There’s something to the old saying, “Idle hands are the devil’s workshop.” Crafty people know the pleasure, pride and peaceful satisfaction derived from creating something by hand. Those interested in converting others to their way of thinking might pass along one of these books to anyone whose heart could be helped by busying her hands. You’ll not only spread that sense of peace and accomplishment, but thwart the devil a little as well. Making memorable keepsakes As Nancy Ouchida-Howells writes in Calligraphy: Easel Does It (HarperDesign, $16.95, 96 pages, ISBN 0060588349), the ancient art of beautiful writing demands “full attention and concentration, a balance between control and freedom that creates a meditative, peaceful state as you immerse yourself in the act of creating.” Her book is designed to stand up like an easel for easy reference while following its photographed step-by-step instructions. Ouchida-Howells begins with the basics: materials needed, how to maneuver the pens and basic lettering, then guides you through eight projects “easily adjusted to suit your needs,” such as greeting cards, wrapping paper and invitations. Several calligraphic styles are demonstrated, including Gothic, Renaissance, Celtic, Romanesque and Modern Revival. There’s even a scrapbook cover project that segues nicely into the next book, Scrapbook Tips and Techniques (Leisure Arts, $16.95, 288 pages, ISBN 157486422X). In fact, since scrapbooks often include lots of lettering, your homemade keepsake album is likely to benefit from your newfound penmanship skills throughout its pages not just on the cover.

If you’re like me, with boxes and boxes of photos, souvenirs and mementos and some vague notion of creatively organizing them “someday,” Scrapbook Tips and Techniques can propel you into action. Chapter titles include “From Chaos to Order: 10 Easy Steps to Photo Organization” (sign me up!), “Collage Craze” and “Border Ideas.” While giving detailed instructions and containing numerous lovely and inspiring example pages, this book is far from being simplistic. For the serious scrapbooker or the seriously artistic, many advanced techniques and mediums are covered, such as creating stained-glass embellishments using watercolors, embossing, or fiber and eyelets for different effects.

Crafts for home and garden A versatile and portable craft, crochet is a quiet, contained activity you can do almost anywhere, and Crochet Basics: All You Need to Know to Get Hooked on Crochet, by Jan Eaton, is the book to get you hooking away. Designed for the absolute beginner, Eaton’s book points out that you don’t need to invest in expensive supplies to get started: all you need is a ball of yarn and a crochet hook or two. With large, clearly defined photos of each step, she walks you through 12 separate projects starting with a simple scarf and progressing to more complicated designs such as a child’s sweater, purses, a lace evening wrap and a colorful Harlequin afghan. “Once you have the hang of holding hook and yarn comfortably,” she notes, “the basic techniques of crochet are surprisingly easy to master, and all crochet forms, no matter how intricate they look at first, are based on a small number of stitches that are very easy to learn.” Finally, if turning trash to treasure floats your creative craft, and you’re not afraid of basic tools like a hammer, sandpaper and paintbrushes, then Flea Market Makeovers for the Outdoors: Projects ∧ Ideas Using Flea Market Finds ∧ Recycled Bargain Buys (Bulfinch, $29.95, 160 pages, ISBN 0821228617), by B.J. Berti, is the book for you. In these pages a weathered trellis, too fragile for garden use, becomes an appealing plant holder, discarded woolen sweaters become a cozy patchwork throw, and rusty thrift-store trays become trendy purveyors of cooling beverages. Berti offers plenty of projects complete with material lists, numbered instructions and photos. My favorite is the romantic painted candelabra for the outdoors, created by removing the light sockets and the wiring from an electric chandelier, painting it and then substituting candles for the milk glass lightbulb covers. Just keep the fire limited to your imagination!

There’s something to the old saying, “Idle hands are the devil’s workshop.” Crafty people know the pleasure, pride and peaceful satisfaction derived from creating something by hand. Those interested in converting others to their way of thinking might pass along one of these books to anyone whose heart could be helped by busying her hands. You’ll not only spread that sense of peace and accomplishment, but thwart the devil a little as well. Making memorable keepsakes As Nancy Ouchida-Howells writes in Calligraphy: Easel Does It (HarperDesign, $16.95, 96 pages, ISBN 0060588349), the ancient art of beautiful writing demands “full attention and concentration, a balance between control and freedom that creates a meditative, peaceful state as you immerse yourself in the act of creating.” Her book is designed to stand up like an easel for easy reference while following its photographed step-by-step instructions. Ouchida-Howells begins with the basics: materials needed, how to maneuver the pens and basic lettering, then guides you through eight projects “easily adjusted to suit your needs,” such as greeting cards, wrapping paper and invitations. Several calligraphic styles are demonstrated, including Gothic, Renaissance, Celtic, Romanesque and Modern Revival. There’s even a scrapbook cover project that segues nicely into the next book, Scrapbook Tips and Techniques. In fact, since scrapbooks often include lots of lettering, your homemade keepsake album is likely to benefit from your newfound penmanship skills throughout its pages not just on the cover.

