crafts

Things that will make you go WOW and the World of Wearable Arts!

Katie

Things that will make you go WOW!

The WOW series are books unlike any you have ever seen before. Loads of topics, hundreds of pictures, thousands of words, squillions of amazing things to discover and explore…

Find it. See it. Know it…in..

Wow! Dinosaurs.

This book contains information about all the dinosaurs you know and heard of. True to it’s word, Wow! Dinosaurs is crammed full of information that is presented in a way I have never encountered in any other book. It’s a science lab, a museam, a board games and a search engine all rolled into one. You will also a skeleton of a Stegosaurus, giant ocean reptiles as they might have looked in their natural habitat and how they might have died. I hope you will enjoy this book as much as I have. Great for ages 8 to 11 years.

 

 

 

 

Wow! Ancient History.

This book is even better than the dinosaur book. Forget the internet, everything you have ever wanted to know about the ancient world is in one resource. Wow! Ancient History! Crammed full of incredible information about Babylonian architecture, Egyptian Pharoahs, the Roman army, Buddhist monasteries of the Mauryan Empire and South American temples. It’s like a time machine, a search engine and an archaeological dig all rolled into one.  There are loads of history-related topics, hundreds of pictures, thousands of words and loads of amazing things for you to discover and explore.

 

 

 

 

Wow! Science.

Have a science project about the living world?, The earth? Matter and materials? Energy and forces? Space? Look no further, Wow! Science has everything you need and all the answers to ensure you get that well deserved A++! Included in this book are simple explanations and photographs that introduce basic science concepts. Great for primary and intermediate level.

 

 

 

 

Wow! Animal.

Last and certainly not least. Wow! Animal contains facts about every bird, animal, reptile, fish, insect and believe it or nor worm known to man. This book is your one stop world zoo, natural history museam and search engine all rolled into one. So what are you waiting for? Find it. See it. Know it.

 

 

 

 

 

Fairtrade and Fashion.

The True Cost of Fashion: How to shop to change the world.

Strictly speaking this is not a book about wearable arts, but it’s a real eye opener to the possible  reality of where the clotes we buy may come from. By reading this book, you will find out all you need to know about the supply chain, the conditions workers endure and who really makes the profit on the final purchase of the garments you buy. Also discover what enviromental impacts your fashion purchases will have on this planet and find out the answers to the following questions: What does fairtrade mean?, How can retailers make and sell clothes so cheaply and how much do you sepnd on clothes?

 

 

 

 

 

Eco Chic.

Hmm, echo chic indeed. If you are an eco girl looking for fabulous ideas to revamp your room or who loves to set fashion trends and showcase your style? Wellington City Libraries has two new books from this series: Crafts for styling your wardrobe and Crafts for revamping your room. Crafts for styling your wardrobe contains step by step instructions on how you can customize, upcycle and re-vamp your clothes the eco friendly way. Crafts for revamping your room. contains step by step projects to upcycle, customise and add sparkle to your bedroom. You will also learn all about fairtrade, sustainable shopping, ethical fashion and how to achieve your fashion and bedroom design goals without compromising the enviroment.

 

The World of Wearable Arts!

To celebrate WOW, a two hour show held annually in September in Wellington, New Zealand to an audience of 50000 over a twelve show season. Wellington City Libraries has some new and amazing non fiction that can gurentee you creating your own wearable arts award event!

Wearable wonders.

“An introduction to the World of Wearable Art Awards with history and examples, interviews, photographs etc., in a workbook which details how to make your own Wearable Art creation using various art and craft techniques”–Publisher information. Suggested level: intermediate, junior secondary.

Renowned author-illustrator Fifi Colston shares her years of expereince in the visual and wearable arts in this new book where you will learn how to WOW the world with your very own wearable wonder using simple objects such as petals, shells, cardboard, old cans and drink bottles that can be showcased in the world of  wearable arts awards or used as a costume, prop, landscape, weapon and even a creature on stage and in the film industry. A great resource to use and read if you are doing a school/drama production and/or consideirng a career in fashion, set and costume design. Perhaps local schools will find inspiration and ideas for next year’s Smokefree Stage Challenge.

Little heart book

debbie 1 Comment

Check out this cute little crafty book centered around the heart.

There are five great creative projects that are all inspired by the simple heart shape.

One idea is sweet smelling hearts that you can put in your drawer with your clothes or hang them in a wardrobe.

Another idea is heart wreaths. You could hang them on your Christmas tree or just on the wall or in front of the window.

I won’t tell you what the other ideas are because you need to get the book out and be inspired.

All of the ideas would make great gifts and remember Christmas is not too far away.

So get crafty!

New Non Fiction: Amazing Series.

Katie

 

Art Smart.

Two new books, Paint it! and Make it!  from the Art Smart series has made it to our library shelves. With the school holidays just around the corner, why not check out these awesome new non fiction books, each complete with 12 inspiring projects to try out and get inspired on making  a puppet, sock snake, dino doorstop, (in Make it!) and different painting techniques such as watercolor acrylic and sgraffito (in Paint it!) I thought the project ideas in the books were fantastic, especially the activities for creating your own Picasso self portrait in Paint it! and the get well card project in Make it! These projects are a great way to beat the boredom busters during the school holidays and even better during a rainy day!

