2 comments about Swedish Style: Creating the Look.

1. This is a lovely book with beautiful color pictures from what I think is authentic interiors. The author walks us through the essence of swedish style via colors, fabrics, accessories and furniture. I miss not having typical interiors and suggestions of how to decorate individual rooms such as hallways and kitchens etc. The main focus is on livingrooms and bedrooms. I still think it's a good purchase and this book gives me a lot of inspiration.



2. This is a good and basic introduction to the elements of Swedish style in interior design.

   There is a simple historical summary that captures the background to Swedish design without making erudite comments on the style itself, other than to list the fundamental principles.

   The asthetic choices are very tuille and English in flavour; something that a middle-class London matron may aspire to. The lack of real recourse to original Swedish design and then imaginative and tasteful modern alternatives makes this book disappointing.

   "The Swedish Room" is far more inspiring and authentic.

2 comments about Easy Reversible Vests.

1. I bought this book to use in a class on paper piecing. It's a good intro to paper piecing and the vests are great. There are three major pattern styles--but endless possibilities. I made my Mom's birthday vest from the pattern in this book, and I made a sewing vest for myself out of quilt scraps. These are art vests and if you don't wear vests--they look great hung on the wall too. Carol Doak is clear and accurrate and she doesn't leave out any of the steps. Vests, paper piecing, a creative jumpstart--are all here--what more could you want? Mary Z. Cox the accidental quilter



2. Another of my cherished Foundation piecing books - my second Carol Doak one. What a lovely selection to choose from. I hope vests don't go out of fashion too soon. These are all very special. Vest patterns in a number of sizings and styles are included but the techniques can be used on any pattern you have. Well worth having.

No comments about The Botanical Palette: Color for the Botanical Painter.

1 comments about Art Direction and Editorial Design (Abrams Studio).

1. There's an interesting magazine spread reproduced on page sixty of this fascinating book, it arrows only the typographic items like: folio, headlines, byline, body copy, credits, running heads, panel/sidebar copy, intro/second deck text, stand-first, pull quotes, captions/cutlines. Not arrowed are photos, illustrations, cartoons, graphics and other visual elements. I thought it was interesting because it sort of sums up the many items that publication designers work with all the time. Publications seem separate from other areas of print communication because of their regular appearance and they have a dedicated staff handling words and images. Because of this team effort it is not really practical to teach the subject in design college. The best learning curve is to join the editorial department of a title.
   
   The book is essentially concerned with the look of publications and I thought it was impressively thorough in its coverage. Most of the illustration spreads feature magazines but newspapers are considered as well, including their supplements. The five chapters really do cover everything you'll see in a weekly or monthly, explained by text and comprehensive captions. The pages are broken up by some interesting magazine profiles and some dummy pages to further explain editorial concepts: how grids shape design, changing impact with headlines and photos. The back pages feature work from well known magazine designers from the last few decades, a glossary and index.
   
   The book's production is as impressive as the contents, printed on glossy paper in 200 screen with a layout that is easy to follow considering the large amount of information. If I have a criticism it is that most of the illustrations come from publications that are aimed at a design receptive readership. It would have been useful, I think, to have included some publications where design is not so obvious: down-market celebrity magazines or titles for children (like the brilliant Sesame Street Magazine) or trade weeklies. All these need designers to be just as creative as those on many of the titles that have spreads in 'Editorial design'
   
   I think it's worth pointing out that this is not a 'how to do magazine layouts' book but a detailed look at the nuts and bolts of what makes up the visual side of a publications editorial.
   
   ***SEE SOME INSIDE PAGES by clicking 'customer images' under the cover.

5 comments about Area.

1. The service was great, however, when I opened the book, the cover fell off. I know that it was not their fault as my friends have had the same problem, but I am very upset that whomever shipped the item did not notice the spine detached from the book.



2. You can't go wrong with a Phaidon publication. The book is a very in-depth look at design world-wide. It has tons of examples of great design. I would highly recommend this book to anyone.



3. There is so much inspiration in this book. It's a graet resource for any designer. It will get your little design wheels spinning with fresh ideas every time you open it. There is so much in here and such a broad range of styles and subject matter. Some incredible artists.



