Between Friends: Craft Projects to Share [Hardcover]

Charlotte Lyons (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 30, 2002

In an era when women set aside very little leisure time for themselves, let alone for their friends, "Between Friends" provides the perfect excuse to invite the girls over. Talented writer and designer Charlotte Lyons has brought together an imaginative array of craft projects that will help celebrate both your creativity and your most valued friendships.

"Between Friends" presents ideas for 40 handmade craft projects, and all of the projects are perfect for sharing with a close friend or a group of friends. These delightful endeavors allow you to experiment with papier-mache, collage, decoupage, knitting, needlework, painting, sewing, rug hooking, quilting, scrapbooking, and doll-making. All projects are easy to make and lovely enough to inspire a lifetime of creative pursuit. Most are excellent gift ideas; better still, the materials needed can often be found right inside the pantry or craft basket.

Projects are organized according to the amount of time they require: some (like the place card holders or frames) can be completed in an hour; others (like sachets, potato prints, and dressing room organizers) fill a leisurely afternoon. More complicated projects (such as scrapbooks, needlepoints, and friendship quilts) are to be savored over a weekend or longer.

"Between Friends" offers plenty of inspiration along the way. Overflowing with lavish full-color photography, the book also includes profiles of the author's friends and their crafts; there are even a few recipes to enjoy while you work. With its easy-to-follow format, Charlotte Lyons's "Between Friends" is ideal for any kind of casual gathering, even if the get-together consists only of you and your closest friend. Somake your phone call -- and let the fun begin!

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Readers may initially scoff "No way" at the suggestion that anything handmade (except baked goods) can be crafted in one hour. Lyons, author of Mothers and Daughters at Home (2000), seems to delight in proving the wrongness of our thoughts as she unveils this delightful and practical paean to friendship. A handful of projects --including paperweights, seed packets, and a painted teapot--fits the 60-minute schedule, as will a variety of home-fashioned items that fall into one of four other timely categories: half a day, all day, over the weekend, and as long as it takes. Most of the 40 to-dos emulate a naive or outside artist's design; simple and to the point, each is embellished with variations and scattered sidebars on forming different clubs (book, knitting, garden) and on different personal friendships. No need, really, to be master of any one or several techniques. Barbara Jacobs
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Review

Rosie O'Donnell Charlotte is quite crafty! I enjoy her books. -- Review

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 160 pages
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster; First Edition edition (April 30, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0743214099
• ISBN-13: 978-0743214094
• Product Dimensions: 9.7 x 7.6 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #402,635 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars craft projects to share, May 23, 2002

By 

Britt Arnhild Lindland (Norway) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Between Friends: Craft Projects to Share (Hardcover)

I got a belated birthday present from a friend last week, Between Friends by Charlotte Lyons. What a wonderful surprise. Charlotte Lyons has made several craft books on different topics. This one is about projects you can share with friends. What about starting a craft group with some good friends or giving away a small hand made gift when you go for a visit or enclosing some fabric in a letter for a dear friend. The book gives alot of creative and great suggestions.

I have done all this, and still do. As a matter of fact, the friend who gave me the book and I have shared so many crafty projects over the years. There really are no limits in what you can do. And as it's said on the cover of the book - in an era when women set aside very little leisure time for themselves, let alone for their friends, Between Friends provides the perfect excuse to invite the girls over.

The great thing about this book is that Charlotte Lyons has collected so many different things you can do, and put them together in a charming and quite whimsical way. Don't start reading the book late in the night. You will never be able to go to bed then untill you have started a new project, phoned a friend to discuss some new yarn you saw in town earlier that day, or written a letter to a pinpal with pictures of some of your latest quilts.

The book will be a favorite of mine for years to come, and I know it will inspire me to make wonderful gifts for and with my friends from all over the world. And a little secret. MY Between Friends has a little handmade bookmark, embroidered with the words"If friends were flowers, I'd pick you" - made special for me by my special sharing friend.

Britt Arnhild Lindland

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars she's done it again!, May 21, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Between Friends: Craft Projects to Share (Hardcover)

Charlotte Lyons has a real gift for creating something wonderful out of basic odds and ends. And her newest book, Between Friends, offers inspiration galore. Whether you have friends to share the craft projects with or simply want to escape the daily routine by making something alone this book is a fabulous resource. The instructions are very clear and the projects are cleverly organized by the amount of time they take. A great gift idea too.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Book to Share, May 4, 2002

By 

Barbara Wright (Boston, MA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Between Friends: Craft Projects to Share (Hardcover)

A couple of years ago, a friend gave Charlotte Lyons's earlier book "Mothers & Daugters at Home" to my 12-year-old daughter. It was beautiful to look at. She loved it. Wanted to try everything in it. Not me, however. "Oh, no", I thought. "Not another craft book that shows me how richly supplied with time, talent and materials everyone else is."

But I thumbed through it with her......and fell in love. And in the end, although she has now left me far behind in her creative development, Rebecca and I launched several delightful (and successful) projects together.

So when Ms. Lyons's next book came out, I bought it for myself and have continued to purchase it as gifts for others. Like its predecessor, the layout of the book is beautifully coordinated. The narrative and directions are personal, engaging and encouraging. The directions are clear. It is liberally supplied with beautiful photos that convey not only the "made specially for you" look of the projects but also the joyful feel of the process. And tucked in, among all these things, are snippets of warmth, wisdom and inspiration that make this book itself a great gift to all who pick it up.