I remember when I was a child, waiting for my mom at the bank, and watching window Christmas illustrations being painted on the windows. I was surprised how ingeniously they sketched out some outlines, painted the background shapes, then added details on top. That is kind of how this great book approaches this fascinating hobby. The book itself is well made, printed on quality paper, with loads of color photos for each step, and in a nice soft cover binding.

It is filled with a new, wonderful design for each week of the year. Each mandala based design uses a simple and easy to follow step-by-step process, yet the results are just remarkable. My daughter took up stone painting last year but I think had run out of steam. So she is delighted with this book, filled with such great designs. She really enjoys it, and her work is just beautiful. I hope that mine will be too — with the help of this wonderful book!

This book offers dozens of designs for moderate to advances cross-stitch fans. They’re darling, with a wide range of old-school designs up through the latest cool imagery. The book is well made with color photos of the final designs, colored tables with each shade needed, and clear, large diagrams to make it very clear where each color goes.

The book is divided into 5 chapters, starting with animals, including a cute mouse and tulip, howling wolf, baby dragon, and a baby elephant. Under “Dashing Designs,” they include redwork, and delft blue, which is one of my favorites. Under “Home and Hearth,” the book features: patchwork heart, framed tulips, and lots of sweet home style designs. Under “Nature in Bloom,” there are bees and flowers and in “Special Occasions,” there are lots of fun holiday designs. I love the haunted house and Christmas snowman!