I absolutely love this book! This is not a huge craft book, but I was able to use it more than any other craft book I own. That's saying a lot. I created three Sam the Snowman kits, this fall, as Christmas gifts for my four nieces, and for my own children. We did get to put it to the test, this winter...it works! And it held up well! I learned to work with etching cream, and made gorgeous wine glasses in no time. I made decorative boxes using Mod Podge and playbox sand. I also tried my hand at painting with ceramic paints onto plain, white mugs and vases. The paint gets baked-on in the oven, and is holding up well, so far. I not only saved a lot of money, this year, by hand-crafting Christmas gifts, but I feel that I have shown my love even more by taking the time to create unique gifts for friends and family. Even if you do not follow the directions exactly, it is an excellent starting point when you need a clever idea. This is the first time I have actually sat down to write a review of a book. It was that important to me that I tell you what a find this book is!
My first review and my first Mary Engelbreit book
Published by Thriftbooks.com User , 23 years ago
I discovered Mary Engelbreit by chance and I'm now hooked on her series. Some books are better than others, but this one had me crafting for all my friends. I'm definitely not a crafty person, but this book held my hand. If I can do these projects, anyone can!
Making Special Gifts
Published by Thriftbooks.com User , 24 years ago
Delightful to read...Easy to do...Filled with ideas! Popular artist Mary Engelbreit's book on making handmade gifts and wrappings is perfect for those who like to give others tokens of appreciation and love. The spiral-bound book with glossy pages contains page-size photos alongside a page with step-by-step instructions, additional gift ideas and usually instructions for making coordinating, unusual tags for the gift. Leafing through the book right after it arrived, I immediately found projects I wanted to start right away--a new baby gift; things to put in a "care" package for a college age child and a thank you gift for a kind neighbor. The book contains a number of patterns, such as patterns for shapes of gift tags which I've used not only for gift wrappings but also as patterns for scrapbook pages. This book would be great as a gift for someone who enjoys crafts, someone who likes to give handmade gifts, someone who teaches others such as a teacher, scout leader, activities director, etc. or as a gift for yourself.
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