Customer Reviews

Wildlife Designs: Original Patterns for Your Favorite Craft

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I purchased this book as a follow up to Sue Walters Pyrography Workbook...a book I can't advocate enough. I was not disappointed. The book is once again an attractive volume, nicely laid out with a generous amount of both photos and text...perhaps a bit of a rarity in a pattern book. So many merely have the picture patterns and little else. But, as for the patterns themselves, Ms Walters has once again shown her incredible talents in wildlife studies. There are 30 North American wildlife patterns in total, presented in both a line and tonal format with an additional 10 bonus silhouette patterns for border or decorative studies. An absolute steal for the money! These patterns will give me more than enough working patterns for some time to come.
But, over and above this, I was pleasantly surprised to find that the book offers so much more than the average pattern book. It also explores the whole concept of pattern usage in the craft world. There are several chapters dedicated to the use of line and tonal patterns, transferring patterns, modifying patterns, computer manipulation, as well as adapting patterns to a number of various arts and crafts. It allowed me to see the potential in any given pattern to be broken down or manipulated into more than just one single idea.
I also loved the picture gallery where one pattern has been adapted and used in a number of different crafts.... from woodcrafts such as pyrography, carving & scroll sawing to rubber stamping, stenciling, glass etching, tole painting and even quilting.
I feel this book is extremely functional as well as truly inspirational to so many craftspeople. And again...a great value for the money...if only to see the wonderful works of Ms Walters. I look forward to any future books by this artist and author.

This book has nicely executed illustrations and very good instructions on how to convert the drawings to your particular craft field, such as woodburning, stenciling , stained glass, etc. I found the book very helpful. My only disappointment was that the wildlife designs are only North American and include a lot of birds and game animals (deer, mountain goats, elk). If you are looking for "lodge-style" designs, this book will be perfect for you. If you're looking for a broad variety of wildlife, you may want to look elsewhere.

Wow!!! This book is loaded with an excellent selection of North American Wildlife patterns. From chipmunks to wolves, sparrows to peregrine ...deer, cougar, fox, raccoon...& the list goes on. Just a marvelous assortment of wildlife studies and a great reference book! I strongly recommend this book to anyone who is looking for a vast array of wildlife patterns.

Sue Walters has done a wonderful job sharing her love and talent for pyrography. She has taken detail in technique for both the beginning woodburner and the advanced.
I would recommend this to the beginner and advanced pyrographer.

This book contains wonderful black and white patterns for detailed wildlife -- but, except for Canada Geese, gives no hint of their coloring (much less a picture), which defeats the purpose for most artists. This book could easily have been awesome instead of mediocre.

I first learned of Sue Walters when I found her instructional book: "Pyrography Workbook: A Complete Guide to the Art of Woodburning". I make Native American sytle wooden flutes and decorate them with images of animals. My pyrography techniques continue to improve with increased experience, but took a huge leap with Sue's book. The "Wildlife Designs" book is a great supplement to her first book, with a large collection of additional patterns of a variety of animals in interesting poses. What makes her patterns really useful is that each image is presented twice: once as an outline and again as a completed image with all the burn strokes visible. If you're still developing your pyrography technique, get the "Pyrography Workbook" first and then add to your library of patterns with the "Wildlife Designs" book. If you're already accomplished in pyrography and are looking to increase your wildlife pattern library, go straight to this book. Either way, this books is definitely worth the price.

John Ellis
Melbourne, FL

Fantastic book lots of infromation easy to follow. Somethings I knew but had forgotten learned some things great patterns. She is a great and gives good examples.

This book has beautiful pictures and drawings that you can copy and trace. It brought great delight to my brother.

I starting learning great techniques from the first page of this book. The instructions and pictures are very clear and easy to understand. Artists of different media types will find this book useful. The techniques taught can be used so many ways, drawing, painting, carving, wood burning, and gourd crafting. This book will become a valuable resource for my gourd art.

Wildlife Designs: Original Patterns for Your Favorite CraftThis book helped very much for a holiday craft day at our school. The kids liked all of the designs that were in the book. We will use it many times from now on to make our wood burned clocks.