Working with your hands can be an immensey

satisfying experience. Craft projects like those featured on

the following pages offer an opportunity for personal expression and

individual achievement that is particularly welcome in this age of

technology. You will find there is pleasure to be had in the entire

process--in choosing the materials, in settling on a particular

color or design, in doing the work itself, and finally, in enjoy-

ing the finished piece. Moreover, if you are on a tight decorating

budget, learning a craft may allow you to copy antique pieces,

such as grain-painted boxes or Pennsylvania-German hand

towels, which you might not otherwise be able to afford. Indeed,

virtually all the crafts in this book, represented by such varied

projects as a primitive hooked rug, a twig picture fiame, and a

log cabin doll quilt, take their inspiration from the past, recall-

ing America s rich artistic heritage.

Designed to appeal to everyone from beginners to experienced

craffspeople, the twenty-eight projectson the following pages

involve sewing, embroidery, rugmaking, working with paper,

painting, woodworking, and flower crafting. Even if you have

never sewn a stitch or held a paintbrush, you should be able to

find a project that suits your level of expertise. And, in learning

many of these crafts, such as embroidery and rug-hooking, you

can try a practice piece to see if you enjoy a particular technique.