Harmes has occupied the strategic seat of a privileged onlooker while this book had its birth pangs in the classwork of the Shorewood schools. He has seen the transformation wrought through creative design in vitalizing the place of handwork in a school and community. He has viewed the joy of achievement of children and adults which comes from a realization of increased control and power. He has watched the changes in appreciation manifested through improved surroundings and a more harmonious blending of the physical environment of these same people.

It is felt that this book will be a distinct help to that great army of American instructors in design who want a text to use in classes, not merely as a source book of pieces derived from authentic origins, but more as a suggestive stimulus for creative endeavor.