A paperback reissue Hazel Soan’s classic practical art book.

Hazel Soan is a well-known and popular artist and an enthusiastic and inspirational teacher. In The Essence of Watercolour Hazel shows how wonderfully versatile and beguiling the medium of watercolour is and how to get the most out of it.

Hazel stresses how important it is to understand the characteristics of the medium in order to exploit it to the full. She encourages the reader to explore the properties of watercolour and to be unafraid of strength of colour and brushstroke.

Hazel shows through demonstration and projects that tone is king in watercolour and illustrates how to paint light with the use of shade. Armed with this understanding she demonstrates that watercolour is not such an unforgiving medium after all: accidents and mistakes can be disguised, overridden and corrected.

The Essence of Watercolour is a culmination of many years of Hazel’s teaching and demonstrating, in which she offers inspirational insights into the secrets of watercolour painting and encourages artists to take their art to the next level.

A paperback reissue of a beautiful anthology.

A diverse collection of poetry which celebrates both England and all that it means to be English – from the rolling hills, to those lost in battle over the centuries, to London’s bustling streets and a nation obsessed with the weather. Ode to England encompasses a breadth of poetry from our most renowned writers – such as William Wordsworth, D. H. Lawrence and William Blake – alongside verses from less prestigious names which equally capture many inspiring visions of our ‘sceptered isle’. The poems are accompanied by stunning illustrations which pay further tribute to the beauty of this green and pleasant land.
 
The perfect gift for any Englishman or Anglophile, this wonderful collection captures all the beauty and eccentricities of England and Englishness.

A beautifully produced book to celebrate the 50^th anniversary of the Grade II listed brutalist icon, the Barbican Estate.

2019 marks the 50th anniversary of the first residents moving into the Barbican Estate in London. This new book is a celebration of this unique complex – looking at the design of the individual flats as well as its status as a brutalist icon. Author and designer Stefi Orazi interviews residents past and present, giving an insight into how life on the estate has changed over the decades.

The complex, designed by Chamberlin, Powell and Bon, is now Grade II listed, and is one of the world’s most well-known examples of brutalist architecture. Its three towers – Cromwell, Shakespeare and Lauderdale – are among London’s tallest residential spaces and the estate is a landmark of the city. This is a beautifully illustrated, comprehensive guide to the estate, with newly commissioned photography by Christoffer Rudquist. It will show in detail each of the 140 different flat types, including newly drawn drawings of the flats as well as original plans and maps.

Includes fascinating texts by leading architects and design critics, including John Allan of Avanti Architects on the unique building materials and fittings of the flats, and Charles Holland of Charles Holland Architects (and FAT co-founder) on the home and how these concrete towers have become such an integral part of Britain’s domestic and architectural history.

A practical and inspirational guide to textile folk art from cultures all around the world, accompanied by step-by-step projects.

From samplers and quilts in Europe, to tribal and nomadic cloth further afield in Mongolia and China, folk and traditional designs have played a crucial part in the development of textile art and craft. In this book, Anne Kelly explores the traditional motifs used in textile folk art and shows you how contemporary textile artists use these in their work today. The beautifully illustrated guide is also packed with helpful step-by-step projects that demonstrate how to apply folk motifs to your own work.

Drawing inspiration from the Far East to Scandinavia, artists and designers have often used folk art to influence their work. Beginning with the chapter ‘Samplers in Stitch’, Anne looks into handmade momentoes and souvenirs created in the UK and USA. Samplers as statement pieces are also explored and are contextualised within the role of women and children recording their personal histories and lives. ‘Nordic Notes’ then looks at Scandinavian traditional textile art, and how modern screen printing and embroidery have been used by contemporary makers. ‘Silk Road’ looks at the influence of nomadic cultures and textiles, including yurts in Mongolia and Miao folklore in China. Projects on how to make felt, pouched and jewellery are also covered. Lastly, ‘Trees of Life’ looks the motif of the tree in a variety of cultures. Anne also looks at traditional techniques from South Asia and how to create your own ‘Family Tree’ using photo transfers and appliqué.

Featuring step-by-step projects as well as work from contemporary artists and makers throughout, this practical and beautiful guide shows how practitioners of all kinds can draw from folk art for making and inspiration.

A paperback reissue of Londonopolis (9781849941655)

This curious history of London whisks you down the rabbit hole and into the warren of backstreets, landmarks, cemeteries, palaces, markets, museums and secret gardens of the great metropolis. Meet the cockneys, politicians, fairies, philosophers, gangsters and royalty that populate the city, their stories becoming curiouser and curiouser as layers of time and history are peeled back.

Find out which tube station once housed the Elgin Marbles and what lies behind a Piccadilly doorway that helped Darwin launch his theory of evolution and caused the Swedes to wage war against Britain. Do you believe in fairies? Do you know which Leadenhall site became a Nag’s Head tavern, morphing into the mighty East India Company, before taking flight as the futuristic Lloyds Building? Who named the Natural History Museum’s long-tailed dinosaur Mr Whippy?

Spanning above and below ground, from the outer suburbs to the inner city, and from the medieval period to the modern day, Londonopolis is a celebration of the weird and the wonderful that makes the mysterious city of London so magical.

An illuminating look at a controversial architectural style – and its finest examples

Post-modernism was the 1980s’ counter to Brutalism but fell out of fashion until its best buildings began to disappear. Now is the time to reassess its values. Historians Geraint Franklin and Elain Harwood discuss its background and key architects before celebrating Britain’s finest examples. Individual entries are beautifully illustrated, many with new photography, including the SIS Building made famous by James Bond, John Outram’s awe-inspiring pumping station in London’s Docklands and Judge Institute in Cambridge, and the late works of James Stirling and Michael Wilford, including No.1 Poultry – an extraordinary corner of the City that in 2016 became England’s youngest listed building.

