Book review: Mixed Mania

As the subtitle suggests, Mixed Mania: Recipes for Delicious Mixed-Media Creations is a cookbook. Authors Debbi Crane and Cheryl Prater suggest ingredients and basic tools and techniques. Then they demonstrate the creative process while encouraging experimentation and improvisation.

Fiber artists will be particularly attracted to several of the projects in this book. Debbie’s Quilted Clutch is easily to construct and can be varied in size to carry cosmetics, an iPhone, or a laptop. But making the bag is just the appetizer. The real feast is in the quilting, beading, embellishing. Cheryl’s Mixed-Media Doll will have you ransacking your scrap bag and yarn cubbies (not to mention your tool box and kitchen junk drawer) for just the right tidbits to express your hungers. And Debbi’s Art Quilt will urge you to stretch beyond boxed-in quilt-thinking to cook up a surprising new style.

The book is full of many other exciting ideas, too, that could be adapted to needle and fiber arts. The design of the pages is colorful and engaging, and the personalities of the writers is humble yet convincing. They can do it. We can, too!

“Anyone can follow a recipe,” their introduction says, “it’s the truly great cooks who add their own flavor.”

The book retails for US $22.95, but it’s on sale now at Amazon.com for US $15.61. ISBN 978-1-59668-084-5.