Customer Reviews

ReadyMade: How to Make [Almost] Everything: A Do-It-Yourself Primer

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(6)

 

 

As a happy subscriber to ReadyMade magazine, I was thrilled to hear about the release of their first book. Unfortunately, my brief assessment is that there's a huge opportunity for the book this could have been, but ReadyMade has largely missed it where it counts.

The description of this book is exactly the sort of thing I'm looking for as a craft enthusiast: "From the pages of ReadyMade magazine appears this compendium of more than 30 projects making the most of recycled paper, plastic, wood, metal, glass, and fabric." Okay, I'm hooked. How soon can you get the book to me? But perhaps I should actually check out a copy in the bookstore before buying it. You know, just in case.

So, here it is in the flesh. What a beautifully and creatively designed book! I love when design meets content, and the look and feel of this book perfectly match the edginess of the scope of projects. Basically, it looks like a handbound book, but the production isn't finished off by covering the binder's board with paper. The yellow cloth used to cover the spine board is marked as a ruler, which is pretty cool (even if this flourish would end up being the potentially most useful feature of the book). This makes for a cover that really speaks to paper crafters on a gut level. Truly an inspired idea, executed perfectly.

The design combined with the pitch almost got me to buy the book without even opening it. But I was standing in the bookstore anyway, and I couldn't help peeking. I was glad I did, because it saved me my money. A chopstick clock? A colander light sconce? Waterbottle loungechair? A CD rack made out of FedEx boxes? A coat rack made out of plastic detergent containers? The list of "playful" and "interesting" project ideas goes on and on. Though the book might have a lot in the way of "inspiration" for crafters, there's not a single project in the book I'd personally want to make (or have be seen in my house).

I think projects can be hip without being impractical, cool without being ugly, and clever without being crappy. Unfortunately, the projects in this book aren't.

I expected this book to show me how to make projects comparable to those found in the "ReadyMade" magazine: Practical, attractive projects that make good use out of cast off items. Instead, this book shows projects made out of junk that look like nothing more than projects made out of junk. A coat rack made out of laundry soap bottles looks like a stack of laundry soap bottles. The cd racks made out of shipping cartons look like shipping cartons. I was very surprised to find not one item in the book that I wanted to make.

Tastes being what they are, you may enjoy this book more than me. All I'm saying is that you'd probably want to look at a copy of it before buying, to make sure.

Judging the book by its COVER, this is not a fantastic book. It looks bound in cardboard! It looks like a high school notebook, at first glance. But the exterior's pragmatic and unusual binding does not represent the sleek feel of its insides. Once opened, you'll see that it has the interior of an expensive coffee table concept book that costs $40 at Barnes and Noble. It's like opening the door to a '74 Volvo station wagon only to find that the interior is as luxurious as a top of the line Lexus. The heavy matte finish of the pages of this book, along with its ultra artistic clean design lines, make it far from flimsy. But enough about the superficial stuff. This book has substance despite its unattractive appearance.

Let's get 2 things out of the way:
1) I am super impressed by this book, and yes there quite a few attractive projects that would look great in my urban apartment, like the lamp cozy, the chopstick clock, the shoebox organizer, the jug stepping stones, and others.
2) I have never heard of nor subscribe to "ReadyMade" magazine, and perhaps if I did, I too would have the negative bias and expectations that other reviewers have of this book.

The 3 main independent personalities of this book are:

A) As a project manual to reuse or use everyday disposable or cheap items into novel, practical, and occasionally handsome pieces of furniture, tools, or decorations for the home or office;

B) As quick historical lessons on where everyday things come from. Segments include: The Ringed History of Wood, A Closer Look at the History of Glass, A Brief History of Fabric, A Brief History of Paper, A Wrap on the History of Plastic, etc.

C) As a self-help guide comprised of serious mini-chapters completely unrelated to building projects, segments likes of "How to Avoid Plastic Surgery," "How to Start a Business on Credit Cards," "How to Break Through Your Own Glass Ceiling," "How to Tell a Good Story," "How to Pen the Perfect Love Note"

Not all of the building projects under (A) can pass for million-dollar aesthetics to all its readers, but even the worst projects can be good looking given the correct environment or with just a touch of extra creativity to make it match one's living space. But the point of these projects isn't to make furniture that rival Pottery Barn or Crate and Barrel. It's NOT ONLY to make reasonable uses or reuses for things destined to be discarded, but also to get you to take a second look at your every day environment and see new functions in common objects.

