Welcome to Ampry Publishing LLC

Ampry Publishing LLC a leader in building multi-platform brands that inform, inspires, and engages consumer audiences. Meeting at the intersection of information and engagement, and powered by innovation, the Ampry Publishing brands span digital websites, e-mail newsletters, social media, magazines, books and DVDs.

We also acquired the magazine assets of Stackpole Publishing in early 2016. We are excited to welcome Rug Hooking Magazine and Wildfowl Carving Magazine to our growing portfolio. In addition, we also acquired the related book publishing assets, and our Rug Hooking and Wildfowl Carving books are now available at leading on-line and retail book stores and craft stores.

The Ampry Publishing editorial team aggregates and creates extensive information for our print magazines, books, digital web sites and communities. With a flexible, scalable, and proprietary content management platform, Ampry Publishing offers consumers the ability to share information through print and online communities allowing them to enjoy their passions and make informed purchasing decisions.

Our team of trusted experts keeps visitors up to the minute with information on the latest ideas, developments, and trends. Our web sites were designed with real people in mind. We have easy-to-use interactive tools, clear visuals, step-by-step instructions, and money-saving suggestions. It makes everyone’s life easier and more enjoyable.

Quick Facts:

– Ampry is a sister company of Prime Publishing LLC, a publisher of eNewsletters, websites and social media in the Craft, DIY, Lifestyle and Cooking niches.

– 34 million monthly page views of projects, patterns, techniques, recipes and video content.

– 5 million online subscribers receiving daily and weekly eNewsletters.

– Print and digital magazines include Wildfowl Carving, Rug Hooking, iLikeKnitting & iLikeCrochet.

– 5 million followers/subscribers on Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, YouTube and Google+.

– In-house video studio, craft studio, test kitchens and 50+ full-time editors in three states show our commitment to creating quality content.

Books

 

Rug Hooking Books

Rug Hooking publishes four books per year, with topics ranging from Gene Shepherd’s comprehensive dyeing guides, to books on primitive rugs and easy punch needle projects. Get notified about our latest books before anyone else by signing up for our exclusive Book Club. With a membership, you’ll get access to books before they’re available anywhere else. Plus, reserve your copy of the exclusive “Celebration” book that showcases the best rugs of the year. For information on how retailers can stock our books, please contact us.

 

      

 

Introduction to Rug Hooking by Kris Miller
Intrigued by rug hooking? Then this book is the book for you. Learn the fundamentals and much more. There is something for everyone, from the beginning rug hooker preparing to pull their first loop to the more experienced, looking to brush up on technique. This is the essential resource for everyone interested in this popular textile craft.

Primitive Rugs for the 21st Sentry by Cynthia Norwood
One of the great voices in primitive rug hooking shares her knowledge with rug hookers. Based on her 35 years of experience, study, and design success, the author gives valuable tips and techniques for all who are interested in the world of primitive hooked rugs.

Creative Techniques for Rug Hookers by Donna Hrkman
After you’ve mastered the basics of hooking and designing rugs, kick your art up a notch with your own artistic vision and personal touches. The creative approaches and techniques in this book will help you make every piece extra special and uniquely yours!

Maryanne Lincoln’s Comprehensive Dyeing Guide by Maryanne Lincoln
If you are fascinated by color and the nuances it can bring to your hooked rugs or other fiber crafts, join Maryanne on a journey through the color wheel. From the basics through advanced dyeing techniques, you will learn from one of the best.

Story Rugs and Their Storytellers by Paulette Hackman
In Story Rugs and their Storytellers, author Paulette Hackman focuses on a visual style of storytelling, as old as cave art, that is gaining popularity among contemporary rug hookers. The fiber artist who hooks in this narrative style, she writes, is one who “puts words to wool, sentences to lines of loops, a page of creative musing to a yard of blank linen.” The rugs tell of celebrations, travels, and adventures and illustrate personal journeys, strongly held beliefs, poignant special memories, and milestones of family heritage.

 

For a complete list of available books and back issues, please visit the Rug Hooking Store.

 

Wildfowl Carving Books

Wildfowl Carving Magazine publishes two books per year, with topics ranging from step-by-step Floyd Scholz’s demonstrations to books on carving the best antique decoys. Get notified about our latest books before anyone else by signing up for our exclusive Book Club. With a Book Club membership, you’ll get access to books before they’re available anywhere else. Plus, reserve your copy of the exclusive “Competition” book each year that showcases the best bird carvings from competitions across the U.S. and Canada. For information on how retailers can stock our books, please contact us.

 

      

 

Competition 2014 by Wildfowl Carving Magazine 
The latest edition of Competition features photographs of the finest carvings from last year’s top shows. It is a must-have for carvers and collectors alike. You’ll see more than 200 carvings of ducks, raptors, songbirds, shorebirds, and more, from shows across the U.S. and Canada. See the best work from the Ward World Championship, the ODCCA show, the California Open, the Canadian Nationals and many other great carving competitions.

Peregrine Falcon: Dynamic Carving and Painting Techniques for a New Era by Floyd Scholz
World-renowned bird caver Floyd Scholz explains the philosophy and techniques behind his most exciting project yet—a dynamic sculpture of a peregrine falcon in flight as it captures a green-winged teal. In a step-by-step demonstration, Floyd explains how he carved and painted this amazing work. Detailed captions outline the carving and painting techniques that turn wood into art. With nearly 300 photos and detailed captions, Floyd guides readers through his process. Along the way he shares the knowledge and skill that has propelled him to the top of the carving world. From how to rough out the block with a chain saw to the proper way to detail with an airbrush—it’s all here!

