Review by Booklist Review
Hunter introduces the fundamentals of concrete within the context of craft, familiarizing novices with the tools, equipment, mixing methods, and safety precautions used with the most common general-purpose cement, Portland Type I. She moves from a brief history to discussions of aggregates such as pea gravel and marble chips to mixing and finishing, woodworking, and metalworking. Starting with the basic mix, readers will find recipes for 21 varieties, and an initial project: casting a simple bowl. Hunter moves on to flexible molds and various core materials used to produce landscape statuary and concrete columns. The basics of cement carving are covered, as are techniques for texturing the surfaces of outdoor chairs and garden sculpture. Each of 25 projects, advancing from beginning to intermediate and advanced, is explained step-by-step, while color photographs of details and settings enhance the imaginative possibilities suggested in this valuable garden craft volume. --Whitney Scott Copyright 2005 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Library Journal Review
Concrete isn't just for sidewalks, as this book illustrates with 25 inventive designs to make any garden more beautiful, ranging from simple to complex and from planters to sculpture. The supplies are not cheap, and there are techniques to learn, but who knew concrete could produce such cool results! A nice companion for adventurous craftspeople, this goes beyond Hunter's earlier concrete books, e.g., Making Concrete Garden Ornaments and Creating with Concrete. Recommended for larger libraries. (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
