a beautiful calico, is a genetically interesting work of art ...
937277
We made the huge decision last year to adopt a rescue cat when our then elderly pedigreed Siamese companion passed. This new cat, a beautiful calico, is a genetically interesting work of art who has rather unexpectedly become an essential part of our routine, including travel. So the question became, how do we feed her most efficiently while on the road? I think that we have found the answer in these Genie Best Collapsible Travel Pet Bowls. They are very sturdily made but fold down to fit into a small 3 1/2" by 7 1/2" by 1 1/2" box to be stored. The camouflage colors are a bit of an unusual choice for cat bowls, but the orange-based one is exactly the color of our calico!  The bowls are lined to hold water or food and can be cleaned easily. No more breakable or bulky bowls for us!
4688353
I recommend this product for anyone who has someone interested in Calico Critters.  The House is spacious and cute.  The windows and doors open and close, and there is access to the inside of the house through the side and back as well. This house was a gift; she cannot stop playing with it! It was the highlight of this child's holiday! Shipping was fast and came before expected.
556865
This is one of the most beautiful plant books I have ever seen.  I checked it out at our public library and had to own a copy, it is so exquisite.  The information is so detailed and inclusive, I believe I might be able to propagate a tillandsia.  the author has provided illustrations of the cell structure of these amazing plants so that anyone can understand why they are commonly called "air plants".  The photography is so outstanding, it is breathtaking.
3321333
Artwork offers impressive, unusual perspectives which surprise the eye.
749111
Christopher Beane's collection of flower photography is a breathtakingly beautiful feast for the eyes. Anthony Janson has written insightful text that accompanies the images and masterfully analyzes and explains Beane's artistic perspective. Janson places Beane firmly into the lineage of the history of art through his discussion of the history of painters and photographers who have focused their artistic talents on flowers. A remarkable comparison is the similarity of one of Beane's images to the Greek Nike statue. Janson  discusses how Beane has overcome the historic treatment of flowers as a traditionally static still life subject, and given his flowers a dynamic quality that relates more to figurative art than traditional still life compositions. Beane's use of light, his physical manipulation of flowers, and his placement of them against exciting and unexpected backgrounds all contribute to the vibrancy of his compositions. Janson's analysis of how Beane has broken through the boundaries of his traditional art education is an interesting read for any classically trained artist who, through their maturation, manages to develop his or her own unique, signature style. The history of Beane's relationship with flowers through his work in New York City's incredible flower market, his love for and knowledge of flowers, and his development into one of the most remarkable flowers photographers of our time is compelling. This is a beautiful book which serves as a coffee table decoration, while the text raises the book to a level of compelling reading about the nature of an artist who has transcended the ordinary to create something both radically new and classically inspired. Janson challenges the notion that oil painting is a more effective art form than photography because, as the gorgeous reproductions in this book exhibit, Beane has managed time and time again to create extraordinary images that rival some of history's most revered examples of fine art.
3150327
This book is a must-have for anyone who appreciates natural beauty and wants a glimpse at the secret lives of "sinister" plants. Author, artist, horticulturalist, teacher, and conservationist Matt Kaelin has masterfully captured and dramatically presented the beautiful, bizarre, and seductive portraits of an array of U.S. native and exotic carnivorous plants.

His imaginative and suggestive titles for his art pieces lay the groundwork for the erotic stories each of these plants would share, if they could talk. They might make you blush with excitement and entice you and your friends to turn they page to see what more Kaelin and his plants could possibly offer.

As an added bonus we get a peek at various ways of growing these most unusual plants, plus information on protecting their habitats in the wild.

It's a gorgeous, sexy book worthy of the top spot on your coffee table. Your friends will certainly be impressed by the cool factor.
1700797
This unique piece of art that is the most gorgeous knife I have ever seen and owned. The workmanship is beyond description and so is the sharpness that is especially striking (no pun intended) since the blade is quite thick. It is a pleasure to hold it and to use it. I can barely refrain from framing it and from displaying it in my living room.

However, it has 2 fatal flaws...

First, the fancy-shmancy sky pattern is supposed to reduce friction and to prevent food sticking to the blade but, in real life, the effect is the opposite, at least with the stuff I tried: bell pepper, tomato, and cucumber.

Second, the curvy design that is very useful at the sharp side of the blade, is quite annoying on the opposite side since it makes it almost impossible to sweep the cut food from the chopping board to the plate.

Anyway, I don't regret buying it, I love it, and it is at the very top of my knife food-chain so to speak.

Thank you Stratus and thank you Ken Onion.

