The Forgotten Arts and Crafts

I would rate this book with six stars if they would let me. Having seen the original on holiday in the hosts library, I wanted one and find it absolutely fascinating. Needless to say I am a practical person and have great respect for those old craftsmen and women who performed wonders with the most basic of tools. We are sadly lacking today in true skills, with the DIY era providing so many easy options. How many of us could produce what they produced 150 years ago, with no electricity and with the simple tools they used? Hurrah for those devoted folk who take time to learn these old crafts and arts which incidentally included cooking. The TV series Victorian Farm and the like do show some of these crafts but this book covers so many I am amazed they are in one volume. Also, this book can be obtained for less than a pound, plus postage, if you look on line.

This book is a fantastic book a masterpiece it was worth paying every penny could not put the book down by this book before it disappears into the mist of time you will not get a better book on all forgotten crafts anywhere else forget about the Internet this book is a masterpiece a library book masterpiece

General interest.

Excellent book

Great book about lost or forgotten rural crafts

recommended

AAA+++

The person I bought this book for is over the moon, very informative on forgotten crafts.

Read it for a glimpse into preindustrial life, September 2, 2007(I read this hard-to-find book in the early 1990's to gather general information about some specific folk crafts for use in a novel I was writing. If I recall correctly the ones I was interested in were coppicing, hurdle making and other use of the withes, textile crafts and traditional building techniques. A more easily available version might be the reprint, Forgotten Household Crafts but I am unsure whether that book contains all the material of this one.)The book itself is primarily a collection of observations about folkways (some of which have been documented elsewhere to have remained unchanged since the time of the Roman invasion of Britain) which are being lost due to the development of urbanization and mechanization. Other reviewers have already commented about the fact that it does not go into depth but I find it sufficient that the material is compiled in such a way as to present outlines of the actions themselves.Reading it one gains a strong sense of the compelling rhythms of preindustrial European life. So it should be read for its sense of wholeness rather than for specific technical answers, although some of the illustrations would be sufficient for reverse engineering. People who find it interesting might also like the Foxfire series. I've included a link to the first one. The Foxfire Book: Hog Dressing, Log Cabin Building, Mountain Crafts and Foods, Planting by the Signs, Snake Lore, Hunting Tales, Faith Healing, Moonshining, and Other Affairs of Plain LivingAn academic book which I found helpful in answering some further questions about preindustrial life (probably too technical for general readers) is Ritual and Domestic Life in Prehistoric Europe. Forgotten Household CraftsThe Foxfire Book: Hog Dressing, Log Cabin Building, Mountain Crafts and Foods, Planting by the Signs, Snake Lore, Hunting Tales, Faith Healing, Moonshining, and Other Affairs of Plain LivingRitual and Domestic Life in Prehistoric Europe

This book is simply amazing. It collects within it, the major skills used to make the items one used during every-day life in colonial america and late 19th century england. Items are described in great detail, as well as the trades and craftsmen who made them. Diagrams, photos and pictures are all clear.This book is not a how-to guide, however. You will need thorough instructions from elsewhere. What it is is an encyclopedia of sadly-forgotten trades from days when everything was made somewhere other than China.There is indeed nothing about bookbinding as one reviewer mentioned. I was rather bummed about that as well. However, I can easily forgive this, since it's not what I would consider a "survival skill". Forgotten Arts and Crafts highlights trades that contribute to the living and surviving of daily life, rather than the extras such as reading, music, etc, for the most part. Coopers, tanners, butter-making, the care and tending of an old household pre-vaccum and washing, saddle-making, carpentry, farriers and blacksmiths, spinners, weavers, carpenters, etc... were all required to merely subsist in ye old days when everyone in a town or village was generally a deeply-skilled craftsman...those days before we had cars and super-transmorgrified mega-marts. As sad as it makes me, a devopted book-lover, literacy and thus the making of books were not of that skill set.Anyway, this is a most excellent book for those interested in a project-starting book for ideas, as well as for writers, researchers, and history buffs of all kinds. Heck, *I* don't like history and I loved this one. Fascinating stuff.

If you found yourself with a handful of basic iron tools, alone in a forest for the long term, the one book that you might want to bring along is "Forgotten Arts and Crafts." This book preserves, with excellent illustration and description, a vast array of manufacturing processes from the latter 19th century, before they largely became displaced by machinofacture.

Perhaps the most enjoyable part of the book are the old photos and old diagrams. I do not know of any compendium anywhere of this scope and depth. The author traveled all over to visit with craftsmen making all sorts of things, including tools to make things, which makes this book totally unique. I very much recommend his other books, all are excellent, even his doomer novel set in England.

This is a beautifully done encyclopedia of lost arts, crafts, and technology from the 18th and 19th centuries. As other reviewers have said this is not a teaching manual. You will have to go to other resources with more detail. What this book does is give an overview and show you lost arts that we don't even think about needing today. Its an excellent place to get started learning about a more sustainable way of life or reconnecting with our handmade past.

Fast delivery. Perfect book foor historical recreationist.

Purchased for Homeschooling was great.

Love this book

This is a link back to the lost arts. The forgotten knowledge of mankind that was hard won and here presented for you to look at. You will be amazed as I was. We have lost so much with electronic. If there is every a re-set of civilization, you would want this book at your reach. Seriously.

Great coffee table book. Not a how to book. Good reference on terminology.

Found this book in the library and loved it so much had to have my own copy. My daughter swiped it when she saw it. Going to have to get another copy. Very cool stuff.

This is an amazing compilation of various and assorted arts and crafts from the past and current times. The book is filled with hundreds of photographs and drawings that add to the explanations and details. This isn't just a listing of art styles, it is a book containing knowledge that once was used everyday, This book preserves the basic knowledge of everyday life, from building the house, making furniture, to caring for it and feeding the family. The back-to-nature green-living people should all have a copy. Yes it is that good and should be available in more public libraries for research. I have added this book to my collection of how-to and survival knowledge.

This book is more of a visual encyclopedia of the many arts and crafts of the past, with a few pages each. It's not remotely a how-to book!It's more for kids reference than actual adult usefulness. =(

For anyone who aspires to be self sufficient, or maybe just less dependent on others, John Seymour's books are great. They are always loaded with great information and ideas. This book is no exception!

Its great to see how things were done way back when and notice that not much has changed. Great book