An inspirational and practical book on how to interpret and collaborate on different themes in textile art. With foreword by Marie-Therese Wisniowski, who runs Art Quill Studio.

This stunning collection showcases the work produced by renowned textile artists Els van Baarle and Cherilyn Martin, and explores how – even when working from the same starting point – textile art can produce a myriad interpretations of shape, form, colour and technique. Els and Cherilyn have chosen six themes for their own starting point, each full of inspiration and artistic potential: Memory (both personal experiences and historical events); Graven (cemetery) images and idols; Books as objects; Pompeii and archaeological excavations; Walls; and Everyday items.

For each of the themes the authors have provided a personal interpretation of the work and a description of the techniques they used, along with step-by-step instructions. In the chapter on memory, for example, Cherilyn demonstrates how old fabrics and textiles (which themselves have a unique history all of their own) can be recycled to incorporate your own stitched drawings. Alternatively, Els explores Procion Dye techniques to create colourful and striking fabrics that bear no resemblance to Els work on the same theme.

The trend for collaborative textile art is increasing in popularity. This fascinating guide provides a rich seam of inspiration from two renowned artists, exploring how to get the most from your collaborations and produce beautiful and unique work.

A passionate and personal book about the writer’s own love for a controversial architectural style.

Whether you love or hate brutalist buildings, this book will explain what it is about them that elicits such strong feeling. You will understand the true power of concrete and of mammoth-sized buildings, but also some of the more subtle aspects of brutalist buildings that you may not have known or considered.

Brutalist architecture, which flourished in the 1950s to mid-1970s, gained its name from the term ‘ Béton-brut’, or raw concrete – the material of choice for the movement. British architectural critic Reyner Banham adapted the term into ‘brutalism’ (originally ‘New Brutalism’) to identify the emerging style. The architectural style – typified by buildings such as Trellick Tower in London and Unité D’Habitation in Marseille – is controversial but has an enthusiastic fan base, including the author who is on a mission to explain his passion.

John Grindrod’s book will be enlightening for those new to the subject, bringing humour, insight and honesty to the subject but will also interest those already immersed in built culture. Illustrated with striking drawings by The Brutal Artist, the book is divided up into a series of mini essays that explains the brutalist world from a human aspect, as well as an architectural, historical and even pop cultural angle. The book journeys from the UK to discover brutalism and its influence around the world – from Le Corbusier’s designs in Chandigarh, India, to Lina Bo Bardi’s buildings in Brazil.

A practical guide to modern calligraphy, complete with worksheets and projects.

In Modern Lettering, you will learn how to create beautiful decorative handwriting in a variety of styles. It’s a fun and immersive guide, inviting you to explore beautiful letterforms, experiment with your own hand-lettering style and use calligraphy for creative projects.

Professional calligrapher Rebecca Cahill Roots guides the reader through the basic techniques, sharing useful tips along the way. She brings her own unique style to a range of beautiful modern calligraphy alphabets, each accompanied by worksheets printed on high-quality calligraphy paper for practising. There are tips for mixing fonts, using different coloured inks and beginner’s brush calligraphy.

Once you’ve mastered the basic techniques, you can apply your handwriting skills to some of the stylish step-by-step projects featured, including wedding stationery, framed quotes and personalised envelopes. This fun and approachable guide is a must-have for anyone looking to add a personal touch to their lettering, whether it’s for a particular project or for taking up a new hobby.

A creative and practical guide on how to get in touch with your local natural world to create thoughtful works of textile art. Filled with projects and step-by-step techniques, this book is perfect for textile students and professionals alike.

Renowned quilter and textile artist Helen Parrott explores the creative potential of your local surroundings and teaches you the processes and techniques used to create beautiful textile artworks. Drawing on the Slow Stitch movement, she explains how mark-making techniques can be used meditatively to record personal lives and surroundings influenced by seasonal changes of colour, energy and light. She encourages you to connect to your own locality, whether it be urban or rural, at home or on holiday, and its specific seasonal aspects in order to create a personal, working cycle of textile art.