The moving story of the life and work of novelist Virginia Woolf, revealed through her own letters to those closest to her.

Virginia Woolf is considered by many to be one of the greatest British writers and one of the foremost modernists of the twentieth century. As well as writing her novels, Woolf was a tireless correspondent, penning as many as six letters a day.

This collection of Virginia Woolf’s letters offers a fascinating insight into her life, illuminating the complex personality of the novelist herself. The letters range from witty and irreverent to melancholy and introspective, with intimations of the bouts of mental illness that were to lead her to take her own life. She was a writer of genius; and through her correspondence we come close to one of the most brilliant and high-spirited minds of the twentieth century. ‘A true letter’, she insisted, ‘should be like a film of wax pressed close to the graving of the mind’.

The book contains background information on Virginia Woolf’s life along with real samples of her handwriting. There are also biographical notes on the main recipients of the letters, together with a family tree for keeping track of names.

The letters are beautifully illustrated throughout with photographs, paintings and sketches of the people and places with which Virginia Woolf was most closely connected – many by members of the Bloomsbury Group, such as Woolf’s sister Vanessa Bell, Roger Fry and Duncan Grant.

The official TV-tie in to the popular Channel 4 programme ‘Penelope Keith’s Hidden Villages’

Explore the most interesting and beautiful examples of British village life in this lavishly illustrated book, published as a companion volume to the highly successful Channel 4 television series, ‘Penelope Keith’s Hidden Villages’. Featuring gorgeous illustrations and dust jackets from Brian Cook’s iconic designs, the book explores the villages as they appeared then and now.

It’s hard not to be enchanted by rural villages. From thatched roofs, charming churches, bunting, cream teas and the local landscape, they capture our imaginations. Structured by region, this book follows Penelope’s journey through Britain across all four series, including the idyllic villages found in the Costwolds, the cosy cottages of East Anglia and the treasures nestled in the North Yorkshire moors.

Pictured alongside Brian Cook’s iconic illustrations, Hidden Villages of Britain takes you through the fascinating history and the curious customs and characters unique to each village and how they survive in the present. From bog snorkelling in Llanwrtyd Wells and gravy wrestling in Stacksteads to cheese rolling down Cooper’s Hill in Brockworth and dwile flocking (where contestants seek to soak their opponents with a beer-soaked cloth outside the village pub), snippets of the history, life and traditions of each village are fully explored.

Whether you are looking for a place for your next holiday, a guide to Britain’s rural landscape or have a love for Britain’s most inspirational settings, this book is perfect for the armchair traveller.

The first edition of this book was widely hailed as one of the most useful guides to the middle game ever written. nRewritten to incorporate new material from contemporary tournaments, this classic work now steps into the 21st century.

Along with over 300 instructive and entertaining examples, Littlewood offers a wealth of general advice and specific hints at the end of each chapter. Taking a fresh and original approach, he inspires the reader – club and tournament players – to look at chess in an imaginative and creative way.

Emanuel Lasker was the longest-reigning world champion (1894-1921) and remained one of the world’s top 10 players for nearly four decades. He competed against top players such as Capablanca, Rubinstein and Alekhine at the height of their game, and was consistently successful, yet almost no one studies his games today. Lasker is often overlooked by the modern chess player, and the secrets of his success remain a mystery.

Chess journalist Andy Soltis reveals for the first time the winning formula behind Lasker’s phenonemal achievements. With over 100 annotated games, Soltis analyses the tricks, traps and techniques behind the winning moves, and makes Lasker’s methods accessible to today’s players.

Although there are several books on felt, this is the first one that concentrates on felt fashions – in the broadest sense – with felt techniques and patterns for construction. From simple corsages through hats and scarves to jackets and full-length coats, this is an essential book for those already working in felt or fashion who want to make more of felted textiles. The author takes you through the techniques of feltmaking but goes on to show you how to embellish and colour the felt – including using velvets and silks and ruching methods – and then construct garments and accessories from it. The book covers: 1. How to make basic felt 2. Embellishing felt 2. Corsages 3. Earrings and other jewellery 4. Scarves 5. Nuno felt techniques 6. Hat-making 7. Felt sleeveless top 8. Felt skirt 9. Felt jacket, including nuno felt jacket 10. Felt coat With clear instructions, construction patterns and stunning images of felted fashions from a range of felters, this is a great book on a subject growing in popularity.

A fascinating practical introduction to the Danish art of whittling, with inspiration and instructions for making adorable decorative wooden birds.

Snitte, Denmark’s art of wood whittling, is a rite of passage for most Scandinavians, and the passion for it lasts a lifetime. Wood whittling’s practical, outdoorsy nature has been married to fine craftsmanship in this beautiful book about creating wood-sculpted birds that can be left uncoloured and crisp as they are in wood or coloured carefully to make exquisite sculptures.

Written by a passionate Danish woodsman, Frank Egholm, the book teaches even the beginner the basics of wood whittling a bird shape with step-by-step demonstrations (and templates), how to mount them elegantly on real pieces of wood, and how to paint them delicately to bring out their colourful beauty. From the familiar robin, blue tit and wagtail to the less common yellowhammer, the book has templates for eight European birds.

Whether you are new to whittling or are looking for a fresh project with your whittling skills, this is a perfect book to make something special and tap into the wonders of Scandinavian craft.