Craft Book and Magazine Reviews

I love to buy craft books and magazines. Nothing is better than curling up with a cup of tea and a great book or magazine and being inspired by the glorious creations and exciting new techniques to try.

These craft magazine and book reviews will help you decide which books and craft magazine subscriptions you'd like to add to your personal library.

I've also included in some of the reviews some good resources where you can buy craft supplies online so you can quickly find unique and reasonably priced supplies for the kinds of projects described in each book.

Not all online book stores are created equal. At some sites you'll find plenty of discount craft books while at other sites you'll find a huge selection of titles or rare books. If you're trying to find the best places to buy craft or art books, check out these reviews of several online book stores.

Art and Craft Magazines

Stringing Magazine - Review
I like Stringing Magazine because, of all of the beading magazines I've read, Stringing is the most fashion-forward. The projects are fun, simple to make and stylish; there's nothing antiquated or dowdy about the projects in this magazine.

Accessories Magazine - Review
Accessories Magazine is written for people who sell women's fashion accessories in any type of retail environment. Because the magazine reports on trends many months in advance, you'll get that information in time to reflect those trends in your own work.

Art Jewelry Magazine - Review
I never get tired of reading Art Jewelry Magazine. This jewelry making magazine covers a real variety of jewelry making techniques from beginner metalsmithing techniques, working with wire, polymer clay, metal clay and plenty of other jewelry media.

Business Books for Craft Artists

Pinterest Power
Pinterest Power is guide to using Pinterest to connect with your customers. What I really love about this book is that fact that the author has used Pinterest to build his family's craft business. So his examples and recommendations are an excellent fit for anyone who runs a creative business.

Art and Craft Books

Photographing Arts, Crafts and Collectibles - Book Review
Photographing Arts, Crafts and Collectibles by Steve Meltzer is a fantastic resource on craft photography. I have researched plenty of sources, trying to find good information on craft photography for photographing my own handmade items, and this book, by far, is the most thorough, honest and helpful resource I've come across on the subject.

Bead on a Wire - Book Review
Bead on a Wire by Sharilyn Miller is a great wire jewelry book. If making wire wrapped jewelry is brand new to you, or you want to learn techniques beyond creating simple wrapped loops, you will be able to follow the instructions in Bead on a Wire and create your own unique wire jewelry pieces.

The Beader's Guide to Color - Book Review
The Beader's Guide to Color by Margie Deeb looks at color theory from a beader's perspective. The book includes fantastic examples of beadwork that will provide inspiration and encourage you to challenge yourself to take your own beaded projects to a new level.

Making Resin Jewelry - Book Review
If you want to experiment with making resin jewelry (or using resin in other projects, for that matter) The Art of Resin Jewelry by Sherri Haab is a great starting point. Resin is a really wonderful, versatile product that you can use to create truly unique designs while avoiding the need to invest in a lot of complex equipment, and this book shows you how to get started with resin jewelry projects.

Chinese Brush Painting Techniques - Three Book Reviews
Chinese Painting Techniques by Alison Stilwell Cameron
Chinese Brush Painting: A Beginner's Guide by Pauline Cherrett
and
The Chinese Brush Painting Bible by Jane Dwight
I started experimenting with Chinese brush painting techniques about a year ago. It is a wonderful and surprisingly challenging discipline.

If you'd like to try your hand at learning Chinese brush painting techniques, these books can help to get you started.

Supplies for Chinese brush painting can be a little tricky to find. Here are a few places where you can find Chinese brush painting supplies.

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