This book is geared towards younger people who aren't working with a huge budget, who nonetheless are inclined to heed the call to eco-idealism. The projects here include how to make a martini bird feeder, how to make a wall mural out of old CD cases, how make a coat hanger wine rack. Orthodox traditionalists who expect a Home-Depot style 1-2-3 instruction book on how to build traditional shelves, or how to install sheetrock up and use drywall to make objects the likes of breadboxes or baby cradles will be disappointed and consider this book too frou-frou and completely useless. People with maturing IRAs are just not the age range this book is aimed toward.

Picked it up as a huge fan of the magazine. Clever, funny, and charming, this book is a great purchase for someone already familiar with the magazine.
Pros:
-Creative projects and handy conversion charts.
-Informative chapter intros (all you'd want to know about wood, metal, glass, etc.).
-Great source of inspiration, especially the periodic "Duchamp's Corner".

Cons:
-Not a big fan of the layout. Too much 'flash' and 'bang' (like the magazine) makes it kinda hard to sit down and read.
-Felt a bit short for book prices. One issue of "Make" feels longer than the book. Probably due to full page pictures and ridiculously huge font for project intros. This book is about reusing; how about conserving space, too?

Key:
This book is 50% actual projects and 50% inspiration. If you want something that's all projects, try Todd Oldham's "Handmade Modern". The main difference between these two books is that Oldham's book focuses on design and function; go out and buy what parts you need, whereas "Readymade" is all about creativity and reusing, you can find what you need lying around. Knowing that, you won't be disappointed with this book.

First, it's about book design. Very snappy. Fab binding! And attitude - cute 'ziney commentary. Photos are lovely. And there are scarey factoids about trash and global warming in teeny tiny type. No, you won't find any projects you actually want to make. Most are labor intensive (drill 2 holes through 175 wooden closepegs) and impractical (2 ladders + boards = bookshelves) and ugly (20 sawed-off laundry detergent bottles make a coat rack). That's not the point. By the time you get to the projects that even the authors admit don't work (lounge chair of empty water bottles, deemed too noisy), you realize this book is a bit of a mockery. But its visual appeal sneakily gets the reader thinking about the trash with which we surround ourselves, and what to do with it.

I'm a huge fan of chic DIY projects and was very excited about this book. For $25 I learned: 1. How to turn containers for stuff into.... containers for other stuff! 2. Stacking things (and maybe if you feel like it gluing them together) = instant furniture! 3. For just $125.00 and hours of labor I can have a shoddily constructed and unattractive shelving unit! Lacking a chair? All you need is saran wrap (about $3) and a chair!
Filled with fluff and ironic hipster commentary, there isn't one thing in this book I would be proud to say I had created. well-intentioned but ultimately a huge disappointment and complete waste of money.

I bought the book a few days ago, with hope in my eyes, and I'm re-selling it on craigslist today.

I can only define it as a "book for people who shop exclusively at WestElm and have an urge to "slum it" by occasionally making things to keep up their egos and illusion of street cred at parties."

So sorry, ReadyMade. You used to be the coolest thing, but you lost your way.

This book is laid out very well with lots of cool kitschy little features that a ReadyMade magazine reader will love. However, the projects included weren't terribly groundbreaking. Like the magazine, many projects start with free/recycled materials but add so many pricey materials that the finished product costs more than one would spend just buying a pre-made piece. I did get a few cool new ideas however. One feature I really liked in the book were the failures... projects that had gone awry or didn't really hold up are included. Knowing how a project didn't work helps me avoid the same mistakes myself.

I've purchased a few copies of ReadyMade magazine at the newsstand and enjoyed some of the ideas in those issues, so I went ahead and ordered this book, thinking it would contain more of the same. Big mistake.

I feel confident advising everyone reading this review that there is nothing (yes, I mean not one thing) in this book that you will want to display in your home. A stack of empty laundry detergent bottles (totally undisguised) as a coat rack, anyone? When you picture your dream home, does it have cardboard FedEx shipping boxes (again, totally undisguised) hanging on the wall to hold your CD collection? Didn't think so.

I will say that the book's copy is quirky and entertaining, and there's a lot of great trivia in here about the history of various materials, but I didn't buy the book because I wanted to know the history of paper-making; I bought it thinking it contained good project ideas.

Bottom line: If you're living in a homeless encampment, there are things in here that will look great in your place. If not, don't waste your money on this dog!

ReadyMade magazine is full of fun and useful projects, but the ones in this book are tacky and ugly. The book itself is lovely, but who wants to make a coat rack out of detergent bottles or a chandelier out of cutlery?