 

     

Disgusting & Dreadful Science.

Prepare to be grossed out! Prepare to be shocked and amazed! Prepare to be gut wrenched! Prepare to be enlightened! Boys and girls, the newest (and greatest) resources are here to help you with your science homework (and questions) and ideas for science fair experiments! In Ear-Splitting Sounds, you will learn the awful truth about all the yucky, painful,  disgusting and dreadful aspects of sound, not mention there are some equally gross, but interesting photos contained in this book. Gut-Wrenching Gravity contains even more disgusting facts about gravity! Covers everything from blackouts caused by g-forces to toilet-troubles in space. Glaring Light covers all the most disgusting and dreadful aspects of light. Finally Electric Shocks covers everything you need to know about the most disgusting and dreadful aspects of electricity, like whizzing electrons and static shocks to flying flies and freaky frog legs.

 

    

Animal Family Albums.

You will find books about Cats, Dogs and Horses and Ponies from this series at your local library. Each title in the Animal Family Albums series feature information about all favorite pets and animals which includes descriptions of popular breeds, facinating facts about wild relatives and a quiz to help you discover which breed you would be. The book about cats was a fantastic read. I learned a lot of interesting facts, especially  about Russian Blue cats , which are considered to be good luck and the Manx cats, which are born with either no tail or a short stumpy tail. The book about dogs contained facts about how pet dogs are descended from wolves, and like their ancestors, they like living in packs, which is made up of its human family. It was very interesting to learn while reading about horses and ponies, wild horse herds are normally led by a female and how the herds include other females, foals, a stallion and a few young males.

 

      

World Cultures.

Feel like taking an amazing journey and exploring all the different cultures the world has to offer? There are four new books exploring the  Maasai, Bushmen of Southern Africa, Polynesians and Maori  culture, from the World Culture series. These books are great resources to use that takes an educational look at cultures that are struggling to maintain their traditions in an ever-changing world, so these books are great to use if you are doing an assignment or homework on exploring issues and oppression within different cultures. Each book unveils the traditions, myths and social activities of each culture. Also includes bibliographical references and index. Great for ages 4 to 12 years.

New Non-Fiction to inspire you

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The Hugo movie Companion

Hugo was an amazing film that came out in 2011 that won five Oscars. It was based on a book called The Invention of Hugo Cabret, by Brian Selznick. This brilliant book shows how you take an incredible book and make it into award winning film. This book is more in depth than your average movie guide. It includes not only interviews with the director and main cast members but also the costume, hair and set designers, as well as the cinematographer and the camera operators. So not only is it a great guide to a brilliant film, it’s also an excellent insight into the film making process.

 

 

 

 

Toy Story: the art and making of  the animated film

This is another great book that takes a close look at the making of a movie, Toy Story. It was groundbreaking back when it was released (1995!) and this book takes you through how a CGI movie is conceived and then animated. There’s lots of cool concept art to look through, and you can see how the story and the character designs changed over time.  It’s a must-read for Pixar fans.

 

 

 

 

 

Star Wars Clone Wars: the visual guide to the ultimate battles

If you loved the Star Wars animated series, you’ll love this book. It discusses all the major battles in the series so far, as well as having some extra information on the characters themselves.  It doesn’t go into the making of the series, but for information about the story it can’t be beaten.

 

 

 

 

 

Knights and Castles

Although this book is aimed at young readers, it contains some useful information about what life is like for a medieval knight and how he tried to live his life. It’s interesting, but takes a bit of an optimistic view of knights. If you’re a bit older you might want to look at Terry Deary’s Horrible History book.

 

 

 

 

Rescuing Gus

Melissa Wareham always wanted a dog. So when she grew up she started working at Battersea Dogs Home, the oldest and most famous dog shelter in England.  There she meets “Gus” a part husky mongrel who’s had a bit of a rough start in life. So she adopts him, and tries to make sure he has the best life possible. Hard when he gets into a lot of trouble! This is a great book for those who are thinking about adopting pets.

 

 

 

 

 

Martha Stewart’s Favourite crafts for kids

This is a great little book that will teach you how to make 175 cool projects; everything from Terrariums to gingerbread houses.  The instructions are clear, and there’s a picture of everything you need to make the project, so everything’s easy to make.  We’ve recently gotten a whole heap of craft books: Art Lab is a cute book for preschoolers, Crafts for accessorising that look for  the fashionistas, and another ‘bumper’ book of crafty activities, 100 fantastic things to make, do, and play.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Matariki Family Fun Day

admin

Celebrate Matariki 2013 with Wellington City Libraries.

Free family activity and performance day at the Wellington Central Library. Bring your whanau along and watch amazing performances, treasure hunts, learn traditional string and stick games, flax weaving and more!

