Provides step-by-step instructions for making miniature crafts from items found around the house and includes a place to display the handicrafts on a fold-out room in back of book.

"Most often, portrait miniatures were painted in watercolor on thin disks of ivory. They were sometimes worn as jewelry, sometimes framed to be viewed privately. Many were painted by specialists, although renowned easel artists - including Benjamin West, John Singleton Copley, and Charles Willson Peale - also created them to commemorate births, engagements, marriages, deaths, and other joinings or separations. The book traces the development of this exquisite art form, revealing the close ties between the history of the miniature and the history of American private life."--BOOK JACKET.

Diminutive marvels of artistry and fine craftsmanship, portrait miniatures reveal a wealth of information within their small frames. They can tell tales of cultural history and biography, of people and their passions, of evolving tastes in jewelry, fashion, hairstyles, and the decorative arts. Unlike many other genres, miniatures have a tradition in which amateurs and professionals have operated in parallel and women artists have flourished as professionals. This richly illustrated book presents approximately 180 portrait miniatures selected from the holdings of the Cincinnati Art Museum, the largest and most diverse collection of its kind in North America. The book stresses the continuity of stylistic tradition across Europe and America as well as the vitality of the portrait miniature format through more than four centuries. A detailed catalogue entry, as well as a concise artist biography, appears for each object. Essays examine various aspects of miniature painting, of the depiction of costume in miniatures, and of the allied art of hair work.

The American War is one of the most popular periods to wargame, and rightly so; it is a fascinating period of history. This book offers the opportunity to learn how to paint wargames miniatures from someone who has been an experienced sculptor and painter. All of the main styles that are used for painting wargames miniatures are covered in great detail. For anyone wanting to start painting for the first time, these pages contain a wealth of information that will help you get started. The book covers: miniature preparation; layer painting; painting with washes; basing; horses and artillery and buildings and scenery. Each chapter is full of detailed step-by-step tutorials on how to paint wargames miniatures for the American Civil War. Superbly illustrated with 205 colour photographs that clearly show each stage of the painting or modelling process.

Sixteen miniature scale models of famous U.S. architectural landmarks will captivate young and old alike. Includes the Statue of Liberty, Space Needle, Gateway Arch, Chicago Water Tower, Lincoln Memorial, Boston's Faneuil Hall, and more.