4. There is something amazing in the way consumerism has birthed its own brand of art. In the 1880's, when Coca-Cola pushed their first few dollars across the table and asked for a slogan, I wonder if anyone ever dreamed what their industries would become and how much they would owe to this type of expression? I wonder if the idea that Frank L. Balm had about The Storefront Window, saying it was more than a place to keep a store's useless stuff, went beyond the United States becoming the frontrunner in glass consumption and into a field all its own? I ask because the field of Marketing Psychology intrigues me and, accordingly, the things we've birthed to sell items also intrigues me. Maybe "intrigue" isn't even the right world - maybe I should say that they captivate me, forcing me to search high and low for the best lightbulbs burning in the brightest phosphorescent starlight so to influence the migratory patterns of items that are pushed forth by a culmination of thought and a well-oiled pen.
   That is what is so beautiful about Area; it breathes what we are, what we consume, and how this meshes with the very fabric of how we conceive pitch and pitches, ticking and timeless, making up the very definition of art that is more than pictures generated "for art's sake." Looking here, it really reflects how the world has become vibrant and how pictures have shaped the world.
   Locked inside this book is more than a few pictures - its a blueprint of an overlooked history that America wears all over its geography.
   
   When I look at the field of graphic design, I am always tantalized by the creations that come from it, wanting to pour myself into page after page and see the "next big idea." It is somewhat like listening to the heartbeat of millions of people thumping in unison; if it clicks it happens to click, and you know what started the motion. Area proves that, too, showing you how far we've moved past the simple pixel lay-outs and into the realm of technological highs and really ingenious methods of salesmanship, making so many things seem desirable. In Marketing Psychology it is called tapping into the "ideal self" and making people buy a dream that the "actual self" doesn't seem to be able to supply.
   The idea seems easy enough to understand, too, and sometimes people laugh at the power wielded by the pen and call the "needing" lemmings. Here, in this book, I find a lot of laughter falling short of its mark and even the bigger birds of prey noticing things they adore and why they learned to adore it.
   
   When I first bought this book I thought it would simply feed my tastes and purse my lips with the hum of more curiosity, but lately I've noticed how much influence the book has. It has thousands of pictures, quite literally, and sometimes I catch my friends standing with their eyes glued to an item and that blank stare of "something remembering something" coming out as they slow move through the pages. Its as if Ford's comments on the heart of the new type of manufacturing, "machinery is the new messiah," have found application in ways he never intended.
   If you want to see how great that can become, how powerful advertising can become, then you should look at this book and see what I mean. Currently the one I own has been in my clutches for well over a year, and I still have around one hundred pages tabbed just so I can look back over them and marvel at the creativity that thrives in make-believe places orbiting some very real horizons.
   
   Even if you know nothing about art, you know what beauty is and this book comes highly recommended in that department.



5. This book is full of new and refreshing design from around the world. It helps to educate someone like me who, while getting a Graphic Design education, is getting a more traditional rundown of the field and less of a modern-day acknowledgment. "Area" addresses the artists' perspectives and shows a wide variety of visual styles and formats, and will have something extremely interesting for everyone. A great book for any designer's collection. Worth every penny.

5 comments about The Graphic Designer's Guide to Portfolio Design.

1. I was very happy with this book! I took a Portfolio class in college and it did little to help me build a
   digital portfolio. This book covered a number of questions that I had about the various computer
   design programs. It also offered ways to create navigations once the digital port is created and some
   of the things that can go wrong.
   
   The book is well structured. It is logical and clear. There were tons of examples. In addition to the
   chapters on creating a digital, there are some great chapters on how to create a traditional portfolio as
   well. I also learned the best ways to create resumes, how to take interviews and what to do when
   asked difficult or illegal questions.
   
   This book has plenty of useful information interspersed with just enough technical info to keep you
   feeling informed but not overwhelmed. If you are trying to create any kind of portfolio, buy this book!



2. This book is incredibly irritating to read. It made my brain hurt. Another review described her style as "ebullient." I would describe it as "unfocused and unedited."
   
   As I randomly flip open the book, I find typos and simple grammatical mistakes that should have been caught by a decent editor.
   