The book is divided into seasons; from learning how to spot the first signs of Spring to recording seasonal characteristics – equinox through to solstice – Helen teaches you how to be in tune with your environment. Each location will have different signs, so each artwork will truly be unique. Techniques and projects are also covered in this book: she first teaches you the basics of both hand and machine stitch techniques, working with free-form stitching, chain stitch, corded quilting and then moves onto appliqué, blackwork and dyeing. The techniques build in complexity ending with pieced textiles and collages. Helen also explores how to work with dot and line, repeating patterns, light and shadow, colour (and lack of colour), plant structures and people in landscapes.

The last chapter consolidates techniques you’ve learnt in the book and showcases finished works from her exhibitions, as well as the Bradford Textile Archive, to help you better understand where inspiration leads.

Indulge your curiosity with this humorous and fascinating book that demystifies the surprising myths about space.

In the latest book from the Everything You Know is Wrong series, Matt Brown brings you a compendium of amazing facts about our planet, the universe, and everything in between! Thanks to popular sci-fi films and TV shows, there have been many misconceptions about the cosmos – from travelling through worm-holes to blowing up asteroids. In Everything You Know About Space is Wrong, you’ll find a plethora of myths, legends and misquotes that have shaped the way you view the universe today. Think that the vacuum of space would make your blood boil and your head explode? It won’t, and there have been people who have survived without wearing a suit in space. Think that astronauts float in space because there is zero-gravity? They’re actually constantly falling towards the Earth. Think that the colour of space is black? It’s actually predominantly green.

Chock-full of facts about the cosmos, how it works (and how it doesn’t!), this illuminating book will guide you through the mine of misinformation to answer such questions as whether we will meet aliens in our lifetime (SETI predicts we’ll find evidence of ET by 2040!), what happens in the centre of the black hole, and why Mercury is not the hottest planet in the solar system. Discovering untruths about popular science, Everthing You Know About Space is Wrong provides a hugely entertaining insight into our universe.

A highly entertaining book debunking the many myths about the human body.

Everything You Know About the Human Body is Wrong debunks the scientific myths we all take for granted. Written by author Matt Brown in his trademark humourous style, this book takes you through all the facts we thought true, from bodily blunders, medical mis-quotes and curious cures. Does giving kids sugar make them go hyper-active? Not at all – there is no proven link! Is there such a thing as being ‘double-jointed’? And is it dangerous to swim after eating?

Covering everything from pseudoscience to recent research, Everything You Know About the Human Body is Wrong shatters a range of illusions we have accepted unquestioningly since childhood and demystifies this most puzzling of subjects.

An easy way to learn Chinese – with games and activities  
Most people will tell you understanding Chinese is hard, but we’ve made learning this increasingly important language as simple as can be with fun games and activities. With simple tracing, diagrams, stories and memorable phrases, this book for the absolute beginner will have you mastering pinyin, so you can write and pronounce Chinese words, understanding perfect pitch and tone, simple grammar rules and basic vocabulary. This practical, useful guide will easily equip you with the fundamentals of Mandarin Chinese, covering all the material needed to pass HSK Chinese Proficiency Test Level 1. Discover Chinese characters, practise writing them and explore the stories behind the ancient graphics. Fall in love with this fascinating language and ignite a passion for a captivating culture.

There are chapters on People: how to refer to yourself and others; Time: indicating and asking about time; Encounters: Greetings, interactions and introductions; Travelling: Transport and places; Food and Drink: Eating and shopping; Home: Around the house and describing locations; Activities: Actions and activities; Descriptions: How to describe things, including the weather; Work and Study: Learning and jobs. Each chapter includes a language lesson with Longlong the Dragonand Xiongmao the Panda, as well as an activity and an in-depth look at the basic characters. 
Written by Freya Yang, a native speaker and enthusiastic teacher of the language with experience of teaching both children and adults. Her use of original, engaging and easy-to-follow activities means learning is so simple, you won’t even know you’re doing it!
Using simple, easy-to-understand games and activities and a friendly conversational style as well as fun illustrations, this modern language book is perfect for enthusiastic beginners.

An indispensable reference book of chess moves, perfect for any chess player, beginner or club player.

This A to Z of chess tactics provides an explanation of all the key terms and jargon used in chess so you can understand them and put them into practice in your own game. From Castling to Zugzwang, from Underpromotion to Zwischenzug.

