Gourd Crafts for the First Time

Excellent work and publicaiton here! This is one of the first works I have encoundered that is truely for the beginning gourd worker. It is wonderfully illustrated and the text is very, very workable. The author gives step by step instructions, all illustrated of dozens upon dozens of projects and ideas for others. The author gives a good overview of the basics, types of gourds, preparation of the gourd for work, different techniques and different materials that can be used. I most certainly agree with another reviewer here, in that this work probably would not be the ideal one to use for smaller children our large groups. On the other hand, it is just crammed with great ideas. I have been working (mostly carving) gourds for quite a number of years now and have many books on the subject. This book pretty well illustrated the untruth of the old saying "you can't teach a old dog new trick." Recommend this work highly. You probably will want to purchas this one as it is a good reference to fall back on.

GOURD CRAFTS FOR THE FIRST TIME. At last, a book that meets my expectations. Marilyn Host starts with the assumption you have already grown your gourds, or purchased them from a nearby market and are ready to work with them. She covers everything from identifying the individual gourds by type to selecting the general materials you will need for your projects, such as soap, bleach, scouring pads, knives, spoons, glue sticks, scissors, sandpaper, pencils, rags, saws, drills, brushes, paints and dyes, sponges, and twine as well sealing agents. She then describes the steps for preparing the gourd by cleaning the surface and interior, and carving the gourd while it is pliable. Assembly of a specific item may involve combining forms, puncturing and/or extracting sections of the surface, as well as painting and/or decoupage. Using photos and well written text, Goldman describes in great detail the construction of a number of gourd products ranging from containers to decorative pieces. While this little book is very thorough, the projects are relatively complex and mostly for adults. I personally would use this book with older girls, but not younger children (especially most little boys) unless you are working one on one with a responsible child. If you plan to use gourds for a group craft project, be prepared to do the prep work involving knives and drills yourself. You can then let the kids apply paints, dyes, and glue to their heart's content. There are some nifty ideas for masks, bird houses and luminaries but all require puncturing and cutting. This is an excellent craft book.