   Page 14: "Write down answers to the following questions. Don't be modest, but be realistic. Put yourself inside the head of the potential employer as you consider how you will come across during an interview?"
   
   Empty phrases:
   Page 23: "A good rule of thumb for establishing the length of the resume is to balance economy with appropriate depth and detail."
   How exactly is that a rule of thumb?
   
   Page 49: "Any discussion of electronic design begins with the question, which format should I use to create my portfolio? Should I create a Web site? Or produce a CD-ROM? The answer is, it depends. In fact, there is not much difference between the two formats."
   Gah! Really, the answer depends?
   There's not much difference between CD-ROM design and web design? That's news to me.
   
   Irritating parenthetical trivia:
   Page 49: "For all intents and purposes, a CD-ROM (remember, this acronym stands for compact disc read-only memory) can be considered, simply, a storage device for your designs and resume."
   
   In a word, the book takes a rambling shotgun approach, it's littered with irritating mistakes, and there's not much insight into the subject matter.



3. I must say I had high hopes for this book, but it didn not deliver. Everything in it was obvious and I didn't feel like I learned anything at all. For instance, Myers goes on for a while about file formats and the different softwares and what they do. If you were a graphic design student and you were reading this book, wouldn't you already know all this stuff about what software like Adobe Illustrator does?
   
   Her design samples are boring, they lack creativity, and they just plain drag the book down. I do not reccommend this book, though unfortunately, there aren't many if any good portfolio books out there... Maybe next time, Debbie.



4. During my stint as a librarian in a university art school several years ago, I encountered many young graphic design students who were creative and talented; however, they seemed at times a tad clueless about the real world that crouched in the darkness ahead, waiting to pounce. Back then, there was no shortage of materials on the theory and technique of graphic design, but there was not exactly a glut of practical information on how one successfully breaks into the graphic design field after graduation. To accomplish this goal in today's competitive job market, the graphic designer needs an effective portfolio as well as the skills to market it to perspective employers and clients. Debbie Rose Myers gives aspiring graphic designers the vital information necessary to succeed at this daunting yet crucial endeavor.
   
   With an ebullient style, Myers describes the process of planning and implementing all facets of the portfolio. Different portfolio types are explored, from the traditional to the digital. The text examines every facet of the process, including professional resumes, job interview skills, the fundamentals of elegant Web site design and the importance of being prepared for computer malfunctions. Included are portfolio examples, pertinent glossaries and a bibliography. Myers's choice of success stories are sure to inspire the creative personality, such as the artist whose portfolio included herself clad as a 1950s waitress and achieved five job offers.
   
   Though the title implies a small audience, this spirited book will aid job-seekers in a broad spectrum of fields, not just in the arts but in business and the sciences as well. At the very least, The Graphic Designer's Guide to Portfolio Design should be a permanent resident of not only academic art libraries but the designer's personal library too, for this is a work that will be consulted again and again. There is always a place in the world for artists; they merely need to know how to find it. Myers illuminates the path.



5. I was very disappointed by this book. The design examples, with an occasional exception, are very weak; and the content is so generic and obvious that it yields virtually no valuable insight at all.

5 comments about Fashion Design.

1. I wish I had read this in High School before going to college. A very thourough overview of the Fashion industry as well as what to expect in college as a Fashion student. She is British so many of her references are UK based but she does cover the US as well as France in most of her references and additional sources so a good place to start. I reccommend this for anyone looking to go into Fashion.



2. Then read this book first!
   
   Sue Jenkyn Jones provides a good end-to-end overview of the Fashion Design Business. From this book, you will get an good idea of what talents and requirements are needed to be a Fashion Designer. Covered in this book are the business aspects, fashion cycles, textiles, manufacturing, sketching, patternmaking, CAD for designers, colors, sewing, and much MUCH more.
   
   Each topic is explored enough to get slughtly further than the basic concept but not thoroughly covered. I do not think it is possible to completely explore everything on Fashion Design in one book. It is a great introduction to see if it something suitable for yourself or if you are seeking out an overview of the design business. The book is generously packed with graphical examples, sketches, charts, and runway photos.



