Customer Reviews

Fine Silver Sampler: Introductory Precious Metal Clay Projects--Step by Step Guide for the Classroom or the Home

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

For starters, though the information in this book IS good there is nothing in here that you can't find either on the Internet or in one of the many other books about Precious Metal Clay.

Why is this important? Because for about $4-5 more you can get a more robust, WELL MADE, well produced book on the same subject here on amazon.com. Pick just about any other book about PMC and you will get professional binding, high resolution pictures, high quality cover and pages, and about 50-100 more pages of information.

This book looks like it was made on a home computer by someone who just got a desktop publishing program and knows nothing about proper image resolution for print media. The images look like someone used the pictures on a website and then copied them for print. If you've never done this, trust me when I say the results look very unprofessional.

The binding of the book is even worse. It is as if someone printed off legal size sheets from a desk-jet printer and got their kid to staple it in the middle and fold it over. You can't even just flip through the book because the pages are uneven.

If I had seen this in a store I'd never have bought it, but because it was new and on amazon I figure I'd give it a shot. I'd send it back but I'd have to eat the shipping cost twice. I'm keeping it as a reminder to never buy books without reviews unless I've seen them up close and in person.

Seriously, save your money and get The Art of Metal Clay by Sheri Haab or ANY other book on PMC out there. Heck, save your money entirely and do a google search about PMC Techniques. You'll get just as much information, if not more, as what is in this book, and can probably print it all off to put in a project binder and make something at half the cost that looks 100% better than this.

There are plenty of precious metal clay books worth buying but this is not one of them--unfortunately. This was the first precious metal clay book I bought and now that I completed the 3-day certification class in PMC, I realize how poorly done this book is, and I wasted my money on this publication. The instructions are marginal. The layout is very confusing and poorly done. It appears the book was put together by someone who has no knowledge or experience in desktop publishing or technical writing. The photos are not clear and are poor quality, and the "busy" backgrounds make it hard to see the object in photo-- some of the photos should have just been left out since they don't enhance or help to clarify the directions. Instead, I would recommend the metal clay books by Cece Wire, Sheri Haab or Tim McCreight. Those books are definitely worth having.

This is not a book, more of a pamphlet. The information & projects provided are all from other publications by the author, and offers nothing for even the most basic of beginners. Avoid this "book" and save your money for some PMC+.

I was beyond disappointed with this "book". First off I expected to receive a book and not a pamphlet. Second the information was useless if you have ever read any other PMC book. I will definitely make a note of the author and never buy sight unseen from her again. There are so many good books out there to choose from. Don't waste your time or money on this one.

Like her other title, "Fine Silver Made Fun", for the price it was very disappointing. Author seems knowledgeable, but she needs to produce a full book (not booklet) and have it professionally edited and published. This "book" looks like it was produced quickly for a workshop and not edited.

great little book, wonderfully detailed photos, good starter book for Metal Clay.

Because I know nothing of Precious Metal Clay, I learned a lot in looking over this book. The section about TIPS was especially good. It showed how to use a 'hot pot', quick tip on drying PMC, how to keep it moist, how to burnish the PMC and why that is necessary, how to make PMC slip, and what a PMC 'sheet' is and how to work with it.

A new edition of Fine Silver Sampler is scheduled to be published summer 2005. A professional publishing staff is working with Tonnbo Design and putting together a wonderful layout and graphics. Information has been updated and the book has been greatly improved. Watch for it soon! makesilver.com