Customer Reviews

Craftivity: 40 Projects for the DIY Lifestyle

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

It's not just pretty, it's useful. The first thing I noticed about the book was how pretty it is - the layouts are elegantly clean and simple, the photos are beautiful, and it's a pleasing book to hold and flip through. After enjoying the eye candy, I went through the book again and was impressed by how well the individual projects are presented - there's a lot of freedom to improvise if you want to, but you can also follow a project from start to finish and not get lost.

The projects range in scope; there great gift ideas, home decor (love the embroidered screen door!), and projects that dance on the art/craft line (like designing moss patterns). There are projects for beginners and projects for the more ambitious, making this a nice book for a wide range of crafty folk, especially those who are fans of magazines like Make, Craft, and ReadyMade. Some of the projects are ones that I've seen before, but the presentation here is so well done that I don't feel cheated.

I like keeping this book on the nightstand. It's good for dreaming.

I really, really love Craftivity. It's the kind of book that is more and more inspirational with every page turn. And the kind of book that makes me wish I was creative like THAT.
I'd definitely recommend the book for anyone who is remotely crafty or wanting to be. It's one of those books that just makes you happy to revel in the art and beauty contained in it's pages.

I was so excited to finally recieve my book, and let me tell you it has gone above and beyond my expectations. Craftivity is not only beautifully designed but the projects cater to a wide variety of crafters, creators, and thrifters. She offers creative solutions in material use and more importantly, reuse.

Well done!

I have very high standards for craft books, and so I tend to preview a lot of craft books at my library rather than buying them outright. I even ask the librarians to order new books and am delighted when they purchase my recommendations, as they did with Craftivity. So 99.9% of the time, I look at the books and occasionally make notes about a particular project or two that I might enjoy making ... but this book won me over within the first few projects. I liked it so much that I placed an order to buy it, and that's very unusual for me. Very. Of the 40 project "recipes" in the book, I expect to make my own versions of more than half of them, and that's an amazing ratio.

Tsia Carson has selected some astoundingly creative folks to contribute to this book, and it shows. Even when the projects *sound* as though they might be old-hat, the actual project directions and illustrations show something fresh and unique -- by now, for example, it seems like everyone and their sister have been making felt flower broaches, but the one in Tsia's book, designed by Desiree Haigh, is a fun 3-D design I haven't seen elsewhere. Similarly, there are loads of patterns and designs for "softies" online, but Pearce Williams' Soft Octopus is a fun variation that looks really complex and professional when finished, but the instructions and pattern are clear and really quite simple to follow.

And then there's Jenny Hart's (SublimeStitcher.com) submission of an embroidered Screen Door ... and Jennifer Kabat's unique suggestion of what to do with a moth-eaten sweater (no, it's not felted) ... and the very craft that brought me years ago to Glitter (the crafty discussion board hosted at Supernaturale.com): a crochet skull! I mean, hey, This Is NOT Your Mother's Crochet! This book is literally filled with contemporary, hip twists on the DIY lifestyle.

The book design, as would be expected from an author who's co-founded a successful NYC Design firm, is clean, supremely functional, and elegant. The photos are luscious, and the instructional photos (step by step knitting, crochet, and embroidery stitches, for example) are clear, precise, and absolutely helpful. And the artists showcased are inspiring on their own -- I mean, hey, Noney Money? I *love* that!

So thank you Tsia, for not only hosting the world's best crafty community, but for gathering such fabulous artisans to offer us all wonderful, unique projects that are entirely do-able.

Craftivity is among the better DIY books now on the market (and there are many of them these days). The projects cover a wide variety of crafting disciplines and are all fairly well explained (although the novice crafter would likely need additional instruction or another reference to get started). There's probably nothing in the book you couldn't live without, and quite a few things that might take more effort than they are worth (the knitted lampshade and hammock come to mind). There are, however, a satisfying number of "Why didn't I think of that?" projects (bleach-printed T-shirts! a wooden rice play table!) that would certainly make life much cooler. Worth it for the projects . . . still worth it for inspirational value alone.

I also got this book from my library and will definitely be purchasing it. Biggest strength is in the diversity of the projects and quality of the executions. I especially liked the "showcase" artists who take a technique and just riff on it to make their own presentation. Many craft books are too frilly for me - stuff that just does not inspire or challenge me. I've got power tools and I know how to use them. I love the hardware projects - can't wait to make my own bed! The Rice Box was adorable - I'm definitely filing that one away.

A few of the projects were things I had seen before or just was not interested in - those tended to be the stuff with yarn (ex the bag made of bags, the $200+ pom-pom rug) because yarn work is my expertise so I tend to need really advanced books for patternwork. This book is great for branching out from a crafty rut or expanding a crafty skill set.

As someone who reads a lot of blogs, websites, magazines, etc, I've seen most of these projects before. The book is pretty, and has a lot of options, so if you've not explored the world of alternacrafts, its great. The instructions themselves are well described and the finished products are gorgeous.

This book is the essence of the DIY lifestyle. It's very well organized and the projects aren't indimidating. However, there are some projects that register as completely useless (a crocheted skull, for instance -- what would I do with one of those? And a tyvek basket -- I'm sure there HAD to be some better submissions when Ms. Carson was compiling this book!), but there are some superstar projects, as well (like a knit hammock, an etched pitcher and glasses, and a wooden bed).

I'd more likely use it as inspiration, as a taking-off point from which to create my own inventions. There may be a few projects in this book that I might make.

I was so excited to receive this book as a Christmas gift that I immediately started paging through it and ignored the other gifts.
I wasn't let down
The ideas presented are indeed easy to follow and provide a fun twist on some old 'classic' crafts
The arty feel of the book has already provided a lot of information and I've already marked a few pages for projects I'm interested in trying soon.

Definitely a great resource and inspirational book to anyone interested in reconstructed art and the latest in crafting.

I too, am very picky about the books I add to my crafting library...so many are just gloss that give no real inspiration. This book is NOT like that! :) Thanks Tsia!