Say hello to your new best pals. These felted friends hail from Japanhomeland of all things cute. Inside this book, you'll find over 25 translated patterns that combine the appeal of authentic Japanese content with the ease of English instruction. Cheerful photographs, step-by-step directions, and helpful how-to illustrations make it easy to whip up both water- and needle-felted projects. There's no knitting involved; simply treat raw wool fibers with either a felting needle or water and detergent to create these little creatures. Cute and cuddly, they're also useful! An elephant cozy warms a teakettle; a whimsical bird mobile adorns a nursery; wee mouse pincushions hold your needles; while piglets, giraffes, zebras, or sheep carry all your gear in handy totes and pouches. Practice with these projects and then adapt the techniques to design your own personal stable of felted friends.

We translated the cutest Japanese patterns we could find to bring you the appeal of authentic Japanese content with the ease of English instruction. The result is such a treat. With Woolly Embroidery, learn how to add stunning designs to clothes and home accessories using simple crewel, stump work, canvas work, and other embroidery techniques. And it's so easy to pick up. If you can sew a button, you can embroider—it doesn't involve any complicated patterns or grids, just forgivingly freeform stitching. All you need is a needle and some wool thread. Helpful illustrations explain more than 30 decorative stitches so you can follow the instructions and color guides exactly or improvise your own motifs. With dozens of photographs to inspire, you'll want to embellish everything in your world-handbags, couch cushions, a sewing kit case, and so much more.

A beautiful presentation of outstanding works of craft being created in Japan today.

From Japan's first forays onto the international stage of world's fairs in the late 19th century to the dynamic creativity of the 1920 and 1930s, from the heady post-World War II period to the present day, Japanese crafts have exhibited a rich diversity of media and techniques. One of the first illustrated surveys in English of modern-era Japanese crafts--including ceramics, lacquerware, metalcraft, and wood--this elegant book, with 70 color illustrations, is an invaluable guide for the collector and scholar. Focusing on an important collection of Japanese crafts destined for the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the text discusses the artists and ideas that shaped and defined the aesthetic of 20th-century Japan, noting that this nation--which so deeply appreciates and fosters its crafts traditions--hails its artists as "living national treasures." The book also includes artists' biographies and reproductions of their signatures and marks. Published in association with the Philadelphia Museum of Art Exhibition Schedule: Philadelphia Museum of Art (December 6, 2008 - fall 2009)

"A brief insight into the manufacturing processes of a couple of mostly Kyoto-based craftsmen. A foreign craftsman is covered but Japanese skilfulness and process is the main concern. The book has lots of step-by-step images and aims to allow people to attempt some of these arts at home. Good luck with that shakuhachi. While only an overview, Lowe's book provides a lovely snap of some disappearing industries."--Provided by publisher.