If you’re like me, with boxes and boxes of photos, souvenirs and mementos and some vague notion of creatively organizing them “someday,” Scrapbook Tips and Techniques can propel you into action. Chapter titles include “From Chaos to Order: 10 Easy Steps to Photo Organization” (sign me up!), “Collage Craze” and “Border Ideas.” While giving detailed instructions and containing numerous lovely and inspiring example pages, this book is far from being simplistic. For the serious scrapbooker or the seriously artistic, many advanced techniques and mediums are covered, such as creating stained-glass embellishments using watercolors, embossing, or fiber and eyelets for different effects.

Crafts for home and garden A versatile and portable craft, crochet is a quiet, contained activity you can do almost anywhere, and Crochet Basics: All You Need to Know to Get Hooked on Crochet (Barron’s, $22.95, 128 pages, ISBN 0764156780), by Jan Eaton, is the book to get you hooking away. Designed for the absolute beginner, Eaton’s book points out that you don’t need to invest in expensive supplies to get started: all you need is a ball of yarn and a crochet hook or two. With large, clearly defined photos of each step, she walks you through 12 separate projects starting with a simple scarf and progressing to more complicated designs such as a child’s sweater, purses, a lace evening wrap and a colorful Harlequin afghan. “Once you have the hang of holding hook and yarn comfortably,” she notes, “the basic techniques of crochet are surprisingly easy to master, and all crochet forms, no matter how intricate they look at first, are based on a small number of stitches that are very easy to learn.” Finally, if turning trash to treasure floats your creative craft, and you’re not afraid of basic tools like a hammer, sandpaper and paintbrushes, then Flea Market Makeovers for the Outdoors: Projects ∧ Ideas Using Flea Market Finds ∧ Recycled Bargain Buys (Bulfinch, $29.95, 160 pages, ISBN 0821228617), by B.J. Berti, is the book for you. In these pages a weathered trellis, too fragile for garden use, becomes an appealing plant holder, discarded woolen sweaters become a cozy patchwork throw, and rusty thrift-store trays become trendy purveyors of cooling beverages. Berti offers plenty of projects complete with material lists, numbered instructions and photos. My favorite is the romantic painted candelabra for the outdoors, created by removing the light sockets and the wiring from an electric chandelier, painting it and then substituting candles for the milk glass lightbulb covers. Just keep the fire limited to your imagination!

There’s something to the old saying, “Idle hands are the devil’s workshop.” Crafty people know the pleasure, pride and peaceful satisfaction derived from creating something by hand. Those interested in converting others to their way of thinking might pass along one of these books to anyone whose heart could be helped by busying her hands. You’ll not only spread that sense of peace and accomplishment, but thwart the devil a little as well. Making memorable keepsakes As Nancy Ouchida-Howells writes in Calligraphy: Easel Does It , the ancient art of beautiful writing demands “full attention and concentration, a balance between control and freedom that creates a meditative, peaceful state as you immerse yourself in the act of creating.” Her book is designed to stand up like an easel for easy reference while following its photographed step-by-step instructions. Ouchida-Howells begins with the basics: materials needed, how to maneuver the pens and basic lettering, then guides you through eight projects “easily adjusted to suit your needs,” such as greeting cards, wrapping paper and invitations. Several calligraphic styles are demonstrated, including Gothic, Renaissance, Celtic, Romanesque and Modern Revival. There’s even a scrapbook cover project that segues nicely into the next book, Scrapbook Tips and Techniques (Leisure Arts, $16.95, 288 pages, ISBN 157486422X). In fact, since scrapbooks often include lots of lettering, your homemade keepsake album is likely to benefit from your newfound penmanship skills throughout its pages not just on the cover.

If you’re like me, with boxes and boxes of photos, souvenirs and mementos and some vague notion of creatively organizing them “someday,” Scrapbook Tips and Techniques can propel you into action. Chapter titles include “From Chaos to Order: 10 Easy Steps to Photo Organization” (sign me up!), “Collage Craze” and “Border Ideas.” While giving detailed instructions and containing numerous lovely and inspiring example pages, this book is far from being simplistic. For the serious scrapbooker or the seriously artistic, many advanced techniques and mediums are covered, such as creating stained-glass embellishments using watercolors, embossing, or fiber and eyelets for different effects.