3. preferably theirs. This book reveals very little about fashion design or the buisness. It is full of a lot of general information much like you would find in one of those late night tv, or print ads, telling you that you may have what it takes to "become a serious artist." Because of course then you are interested and will pay them money. This book works in much the same way. It is a teaser published by Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design. Now had they given me this book, say. . . at my orientation, i probably would have appreciated it. However I was rather disappointed when I realized that I had just paid $30 at SFMOMA for an advertisement from CSM.



4. After a serious college business education and a few years in the workforce, I made a courageous decision to enter fashion school. The best decision I've made, but like everyone else I sometimes stress out over what I've gotten myself into. Sue Jenkyn's book is always on my cofee table because it calms me down by clarifying in simple terms what I'm studying and why. This book offers an opportunity to step back and look at the big picture of fashion today.
   
   This book offers a taste of everything - she has a wonderful chart of the fashion calendar and another of the fashion cycle. The info in this book incorporates vital lessons from maybe 10 expensive textbooks I own and have studied. The pictures taken of students in fashion school and sectors of the industry are my favorite. Until you are in fashion school or the industry, this book is the best way for you to see what happens behind closed doors. The more I learn in fashion school, the more familiar and enlightening this book becomes.



5. I purchased this book on amazon.com at a very reasonable price and was very pleased with my purchase. For under $20 this book provided me with the information I was looking for. I recommend it to anyone, especially students interested in majoring in Fashion Design in college. This book explains the basics of what majoring in Fashion Design requires, and goes into describing the what, when, where, and why of what being a Fashion student involves. I really enjoyed reading this book and learned a lot!

No comments about Maria Sibylla Merian and Daughters: Women of Art and Science.

3 comments about Fashions of the Thirties: 476 Authentic Copyright-Free Illustrations (Dover Pictorial Archive Series).

1. I design and sew costumes for our local theatre company and this book has been a huge help in designing the proper look for a particular time period. It is a fun book to peruse to compare prices and styles with today's clothes.



2. This book has wonderful pen and ink drawings of womens, mens, children and accessories fashions. A great book for fashion drawing students as well as giving a good feel for that era.



3. This is a very good reference book. It does not show you the little details that photo books of fashion can provide, but the illustrations give you a good feel for the attitude of 1930s fashion. It is full of pen&ink style renderings of men,women and children's clothing. The drawings are also copyright free....

4 comments about Futurama Conquers the Universe.

1. The stories are not as well-written as the TV show, but they entertain nicely, & the characters' personalities are faithful to the show.
   
   The art is good, & reflects the look & feel of the show.
   
   BTW--keep an eye on the backgrounds & crowd scenes--the artists WILL have there little jokes, & slip a suprise or two in there for you.



2. I'd rather read this comic than watch TV. Since Futurama is barely on (waiting for the next movie to come out in June), this is the closest thing we can get to having new episodes of the show (well, the comics are, but these are the comics in a form that can go on a bookshelf) and it feels so much like the series. While I read it, I truly felt like I was watching a new episode and I could totally see all of these as actual episodes on the show. If you're a Futurama fan, I can't see how you wouldn't love these comics.



3. I love Futurama. I have every episode and DVD. This was a very quick read and it wasn't up to the standards of the TV series. Some parts were funny while others were just odd. I wouldn't spend the money on it. It took very little time to read and it is not something that I'll read over and over again to make it worth purchasing.



4. This graphic novel contains issues 10 through 13 of the Futurama comic books:
   --The Big Sweep, in which our heroes participate in the dangerous Winter Olympic sport of swurling,
   --The Cure for the Common Clod, in which Fry gets a cold that threatens New New York,
   --Hostile Makeover, in which Amy takes Leela shopping, and
   --The Bender You Say, in which Bender takes on the job of the Robot Devil.
   
   For some reason, the cover shown here on Amazon (featuring Morbo in a tank, shooting at our heroes), is not the one on the copy I have and those I've seen in stores. Mine shows Fry, Leela and Bender standing on a very tiny ringed planet, while Leela makes earrings out of another planet's rings, Bender lights a cigar with a sun, and Fry takes a bite out of a terrestrial planet.