Home and Garden Recent Picks

June/July 2009

The title-underlined links will take you directly to our catalogue.
Some featured items are linked via a book cover to enable you to read more reviews.

To each his home : inspiring interiors as unique as their owners, Bilyana Dimitrova.
"Professional architectural photographer Dimitrova visits eight dwellings throughout the United States, from Grandma Prisbey's Bottle Village in Simi Valley, CA, to Mija Bankava's Soho loft in New York City, to show how the residents have created distinctive interiors suited to their personalities and lifestyles. None is professionally designed." (Book Cover)

Making curtains & blinds : stylish window treatments for every room, Dorothy Wood.
"This book shows how to make every type of popular curtain and blind, from tab-tops to roller blinds and from caf, curtains to plaited tie-backs. A handy techniques chapter covers all the techniques you will need, including measuring up the window, calculating fabric requirements and matching pattern repeats. There is advice on fitting blinds and dressing curtains, and plenty of hints and tips to help you achieve professional-looking results with ease." (Book Cover)

Framing techniques & decorating ideas : Aaron Brothers, by Catherine Yarnovich Risling ; photo styling by Rebecca Ittner.
"Perfect frames and displays for all kinds of artwork and objects. The custom frame professionals at Aaron Brothers share their expertise on choosing, hanging, and decorating with frames. Aaron brothers’ designers make it easy for you to decide which styles suit your décor and showcase objects best, from scrapbook frames to shadowboxes. Their advice on mats, archival materials, and embellishing frames is invaluable. Finally, beautiful photographs present decorating ideas for wall arrangements and table vignettes to inspire you." (Book flap)

Old-school woodshop accessories, Chris Gleason.
"As a woodworker looking for new ways to work with your tools, versatility and efficiency can easily be learned from the past. Author Chris Gleason recently discovered a periodical known as the Deltagram that was published during the 1930's and 1940's. It contained tons of jig and fixture ideas that showed woodworkers how to pump up the capabilities of their power tools. These ideas are still as useful and clever today as they were then. Chris has collected 24 of the best shop jigs and fixtures from these. As an added bonus, this book includes 40 reproductions of the original Deltagram articles. Projects include: Spiral Turning on the Table Saw, Table Saw Jig for Cutting Wedges & Short Tapers, Shop-made Pocket Hole Jig Curved Forms for the Stationary Belt Sander, Forming Tenons on the Jointer, Plus Four Shop Storage Projects." (Book Cover)

Building green : a complete how-to guide to alternative building methods : earth plaster, straw bale, cordwood, cob, living, by Clarke Snell & Tim Callahan.
"An alternative or green home is built with an understanding of how the specific site can match the owners' needs and result in a dwelling that is attractive and environmentally responsible. Lively and detailed writing, plus more than 1,200 how-to photos, take you through the construction of a small building that incorporates a wide spectrum of alternative techniques and materials. It's the perfect introduction to creating your own thoughtfully planned and designed green home." (Book jacket)

100 great kitchens & bathrooms by architects edited by Andrew Hall.
"This book features 100 architect-designed kitchens and bathrooms, visually exploring a variety of architectural styles and interior designs with accompanying quotes from architects." (Provided by publisher)

The healthy soil handbook, editor, Alan Gray.
"Wander through the veggie patches of successful organic gardeners. Read about their down-to-earth gardening lifestyles and learn how to grow your own. Learn the secrets of making your soil health, and nutrient-rich so you can produce bountiful harvests with minimum water and minimum effort. Learn how to make perfect compost so you need never again see piles of fruit-fly infested slime!." (Book Jacket)

Easy on the pocket vegetable gardening : growing your own groceries, Dennis Greville.
"Growing your own vegetables need not be as time and energy consuming as you might think. By choosing the vegetables that you like to eat and that are easy to grow, you can quickly develop a productive small garden that will provide you with a continuous supply of seasonal produce. Even if you live in a flat or have a tiny garden or surrounded by concrete, I will show you that it is quite possible to grow enough vegetables to supplement the household budget, add flavour and freshness to your meals and experience the shear joy and satisfaction of growing your own." (Book jacket)

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