Books published by publisher Creston Books

The Backyard Blacksmith shows you how—with some patience and a working knowledge of metals, basic tools, and techniques—blacksmithing can be easy to learn, and a rewarding hobby. Through instructions and illustrations, readers will learn to make simple tools and useful items, such as nails, hinges, and handles, and also an interesting mix of artful projects, such letter openers, door knockers, and botanical ornaments. Written by an expert in blacksmith and metal artist, this book provides readers with a basic understanding of blacksmithing, including an explanation of tools like an anvil, an anvil stand, hammers, and tongs. Heating techniques, like coal forging and fire tending are explained in detail, along with different types of metal, like wrought iron, cast iron, and steel.The Backyard Blacksmith walks readers through step-by-step, illustrated projects including hooks, door and gate pulls, wall-mounted hooks, knockers, racks, and more. These expert blacksmithing lessons come to life with full-color photography to illustrate the steps and provide a better understanding of the text. With this book, beginning blacksmiths can learn to turn metal from its raw shape into something useful and beautiful to behold.

Growing up in the late 19th century, Laura Wheeler Waring didn't see any artists who looked like her. She didn't see any paintings of people who looked like her, either. As a young woman studying art in Paris, she found inspiration in the works of Matisse and Gaugin to paint the people she knew best. Back in Philadelphia, the Harmon Foundation commissioned her to paint portraits of accomplished African-Americans. Her portraits still hang in Washington DC's National Portrait Gallery, where children of all races can admire the beautiful shades of brown she captured.

In Learn to Weld, teach yourself to be a master of the craft with the step-by-step instructions, learning tools and troubleshooting for your welding needs. This book has instructions on Master MIG (an abbreviation for Metal Inert Gas) welding. and the metal fabrication techniques you need to repair, create, and duplicate projects in your home welding studio. Learn to Weld starts with the basics: setting up your studio, the right safety gear and safety procedures, and the equipment and materials you will need to begin with welding. With the help of step-by-step metalworking photos and tutorials, you will learn detailed techniques for cutting and grinding, and for joinery using a MIG welder. The book also contains a complete index for easy troubleshooting and quick reference. Everything you need to get started welding is inside the thorough DIY book. Practice the techniques and projects and you'll soon be able to repair, create, and duplicate metal fabrication projects in your own welding studio. Best of all, you will have both the fundamental skills and the confidence you need to create whatever is in your imagination. With Learn to Weld you'll be equipped to conquer a world of welding projects, whether itâ??s building something for your home, building a gift for a friend or expanding your list of skills for your career.

Some kids like frills and sparkles and bows and lots of pink. And some don't. The girl who started "The Absolutely, Positively No Princess Book" is sure that she wants a story full of nature and adventure. But when a princess barges into the pages with her own opinions about what makes for a good story, the two learn that they each have something to offer. Together they make the best story of all.

With powerful words and pictures Florida Frenz chronicles her journey figuring out how to read facial expressions, how to make friends, how to juggle all the social cues that make school feel like a complicated maze. Diagnosed with autism as a two-year-old, Florida is now an articulate 15-year-old whose explorations into how kids make friends, what popularity means, how to handle peer pressure will resonate with any preteen. For those wondering what it's like inside an autistic child's head, Florida's book provides amazing insight and understanding. Reading how she learns how to be human makes us all feel a little less alien.