Book Christmas Gifts

This book is a wonderful collection of 'recipes' for making useful and attractive items from rope. Expanded for this edition with seven inspiring new items, the 35 projects range from key fobs, belts and napkin rings to binocular straps, bell ropes and fenders.

Each project provides step-by-step instructions with clear diagrams, exact material, size and length, as well as the different knots involved. There is also a 'Tips of the Trade' section presenting some handy tools and helpful advice for working with rope.

Soft back. 112 pages. 13.9cms x 21.6cms approx. Illustrated with black & white drawings.

This beautifully-produced compendium gives you a knot challenge for every day of the year.

It includes: essential knots, bends and hitches; craft projects such as keyrings, belts, and plant hangers; magic tricks and escapology knots; and fashion knots for your tie or shoelaces.

There are hundreds to choose from, all colour coded by use and guided by step-by-step colour photographs and illustrations. You can work through the book from start to finish, gradually building on your knowledge as you go, or alternatively dip in and out for your daily knotting fix.

368 pages, softback.

by Jane Marshall.

Jane has been running canal painting courses for 20 years, here she looks at the history of roses & castles, local variations, the Masters and current painters. She describes, in fully illustrated simple steps, how to paint roses, daisies and castle scenes. She also introduces simple lettering and graining to represent wood (scumbling).

Soft back. 120 pages. 18.5cms x 24cms approx. Mainly colour photos.

by Tony Jones.

In this book Tony reveals the pleasures and practicalities of living aboard on Britain's inland waterways.

Uncovering the nuts and bolts of boat life, Tony offers first-hand accessible advice on choosing the best boat for you, finding a suitable mooring, power usage and energy consumption, boating in all seasons, the highs and lows of boat life, the real cost of living aboard, earning an income afloat , rules and red tape.

Soft back. 160 pages. 15.6cms x 23.4cms approx. Colour photographs.

by Jim Batty.

Full time life on a narrowboat is a novelty for so many, and is endlessly fascinating. Narrowboat Life answers all the questions you've wanted to ask about the ins and outs of liveaboard life on the inland waterways..

The book is filled with beautiful, enthralling photography of the waterways themselves, the narrowboats that occupy them and, most importantly, every nook and cranny of their insides. Should you become seduced, the author gives solid hands-on advice about how to make a narrowboat your home.

Soft back, front and back covers have a flap so that you can mark pages. 192 pages. 25cmx x 25 cms approx. Colour photos throughout.

A book of historical photographs of the Birmingham Canal Navigations.

First published in 1973, this is a new and completely revised edition which has been produced to coincide with the 250th anniversary of the opening of the first canal to arrive in Birmingham.

FORGING AHEAD IS A BRAND NEW LOOK AT THE FASCINATING HISTORY OF TOOLEY’S BOATYARD IN BANBURY.

This unique, working yard has been in existence since the arrival of the Oxford Canal in the North Oxfordshire market town in 1778. Matthew Armitage has been the director of the site for the past sixteen years. His very personal account of the yard’s past is brought right up to date with a distinctive insight into how age old practices still prevail and thrive to this day. With a wealth of photographs, articles, illustrations and anecdotes about the Tooleys themselves, Matthew’s insight into this much loved jewel in Banbury’s crown will entertain and inform anyone with an interest in the history of the canals and inland waterways.

All the money from the sale of this book will support the boatyard and its projects.

Tony Lewery is a well known waterways author, a regular contributor to the waterways press and acknowledged expert on canal art and heritage.

For a number of years Tony has been writing these 'Off The Mainline' features for the Canal Junction website on a wide variety of waterway topics and events. Many of those articles are brought together in this book, where he takes a personal and thought provoking view on the subject of canal boats, barges and boat horses. They are usualloy illustrated with his own original photographs or artwork.

By Stuart Fisher.

Subtitled 'Britain's 55 Best Canals'. Journey along Britain's 55 most beautiful and interesting canals, as this guide reveals the best of our waterways heritage.

From the Grand Union and the Kennet & Avon to the Forth & Clyde and the Caledonian, The Canal Guide features: the history, wildlife, folklore, pubs and attractions of each canal, beautiful photography, detailed maps, practical information boxes with distances, Ordnance Survey references and useful websites.

Soft back. 336 pages. 16.3cms (6½") x 23.4cms (9¼") approx. Colour photos and maps.

This is the updated and expanded edition published in 2021.

by Chris N. Deuchar.

This book is a revised and much expanded version of a series of articles which first appeared in the newsletter of the Historic Narrow Boat Owners Club. Nowhere before has anyone attempted to record the special skills required to navigate the craft of our narrow canals along the waterways for which they were designed.

It is above all a practical book for anyone who has or intends to steer a boat along our inland waterways, especially those who boat single handedly.

Soft back. 68 pages, 14.8cms x 21cms approx. Black & white illustrations.

by Henry Rodolph de Salis.

Published in 1904, this was the first guide to planning journeys on the inland waterways of England & Wales. Noting bridges, locks, distances and commercial use, it explores the routes, operation and history of the network, and gives commentary on the areas through which it passed.

Hard back. 488 pages.This is an exact facsimile of the edition published in 1904.

by Bill & Laurel Cooper.

Bill & Laurel are experts on living afloat, having lived aboard a variety of boats for over 30 years. In this thorough and inspirational guide they share their practical, first hand advice on suitable boats, likely costs, insurance, the pros and cons, health, provisioning and the rules and regulations, and much more.

Soft back. 202 pages. 15.4cms x 23.3cms approx. Illustrated in colour and black & white.