Crafts for home and garden A versatile and portable craft, crochet is a quiet, contained activity you can do almost anywhere, and Crochet Basics: All You Need to Know to Get Hooked on Crochet (Barron’s, $22.95, 128 pages, ISBN 0764156780), by Jan Eaton, is the book to get you hooking away. Designed for the absolute beginner, Eaton’s book points out that you don’t need to invest in expensive supplies to get started: all you need is a ball of yarn and a crochet hook or two. With large, clearly defined photos of each step, she walks you through 12 separate projects starting with a simple scarf and progressing to more complicated designs such as a child’s sweater, purses, a lace evening wrap and a colorful Harlequin afghan. “Once you have the hang of holding hook and yarn comfortably,” she notes, “the basic techniques of crochet are surprisingly easy to master, and all crochet forms, no matter how intricate they look at first, are based on a small number of stitches that are very easy to learn.” Finally, if turning trash to treasure floats your creative craft, and you’re not afraid of basic tools like a hammer, sandpaper and paintbrushes, then Flea Market Makeovers for the Outdoors: Projects ∧ Ideas Using Flea Market Finds ∧ Recycled Bargain Buys (Bulfinch, $29.95, 160 pages, ISBN 0821228617), by B.J. Berti, is the book for you. In these pages a weathered trellis, too fragile for garden use, becomes an appealing plant holder, discarded woolen sweaters become a cozy patchwork throw, and rusty thrift-store trays become trendy purveyors of cooling beverages. Berti offers plenty of projects complete with material lists, numbered instructions and photos. My favorite is the romantic painted candelabra for the outdoors, created by removing the light sockets and the wiring from an electric chandelier, painting it and then substituting candles for the milk glass lightbulb covers. Just keep the fire limited to your imagination!

Independent woman versus proud parent which will it be? Proving the two roles don’t have to exist in opposition, I’m Too Sexy for My Volvo: A Mom’s Guide to Staying Fabulous by Betty Londergan is full of great tips on how women can retain their identities in the face of motherhood. Londergan has a spirited style and a sassy attitude, and she offers some great ideas for mothers who are struggling to find private time and maintain a sense of self. Londergan kicks things off with a word of warning for new moms: There is literally no limit to the life your kids will want you to give up so you’d better draw the line in the sand now. A little self-indulgence every now and again is OK, says Londergan in fact, it’s absolutely critical. She encourages new mothers to pamper themselves, cultivate friends and hobbies, and have fulfilling romantic lives, all without feeling guilty. Each chapter of the book covers a different stage of motherhood, moving from pre- to post-pregnancy and beyond, with advice on topics like how to pick a preschool, how to monitor a child’s Internet use, and how to simply say no to that darling daughter or super son. Londergan writes with cheek and humor, dispensing practical, no-nonsense advice in a fizzy, fast-paced fashion that will make harried mothers smile.

Believe it or not, the low-tech craft of knitting has a high-tech presence on the Internet. Online knitting magazines, knitting podcasts and countless knitting blogs are great ways for those of us who practice this solitary craft to find ideas, inspiration and connection with other like-minded folks. No one knows this better than Kay Gardiner and Ann Shayne, whose wildly successful blog masondixonknitting.com not only brings together two knitters one from New York, one from Nashville but also brings in knitters from around the world. In their new book, Mason-Dixon Knitting, Kay and Ann infuse every page with the friendly humor, personal stories and down-to-earth style that have made their blog so popular. This book is great for those of us who tend to take our knitting too seriously (one sidebar is titled  "Mistakes You Will Definitely Make"), or who think knitting has to be difficult or complicated. The projects included here are mostly simple ones dishcloths, hand towels, felted baskets but, more importantly, they are projects that people will actually use, not just fold up in tissue paper and cherish from a distance. It’s also important to point out that simple does not equal boring. As Kay says, knitters can use their patterns like good cooks use recipes as inspirations to make the projects uniquely their own, as complicated or as straightforward as they like.

For me, the most motivational section of the book deals with the variations on the log cabin blanket pattern. For years, I’ve suffered from Fear of the Afghan even a baby blanket seems like an unbearably tedious process that results in one big square. The log cabin blankets that Ann and Kay include here, though, are exquisite in their simplicity but infinitely varied in their design. With Kay and Ann’s encouragement, humor and common sense, even new knitters can overcome their fears and feel capable of creating something entirely their own.