your kids to learn more about the "heroes" of the Bible. 
FTC Declaration: The publisher has provided me with a complimentary copy of this book or advanced reading copy. This does not change the fact that I will give my honest opinion in my reviews.

Friday, September 19, 2014

The Twinery/Ruby Rock-It {Blog Hop}

The Introduction:
If you are hopping along with us today: You should have come here from Erin Yamabe's blog. If you did, you are in the right place! Welcome!
If you aren't already a follower, I'd love to have you follow my blog!
If you are on Facebook, please "like" Ink Blots by TRD.

If you are one of my regular readers: Thanks for coming back! I love having you! Please join along in the hop - you can start at the The Twinery blog.

The Hop Order:

The Prizes:

Ruby Rock-It is giving away a fantastic prize as well – check out The Twinery blog and the Ruby Rock-It blog to find out how you can enter to win one of these great prizes. 
{Album not included}

The Projects:
Today's cards were all created using the Heritage Collection from Ruby Rock-It and some fabulous striped twines from The Twinery. There really are some great possibilities with the Heritage Collection - I can see a variety of vintage and/or shabby chic style home decor items created from this collection, as well as heritage scrapbook layouts and so much more. As I tend to be more on the clean and simple side of things, I wanted to create a simple set of cards using some of the great patterns in this collection and pair it with some of The Twinery's wonderful twines. 
I created two of the cards using the same basic sketch - just break out your circle punches or dies and these cards come together very quickly:
For the third card, I used the beautiful floral from the Country Garden paper as my main focus. I just did some fussy cutting around the floral, added it to my card front, wrapped it with twine, and it was done. 
There you have it - three quick and easy cards using the Heritage Collection from Ruby Rock-It and twine from The Twinery.

Thanks for stopping by today!

The Next Stop:
Stacey Schafer

Supplies:
Twine: The Twinery (Seaweed, Flax, Ocean); 
Patterned Paper: Ruby Rock-It (Heritage Collection - Passing Time, Spots, Country Garden, Pretty Floral, By The Dozen);
Cardstock: Discount Cardstock (Brilliant White 110#); Papertrey Ink (Rustic Cream);
Tools: Fiskars (Trimmer, Scissors, Circle Punches); Scor-Pal (Scoring Board);

Tuesday, September 16, 2014

Book Review :: Conrad and the Cowgirl Next Door By Denette Fretz, illustrated by Gene Barretta

Conrad and the Cowgirl Next Door is the second book in The Next Door Series by Denette Fretz. 

The first book in the series was Pirates on the Farm. You can read my review of that book here. Although I didn't really care much for Pirates on the Farm, my kids really enjoyed it, so I figured it was worth giving this book a shot. 

Personally, I didn't care for this book much more than I did Pirates on the Farm. The story of Conrad and the Cowgirl Next Door is similar to Pirates on the Farm in that the story is not complete without the illustrations to back it up. (Meaning there are ideas you won't get from just the text - you need to illustrations to get the complete idea.)

Conrad and the Cowgirl Next Door is a story about a boy Conrad and his adventures in "cowboy training" on his Uncle Clint's ranch. Most of the adventures involve a first aid kit and taunting from the cowgirl next door (Imogene Louise Lathrop). 

I felt that what should have been the main idea of the book (loving your enemies) took a backseat to the antics. Even the idea of loving your enemies was worded in a way that I thought could easily be mistaken as unloving: "Forgive your enemies. It messes up their heads."

When I finished reading Conrad and the Cowgirl Next Door to my 5 year old son, I asked him a few questions. Here is how the conversation went:

Q: What did you think?
A: Good.
Q: Did you learn anything?
A: Yeah. You need a doctor kit. And a horse.
Q: Did you learn anything about how cowboys should act?
A: Nice.
Q: Were they nice in the story?
A: No, actually they were kinda mean. 

I feel like that conversation sums it up pretty well. Unfortunately, I don't think I would recommend this book unless you use it purely as a jumping off point for conversations with your kids.
FTC Declaration: The publisher has provided me with a complimentary copy of this book or advanced reading copy through the BookLook Bloggers book review bloggers program. This does not change the fact that I will give my honest opinion in my reviews.

Friday, September 12, 2014

Book Review :: Draw-A-Saurus: Everything You Need to Know to Draw Your Favorite Dinosaurs by James Silvani

Draw-A-Saurus by James Silvani is not a typical "how to draw" book. The text and illustrations are funny - and educational, too! The basic ideas that are introduced in Draw-A-Saurus will be helpful for drawing a variety of creatures.  

Each chapter goes into detail on how to draw one specific type of dinosaur (T-rex, apatosaurus, triceratops, ankylosaurus, stegosaurus, etc.) but then also shows (and explains) a variety of other dinosaurs that share similar characteristics. Draw-A-Saurus includes instructions for drawing dinosaurs who made their homes on land, in the air, and in the seas. 
The drawing instruction in Draw-A-Saurus does not just stop at a basic "copy this", but gives tips and tricks for how to draw dinosaurs from a variety of angles, in a variety of stances, and also includes instruction on finishing details (scales, feathers, etc.). There are also additional tips for "cartooning" your dinosaur or how to change a couple characteristics to create a baby dinosaur. The final chapter gives some quick instruction on how to create an environment for your dinosaur. 

Each step of the way, the text is educational - giving details on specific characteristics of the dinosaurs. (For those who may be curious, this book does reference evolution and "millions of years".)

In my opinion, this is a great resource for drawing - I know my kids (and I) will enjoy using it!
FTC Declaration: The publisher has provided me with a complimentary copy of this book or advanced reading copy through the Blogging for Books book review bloggers program. This does not change the fact that I will give my honest opinion in my reviews.

Friday, September 5, 2014

Book Review :: What Your Heart Needs for the Hard Days by Holley Gerth

What Your Heart Needs for the Hard Days is a 52-part devotional by author Holley Gerth. (On the back cover, this is recommended as a companion to Holley's book, You're Going to Be Okay, which I have not read.) 

Each entry in What Your Heart Needs for the Hard Days is inspired by a portion from the Psalms. The verse(s) are followed up with a short story/analogy to help illustrate the point. Each of the 52 devotionals closes out with the start of a prayer (and lines for you to write in your words to finish it) and another lined section to write down the response that you feel is being given to you. As seems to be true with any devotional-style book, some entries may hit you more than others, depending on your stage/place in life. Even so, I feel like everyone can appreciate each devotional. 

What Your Heart Needs for the Hard Days is a relatively compact book (6.1 x 4.3 x 1 inches), and it would be easy to toss in a purse to take with you if you are on-the-go. I feel like the compact size is great for travel, but personally I prefer to have a larger surface area if I am going to be writing in a book. It is just more comfortable to write on a larger surface, in my opinion. 

If you are looking for a devotional to help encourage you through the hard days (or even the easy ones), I'd suggest considering this What Your Heart Needs for the Hard Days
FTC Declaration: The publisher has provided me with a complimentary copy of this book or advanced reading copy through a book review bloggers program. This does not change the fact that I will give my honest opinion in my reviews.