Throughout history, patterns have come in countless permutations of motif, colour-way and scale. Yet what all have in common is the regularity of repetition, that insistent rhythm that animates a flat surface with a sense of movement and vitality and gives it depth. Evident in the arrangement of petals on a flower head, the branching growth of stems and vines, the spirals of a seashell - pattern is inherent in the natural world that surrounds us. Powerful and transformative, pattern has an irrepressible joie de vivre. With more than 1,500 illustrations of patterns from all ages and cultures, Pattern Design is a visual feast. This comprehensive compendium is arranged thematically according to type, with chapters on Flora, Fauna, Pictorial, Geometric and Abstract designs. These broad categories are supplemented by in-depth features highlighting the work of key designers from the rich history of pattern-making - such as William Morris, Sonia Delaunay, Charles and Ray Eames, Lucienne Day and Orla Kiely - along with sections detailing the characteristic motifs of key period styles from Baroque to Art Deco.

Introducing a new woodworking series in the tradition of Tage Frid...a series filled with essential information required by woodworkers today. For the first time ever, all the techniques and processes necessary to craft beautiful things from wood have been compiled into three comprehensive volumes: The Complete Illustrated Guides. Highly visual and written by woodworking's finest craftsmen, these three titles -- Furniture & Cabinet Construction, Shaping Wood, and Joinery -- will establish a new standard for shop reference books.

Shape is critical to the ultimate success or failure of a piece of furniture. Knowing this, custom-furniture maker Lonnie Bird has taken the complex subject of shaping and in this book made it accessible to every woodworker. He guides the reader toward first visualizing, then drawing a shape, and then choosing the appropriate tool for creating it. Shaping techniques of all kinds are covered here -- from the simplest ones to more complex bending and carving.

Exploring some of the world's eeriest places, Abandoned Islands features American civil war forts, Europe's last leper colony and South Atlantic whaling stations, along with once grand mansions and colonial settlements and churches, and much more. Arranged geographically, the book takes us from New York's East River to islands off Alaska, from a French Napoleonic-era fort off the coast of Normandy to deserted villages on remote Scottish isles, from Venetian sanatoria to Croatian penal colonies, Japanese mining colonies to Sudanese deserted ports and abandoned atolls in the Indian Ocean. Leafing through these pages, the reasons for abandonment are revealed: climate change sealing off fresh water or river channels, shifting economic forces making life too hard, religious conflict, or wars disrupting daily life - or the absence of war rendering a military settlement unnecessary. With more than 180 outstanding colour photographs and fascinating captions, Abandoned Islands is a brilliant pictorial exploration of lost worlds.

Learn how to to keep all of your woodcarving tools and knives sharp and in tip-top condition with this comprehensive guide. Offering clear, step-by-step guidance, beginners will learn the basics of sharpening knives, gouges, V-tools, and chisels. Also included are informative sections on safety, basic sharpening techniques, what to keep in your sharpening kit, tool storage and clean-up tips as well as how to protect sharp edges, clean stops and sharpen stones. Learn essential tips and tricks from expert artist and best-selling author Lora Irish.