Jean Garside

Discusses some interesting crafts. Unfortunately, the way she describes them, combined with the pictures and diagrams in the book, gives me exactly no idea how to carry out the plans and patterns she's talking about. It isn't helped by her spending a good deal of time rhapsodizing over certain color combinations - when the photos (and diagrams) are black and white. I think I'd like to make, for instance, the leather bag she describes and goes into great detail on how to do - but you sew this part to this and that part to the other side which...magically makes a lined pocket? Huh? I may try it, doggedly following her instructions and seeing if it somehow works, but I certainly won't be doing it in leather to start. It's amusing how similar her discussions of the craft revival of the 1940s is to similar discussions in the 80s and 2000s. And while she gives some suggestions for finding odd tools and materials, some of her suggestions are for things which are easily (if not necessarily cheaply) available now, while some of what she passes with a casual mention is completely unfamiliar to me - in a couple cases I couldn't tell you if the thing needed is more like a piece of cardboard or a bottle of glue. Mildly interesting, but not useful to anyone who isn't already familiar with the crafts in question. There's also wide variation in how much time and detail she spends on different crafts - she mentions it for a few, that a real discussion would be a whole book, but others get a page or a chapter with no pattern I can see, and no explanation. Pity, I wanted to like this. And I may yet try her leather pouch.… (mehr)