Saturday 22nd June, Wellington Central Library, from 11am

 

11am: Te-Whanganui-a-Tara kapa haka group performing waiata and stick and hand games

11.30am: Special Matariki storytime with star librarian Stu

12.30pm: Whai – string games with Frith Driver-Burgess

1pm: Harakeke – simple flax weaving of nga whetu and putiputi withYvonne Mason

1pm: Special performance by Anna Bailey and her String Bean Puppets – feel like a matariki star, have your portrait painted by Evaline the string puppet and artist extraordinaire!

2pm: Special performance by Anna Bailey and her String Bean Puppets – Pasta Arrabiata: a cooking show with strings attached! As the nights get longer come and see string puppet Edmond Snail whip up a matariki feast.

 

Also on throughout the day:

1pm – 3pm: badge making – make your very own matariki badge to wear

11am – 3pm: family treasure hunt around the library

11am – 3pm: fill our library with matariki stars – make your very own wishing star and hang it in the library.

Top 10 non-fiction for May

admin

Looking for some cool non-fiction to get your hands on? Here are the top 10 most favourite non-fiction books for May 2013:

1. Star Wars series by david Reynolds West

2. Star Wars character encyclopedia by Simon Beecroft

3. The horrible history of the world by Terry Deary

4. Ripley’s believe it or not by Rosie Alexander

5. Pokemon Ultimate Handbook by Cris Silvestri

6. The wimpy kid movie diary by Jef Kinney

7. Guinness world records 2013 by Craig Glenday

8. Beastly Best Bits by Terry Deary

9. Big book of paper craft by Fiona Watt

10. World War 1 by Simon Adams

 

New non-fiction: books for younger readers

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First illustrated Science dictionary

This is a great little book for younger readers who are curious about how the world works. It’s beautifully illustrated, and the information is presented in a clear, simple way.  It talks about everything from cells to the stars, and is a great introduction to scientific concepts.

 

 

 

 

 

Black Holes

If the Illustrated Science dictionary has sparked your interest in black holes, this is the book you want to read next.  It’s simple, clear and if you get stuck, there’s a glossary of words at the back.  Plus there are some great pictures that take you through how Black Holes work.

 

 

 

African Myths and Legends

All cultures tell amazing stories about the past. This is a great little collection of myths and legends from all African cultures.  Gods, heroes and trickster spirits all have their own special stories, depending on where they come from. If you liked this book, you could check out other myths in our collection.

 

 

 

 

 

Make it!

If you like crafts and want to save the planet, this book is filled with awesome projects that will help you do just that. All of these are pretty easy, but very fun, so you probably won’t need Mum or Dad looking over your shoulder when you make toys out of odd socks or rocket ships from milk bottles.

 

 

 

 

 

Welcome to your awesome Robot

This book is a lot like Make it! except you’ve got one project to focus on; making a robot costume out of an old cardboard box. Sounds boring? Well, it isn’t. There’s plenty of ideas here about how to customise your ‘robot’ as well as a cool comic strip showing how a kid (with a bit of help from Mum) made theirs. It’s not your average craft book.

 

 

 

 

Shipwrecks

What exciting things can be found beneath the sea? Mankind has been sailing the seas for centuries; but occasionally, things go wrong, and all sorts of ships end up on the ocean floor. It’s not just about the treasure; shipwrecks

 

 

 

 

Mother’s Day

admin

Hey kids – have you been practicing making breakfast in bed?

Mother’s Day is this Sunday – May 12th, and I’m pretty sure Mum would love to be surprised with a yummy breakfast to start the day -this is a tradition for Mother’s Day in New Zealand along with giving cards and gifts.

Modern-day Mother’s day started in 1908 in West Virginia (USA) by a woman called Anna Jarvis. Previous attempts at getting a formal Mother’s Day celebration recognised in the 1800s had failed, but Anna was successful in having it recognised as an official holiday in the USA in 1914.

As this American holiday was adopted by other countries and cultures around the world, the date was changed to fit other celebrations that honor motherhood. That’s why different countries celebrate Mother’s Day on different dates. The second Sunday in May is when New Zealand celebrates Mother’s day, along with 81 other countries. Other popular days that countries celebrate Mother’s Day are March 8th, March 21st and the last Sunday in May.

Wikipedia has a great article about Mother’s day. Check it out for more info.

We also have some great books about Mother’s Day:

Want to make mum a present? Try these crafty books for some ideas:

Don’t forget the breakfast in bed! Here are some favourite cooking books for you to get some inspiration and recipes from:

Top 10 non-fiction for April

admin

Here are your favourite non-fiction books for April. Grab them from your library today.

1. Star Wars by David Reynolds West

2. Frontier of dreams the story of New Zealand by John Parker

3. The horrible history of the world by Terry Deary

4. The LEGO book by Daniel Lipkowi
5. Ripley’s believe it or not by Rosie Alexandertz

6. Cat by Juliet Clutton-Brock

7. World War 1 by Simon Adams

8. Usborne little book of Easter activities by Rebecca Gilpin

9. Pokemon Visual Guide by Cris Silvestri

10. Big book of paper craft by Fiona Watt