Recipes For Surfaces

Now mastering decorative painting tecnhiques for walls, floors, ceilings, and furniture can be as easy as using a cookbook. This unique guide demonstrates how to create a variety of exciting surface effects using simple, basic painting methods, including color washing, stenciling, wood graining, sponging, and others. Full-color illustrations.

"Recipes for Surfaces" is a one-of-a-kind handbook that enables you to master decorative painting techniques for walls, floors, ceilings, and furniture as simply as you would use a cookbook: Just follow the recipes. This easy guide will show you how to create a variety of exciting surface effects for your entire home using the basic methods so popular today -- sponging, ragging, stippling, color washing, spattering, dragging, stenciling, marbling, and wood graining. The straightforward format of "Recipes for Surfaces" gives you the tools to transform any aspect of your home with paint. More affordable than wallpaper, more personalized than solid-colored opaque paint, these painting techniques -- once the closely guarded secrets of painting professionals -- are not limited to walls, ceilings, or floors, but can be used on moldings, doors, and furniture as well -- as accents or to try out effects on smaller subjects. With "Recipes for Surfaces" as your guide, you can achieve professional and customized effects yourself -- with a lot of fun and no hassle. What makes this book so special and so different from many home decorating books is that -- like making a meal with your favorite recipes -- it allows, and in fact encourages, you to create a completely personal look that suits your own space, style, and budget. And, as your skill and confidence grow, "Recipes for Surfaces" will show you how to move beyond the basics with exciting and unique variations. "Recipes for Surfaces" is organized for practical use, with clear concise explanations and full-color illustrations. Part One gives background and specific information on color, paint, and preparation, including advice on stocking up on the right paints and brushes, how to ready surfaces for painting, and how to store paints once you've finished. Helpful color charts supplement the discussion of how to mix and match colors for your taste and needs. The second part of the book illustrates many painting techniques. Each of over 40 recipes can be followed independently and is rated accorded to difficulty from easy to more complex. The recipe itself includes a list of paints and other materials needed, tips on surfaces best suited to the technique, and painting advice -- all in a simple-to-read chart right on the page. Detailed step-by-step instructions outline each method and its variations with full-color photographs. As you master a fundamental recipe -- such as sponging on -- you can create many different looks, trying different colors and patterns with the same technique or combining various techniques to suit your needs. The clearest, most concise guide of its kind, "Recipes for Surfaces" gives you the confidence and ability to create the painted interior that's right for "you."

Features more than 30 clear, concise recipes for everything from marble and metallic finishes to specialty finishes with stunning full-color photographs.

Platters and Boards — Entertaining dishes and party dishes your guests will love Entertaining and party dishes from Platters and Boards: Celebrated author and food blogger Shelly Westerhausen shares the secrets to creating casually chic spreads anyone can make and everyone will enjoy (and envy) in her bestselling Platters and Boards cookbook. This visual cornucopia of a cookbook is the guide to entertaining with effortless style. Platters and Boards is an inspiring resource for throwing unforgettable get-togethers: Organized by time of day, 40 contemporary arrangements are presented with gorgeous photography, easy-to-prepare recipes, suggested meat and drink pairings, and notes on preparation and presentation. Helpful advice includes: Tips on portioning Guides to picking surfaces and vessels Recommendations for pairing complementary textures and flavors A handy chart featuring board suggestions for a variety of occasions (from holiday parties to baby showers) Fans of Cook Beautiful, The Art of the Cheese Plate, InStyle Parties, Magnolia Table, and Cravings will love Platters and Boards.

New in Paper The colors, textures, and versatility of polymer clay make it a perfect medium for creating faux surfaces--and these 30 recipes for special finishing, shaping, baking, and molding techniques will transform polymer's appearance. Craft gorgeous faux gemstones; fool the eye with imitation metals, including Balinese silver and verdigris copper; and copy must-have naturals, from bone to leather. Or make simulated agate, slate, and marble. You'll find information on all the types of polymer clay, from translucent ones to some with mica powder, and see how to enhance their surface with paints, inks, wax compounds, and confetti. The unusual include a handsome makeup set, lapis lazuli drawer pulls, and Opal Earrings. "[A] well designed craft book...the end results dazzle."--Publishers Weekly Annex

The goal of the book is to present a tapestry of ideas from various areas of mathematics in a clear and rigorous yet informal and friendly way. Prerequisites include undergraduate courses in real analysis and in linear algebra, and some knowledge of complex analysis. --from publisher description.