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A guide to the basics of stonework that concentrates on the most common projects: retaining walls, stone fences, foundations and steps, and then adds a bit more for the adventuresome: a fireplace, an arched bridge and a moon gate. A good book for the do-it-yourselfer or to learn what to look for in working with a professional stone mason.
McRaven's work. The only thing I would like added to this book was some colored photos of Mr. Also more photos, in color, of good work verses bad work would help beginners like me visualize what my goal should be. Mixing stone is an art and requires experience with an eye on color. As a beginner I found the book easy to read, understandable, and a great asset for my beginning projects. Also the descriptions of types of rocks would have helped if there where colored photos. I feel I wasted time doing and undoing my stonework.However, this is still a book for any stoneworker's library. For example, when I started to gather my stones together for my project I realized Mr McRaven's comments on being OK to mix types of stone is not universal.
Compared to other how-to books in the category, McRaven makes the reader feel very capable of completing the projects without "dumbing down" the material. I'm ready for spring. Let's face it- stonework is somewhat intimidating. By adding some easy jobs like the stone birdbath-fountain, you can build confidence for bigger things.
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