Written in a clear and informative style, the book features a large section with Illustrative games from past chess masters and grandmasters which show the relevant chess definition in action. Plus there are exercises that illustrate the tactic defined – these test you on your ability to recognize the tactics learned, as that is how they will appear in a match. The exercises teach you how to seize the opportunities before they disappear as well as avoiding traps your opponent may leave.

Useful for all chess players, this is an essential read for those looking to improve and understand the game better.

Increase your chess knowledge within the year! In this book, Andrew Soltis analyzes 365 key chess games in an easy way for busy people.
In this book, 365 of the most instructive short games of chess are analyzed, step by step, by well-respected author Andrew Soltis. Arranged as daily lessons, this book is perfect for chess players who would like to reach the next level of skill but can’t devote hours and hours each day to study.

Learn to feel confident with each tactic – each game features test-yourself quizzes (with answers at the back of the book) to help cement understanding, as well as chess diagrams for those who learn visually. Challenging tactics are revisited in later games to help you recognize when they occur and how chess masters use them to their full advantage.

With this book, Andrew encourages you to learn to think like a chess master within the year. From Castling to Zugzwang, learn something new everyday!

Textile Landscapes demonstrates how to develop your approach to textile art with a focus on using found objects and paint and stitch on cloth and paper. 

Cas explains how to exploit the contrast between the hands-on textural quality of working with fabrics and threads and the spontaneity and movement of brush marks to lend a painterly quality to your work.
She begins with the basics – keeping a sketchbook to generate ideas, painting  and stitching on cloth and on paper and working digitally; Inspiring Landscapes looks at natural and urban space, the changing seasons and great landscapes as well as intimate spaces and travel diaries; Painting and Marking with Cloth explains the practical aspects of painting and dyeing cloth and how to make connections between paint, print, dye, stencil and stitch; Stitch-scapes looks at the different forms of landscape, experimenting with photographs and prints and how to translate those images using ink, stitch, abstract and collage techniques and then at how to transform the image using digital techniques; On Closer Inspection covers using elements and details from landscape and the environment as found objects and for research; finally People and Place explores the relationship we have with the outdoors and the built environment, as well as personal interpretations of place.
The book includes artworks by the author that explore the UK, USA, Europe and Australia, as well as works by other internationally renowned textile artists. A creative guide ideal for textile artists of all levels – students, teachers and practising artists and makers – to make unique and beautiful work inspired by the world around us.

This is the complete guide to pattern cutting for special occasion clothes: party dresses and eveningwear.

With step-by-step instructions and clear, informative diagrams, Dawn Cloake shows how to develop the basic design blocks to create a wide range of designs, encouraging you to ‘mix and match’ elements to create your own unique garments. Special features include tips on combining pattern cutting with modelling techniques and advice on using stretch fabrics.

Design elements include: sleeveless bodices, backless bodices, wrapover bodices, ruched bodices, flare skirts, full skirts, set-in sleeves, yoked trousers, jersey dresses, Empire line dresses, low necklines, wide necklines, draped bodices, close-fit skirts, godets, close-fitting sleeves, short sleeves, tapered trousers, bias-cut dresses, strapless dresses, hipsters, plunge necklines, asymmetrical bodices, strapless bodices, draped necklines, fishtail skirts, separate sleeves, jackets, high-waisted trousers, panelled dresses, backless dresses and waistbands.

Textile artist and surface designer Mandy Pattullo marries fabric with collage techniques to produce beautiful pieces of art. In Textile Collage she shows a fresh way to use scraps and oddments of fabrics to create something unique and personal, while also being economical – perfect for those who have hoarded bits of fabric, trim and memory-filled domestic textiles over the years.

Chapter one covers ‘Materials’: collecting and sourcing fabric including unpicking and storing found fabric. In chapter two, ‘Make’, Mandy guides you through all the artistic and creative elements that you need to consider to create a beautiful collage. The following chapter ‘Portray’ looks at piecing together a collaged portrait – human or animal – showing the figurative approach in collage work that includes transfer images and using found photographs. In the chapter ‘Worn’, the collage technique is used to embellish skirts, jackets and accessories. The final chapter ‘Book’ looks at the fabric book as a receptacle for textile collage, with a range of approaches and forms explored.

This is a wonderful resource for all textilers looking to make the most of the found fabrics they love and fully explore the technique of collage with textiles.