After a horrific tornado destroys a town, one family vows to rebuild far better than before. No more will they gamble with their lives. The house they design and build just may be close to tornado proof, like a FEMA storm shelter. It will be tested to the extreme two years to the day after the tornado that took their old house. A techno-thriller that employs the latest and best materials and systems available now in a house that can actually be built today. Everyone knows there is little or nothing that can be done to resist the awesome power of a tornado. You read it in the paper, see it on TV and movies and now on the internet. We are powerless when it comes to nature's most feared weather event. Or are we? Even if you did build a tornado proof house it would either be underground or look like a windowless bunker. Or would It? Tornado follows one family as they learn the truth about tornado resistant construction. Researching the currently available wall systems, roof assemblies, windows and doors they design a house that looks very normal, but can withstand a direct hit from an EF-5 tornado. Tornado is full of valuable information about specific products and methods for anyone living in tornado country with plans to build. It is painfully obvious that no amount of straps and anchors can make a wood frame house withstand more than 150 mph winds. It is time to catchup with the rest of the world. Reinforced concrete must become the norm. It is past time to move beyond nineteenth century death traps. Bissett shows the way by weaving real-world nuts and bolts technology into an epic tale about the forces of nature and the resilience of the human spirit.

Have you ever wanted to draw or paint the human head? If you have tried it you probably have already discovered that faces are just about the most difficult thing there is to do. Proportions and perspective have to be right. You want to get a likeness with the right expression. The slightest pencil mark or brush stroke can make an amazing difference. How do you reach this high level of skill ? Working from life is the best way. Photos are fine for reference, but you need to develop a feel for the three dimensional form. So, find a friend or family member who is willing and able to sit perfectly still for hours at a time and get started practicing Can't think of anyone? Ok, hire a professional model. You'd soon go broke unless you are part of the 1%. The traditional path to portrait success starts with working from plaster casts for obvious reasons. Even better is to begin with a planar head...the human head broken up into planes which simplifies the task of converting a 3D object to a 2D surface. Planar heads are available commercially and can be ordered online. However, you would be well advised to make your own for two reasons: 1) cost and 2) feel. Of the two 'feel' is the most important. The experience of forming and building a three dimensional human head with your own hands is invaluable. By making your own model, shaping it with your own fingers, you will internalize the forms. They will become fixed in your mind never to be forgotten. The purpose of this book is to provide you with an easy and inexpensive way to make your own model of a life-sized human head. Useful for teachers, students, artists, photographers, sculptors, crafters, jewelers, decorators and others. How I did it and why. An in depth search on the internet for a 3D digital planar head came up with nothing. I decided to make one myself using Google Sketchup. I used only the basic tools found in the free version building it one line and one plane at a time. Organic modeling plugins are available, but they would result in a great many tiny planes. The idea was to model a useable head with the minimum number of planes. I divided the head into sections and unfolded them with the free unfold plugin. After going through the process I thought I could make a better head which resulted in Planar Head Two found in Part 5.

Takes the reader through all the stages required to produce a functional and attractive set of working drawings. The prospective home owner will learn how to start with a pencil-drawn floor plan, build a 3D computer model and produce and publish a complete set of house plans. Working with the structural engineer, plan reviewer and contractor is covered, as well. The entire process can be accomplished on a home computer with free software available on the internet saving thousands of dollars. The focus here is on the innovative Monolithic dome, but the method described will work for any style of construction. A companion website provides additional information, links and color versions of many of the images found in the book.

You have never seen an art instruction book like this For beginner to advanced, Real Art Real Easy addresses the mysterious, little understood half of what goes into painting a picture. Most art instruction is about the 'how', this is more about the 'what'. Making the step from the profusion of nature to a two dimensional design that does what you intend is a complex process. Real Art Real Easy breaks that process down into easy stages you can master. Open the book at random or start with the first of sixty-five exercises. With novel insights and powerful exercises Bissett gives you the opportunity to stretch those aesthetic muscles, some you didn't even know you had, and he makes it fun... Artistic concepts 78, 80 Cartoon art 16, 18, 20, 106 Charcoal drawing the easy way 92 Colors, the wisdom of three 68 Color wheel customized 70 Computer is a tool 82, 84, 112 Computer art software, free 84 Crayon's on the wall 14 Critiquing 120-128 Drawing basics you must know 34-38 Drawing the figure 110 Drawing with a pen 116 Elements & principles replaced 74 Freeform play 22 Landscapes in four planes 64 Map and color, what's that? 106 Memory and imagination practice 16, 20, 24-28, 118, 122-126 Modeling with five values 62 Notan as taught by Dow & me 42-60 On location 118 Photographing your art 134 Playing at art 12-30,78, 80 Process of painting 86, 88 Sculpture for painters 112, 114 Sketchbooks 138 Warm-ups, fast & fruitful 22-32 Watercolor the easy way 94 And much more Enough to keep you busy learning for years.