P.S. It is made in the US of A (drumbeat).
1865055
`Relics' can be an absolute education and for just the photographs alone can create an interest in the very young who enjoy the "creepy" realism. Those captivated by biology and in nature would appreciate the concentrated information given in the text.
The photos are done in splendid colour with exquisite close-ups. In a sense they are not what one could call beautiful, but they are superb in their intensity and realism that pops off of the page. The photographs are more daunting in some instances than any Hollywood special effects or make-up person could dream of creating.
Among the subjects covered are; the unexpected in New Guinea, travels in New Zealand, a mother's care, South Africa, the rain queen's garden, Atewa, Guiana shield, Notoptera, the ocean, in the sagebrush and the Estabrook Woods.
Most amazing is the section on the Atlantic horseshoe crab on the New Jersey shore. These pictures of the horseshoe crabs emerging from and in the surf are some of the most astonishing naturalist photos I have seen in my life.

The information in the text covers the natural world in these remarkable spots...the arachnids that can be traced back 300 million years and not to be forgotten amongst all of the living creatures is the ginkgo.
There are interesting notes at the end of the book to give more information and a detailed index. This is both a coffee table book and a text on the living fossils and natural surroundings of the wilds of this earth.

This is a book for even the young - potential biologists and naturalists and of course anyone else interested in that world or the realms of naturalist photography.
2114146
Absolutely GORGEOUS!  FASCINATING.  SO WISH I WOULD HAVE FOLLOWED THIS PATH FOR A CARRER - BUGS, PHOTOGRAPHY, ART... just beautiful!!!!
421763
As a professional Wildlife Artist, my field includes painting, sculpture, and taxidermy.
  This makes all of the "East African Mammals"  series of books by Jonathan Kingdon an absolute necessity.  The text gives  a wonderful insight into the natural history as well as the historical  ancestry of the majority of East Africa's wild children.
  But even  more, it is Mr. Kingdon's exquisite pencil renderings of the individual  species as well as the structure of their musculature, that make these  books so special.
  These musculature drawings, in turn, are further  enhanced by deeper dissection-like illustrations revealing the deeper  muscle structures responsible for much of the movement and support for the  mammal in question.  These types of drawings are especially fascinating in  this, the Large Mammals volume, wherein the trunk of the elephant and the  mouth structure of the hippopotamus are visually dissected to provide a  greater insight into these structures, and their performance in the  animal.
  Also covered in this Large Mammals volume, is the Zebra and the  Giraffe.  Among the extensive coverage, the zebras' anatomy is not only  printed, but it is also illustrated in all its' stripe variations, as well  as its' ancestral evolutionary development.  Included with the giraffe, we  get a look at the muscles, as well as its' coat and how the predator sees -  or more correctly - doesn't see its' quarry!
  The books in this series  are therefore especially indispensable to the Wildlife Restorer  (taxidermist) as a guide to anatomy that we rarely get to see  "in-the-flesh" as it were.
  I can, therefore, wholeheartedly  recommend this series of books to anyone who cares enough about their  chosen field of art, to pursue all ends to collect as much reference  material as possible.
  These books are an excellent addition to the  wildlife artists' library.
648609
A beautiful book.  It's amazing that such creatures actually exist!
1265097
As a featured artist with my "Peacock Pride" art quilt on the cover, I am so pleased to be included in what I think is the most beautiful book about art I have ever seen, and we are collectors of art books.  Although the pieces of mine featured in the book feature some of my recent sometimes whimsical thread-painted birds and other animal art quilts (on pages 172-177), I also do flowers and close-ups of nature and textures as well as many times combine abstract backgrounds with realism.  That is why I am so pleased to see a section on birds and abstracted nature art quilts and textures of natural objects and flowers included in the pieces selected for the book by other artists. I am thrilled to be included with so many incredible artists!
1578484
One of a kind. Bought this as a gift and couldn't wait to look thru it myself. The photos that illuminate Dal&iacute;'s imagination are astounding
2035662
Lovely book.

The cow descriptions are fairly general (for example, sizes are listed only as small, medium, or large) and rarely include any negative aspects, so if you are looking for a serious breed comparison book to help you choose between two breeds, you may want to look elsewhere. Similarly, the how-to pages are pretty basic, though clear and correct as far as I know.

Still, it is a wonderful book for what it is, which is an artistic homage to all manner of bovine color and form!  It also introduced me to some rarer breeds.  I would love to have it on my coffee table.  This would make a great gift for any cow lover.
3195843
I have been intrigued and captivated by the work of these artists for several years now.  Their compositions are singularly unique -- unlike anything else.  The images combine grand mystery and grand humor, but it is the viewer who is left to interpret what they say about the human condition.  Wonderful!
274135
In looking through this pictorial compilation, I have been reminded of how the intermingling of humanity and nature create the fine art of reality.  Some of these pictures are naturally beautiful and cause reflection on the miracle of creation.  Some man-made items in these pictures cause speculative thoughts regarding the stories of former owners. and how nature become commingled.
4360663
Absolutely beautiful.  Attention to detail is spectacular, a real work of art.  Very pleased with purchase, as is my granddaughter, the collector,
and horse lover.