Wings on the Water photographs by Steve Maslowski
Carvers need reference photos and you’ll find plenty in Wings on the Water. Combining the best waterfowl reference articles from the pages of Wildfowl Carving Magazine with a new collection of images by acclaimed wildlife photographer Steve Maslowski, Wings on the Water provides a wealth of information about more than two dozen aquatic birds. Carvers and waterfowl enthusiasts alike will delight in this in-depth look at a wide variety of ducks and geese, described in vivid prose and captured in detailed, intoxicating photography.

Green-winged Teal Pair by Glenn A. McMurdo
This wonderfully informative guide offers all the step-by-step instructions and photographs you need to carve and paint your own green-winged teal hen and drake. The book’s author, award-winning wildfowl carver Glenn McMurdo, provides detailed instructions for the entire process, from choosing your tools to painting your carvings. McMurdo won third place best in show at the Ward World Championship for the drake featured in this book; the hen took second place in all teals at the 2007 California Open. You’ll find all you need in this valuable resource book, including life-size patterns, color swatches, taxidermy photos, and handy tips for all parts of the carving process. The book also has a convenient lay-flat, spiral binding that makes it ideal to use while carving.

Half-Size Osprey by Al Jordan
Award-winning carver Al Jordan explains every step in carving and painting this miniature bird of prey. The easy-to-follow step-by-step instructions and photographs explain every step of the process. The book includes a complete list of the tools and paints you’ll need, plus valuable tips and techniques, and a full-sized pattern. The convenient, lay-flat spiral binding makes it ideal for the workbench.

 

For a complete list of available books and back issues, please visit the Wildfowl Carving Store.

Meet the Team

Mark Allison

Mark has extensive experience in the publishing industry, working as both an acquisitions editor and rights manager. He is a former editor of nature, carving, and craft books that covered a wide variety of subjects, from papercrafts and photography to calligraphy and stained glass. He is the author of several books, including Feeder Birds of Eastern North America, Basic Block Printing, Seashells of New England, and Great Stained Glass Projects for Beginners. He has also worked as a senior writer on the marketing team of an international infrastructure firm.

In his free time, Mark is a painter who works in oils and acrylics and has taken up woodworking so he can make his own frames. His paintings have been included in several statewide exhibitions. He is an enthusiastic birder who’s had the great privilege of birding alongside some of the biggest names in the field. He also enjoys hiking, reading, and training his rescue pup, a hound mix named Finnegan. He lives near Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.

 

Debra Smith 

Debra Smith has had a long term love affair with fiber and textiles all her life. If it involves fabric or yarn, Deb has probably tried it–everything from weaving and sewing to crochet, quilting, wool appliqué, embroidery, and rug hooking. She worked with Stackpole Books as editor of textile craft books for five years, and has been editor of Rug Hooking magazine since 2009. Deb grew up in Pennsylvania, and currently lives in rural south central Pennsylvania, not too far from Harrisburg. She loves to travel, in search of interesting textiles and fibers; she recently traveled to the Outer Hebrides in Scotland in search of Harris Tweed. She does leave her log home in the woods occasionally to visit her son and his family outside of Washington DC.

Work Environment

Ampry Publishing LLC prides itself on its friendly and engaging work environment. Get to know our staff even better by checking out past events!

Events

Sponsorships go by different names — an advertorial, a native ad, sponsored content, or even an infomercial if you’re in broadcasting circles. An advertorial sponsorship is an ad that walks, acts, and talks like an editorial. The content is typically provided by the sponsor themselves, although we can build turn-key programs for the sponsor. Readers always know that the promotion is sponsored, but they love getting new recipes and projects and appreciate the creativity of a custom sponsorship. Here are just a few examples:

– Editorial Integration — As a provider of content to over 5.3 million online subscribers and 66 million monthly page views, we are always looking for content to share with our active, online consumers.  Whether it is a new product, a seasonal best seller, or a product/service that needs a push, we work with brands, designers, agencies, and manufactures to provide their information to our vast consumer network.  Editorial is integrated through newsletters, profile pages, social media, and site promotion. Editorial mentions range from spotlight articles, to giveaways, contests, new product launches, product reviews, and more.

– Channel Exclusivity — For companies with specific targeting directives, we offer the opportunity to sponsor an exclusive niche category (channel).  This means that your brand has exclusive sponsor placement and ongoing editorial features promoted on a regularly scheduled basis. These promotions usually range from a minimum of 90 days and up to 12 months.  Links within the banner, site, and editorials can link to the brand’s social media, site URL, and/or product as featured in the promotion.  Channel exclusivity provides a very measurable way to see your brand message in action and confirm results via your site and URL analytics.

– Social Media — Each of our web properties has a social media specialist assigned to engage the niche community.  Whether it is on YouTube or Facebook, Pinterest or Twitter, we work with over 1 million enthusiasts who actively follow us, talk about us, or look at our feeds day in and day out.  And, we can help you reach your social media goals as well with turn-key sponsorship opportunities.

– Other Opportunities — Ampry Publishing LLC is always looking for new ways to promote brands and manufacturers.  If you have a specific directive, focus, or promotion timeline, please feel free to contact us to discuss the opportunities for an efficient, fun, and measurable way to help.  Because of our vast in-house personnel and network of sites, social media, and newsletter reach, we can probably even do most of the work for you.  Give us a call with your questions or challenge, and allow us to help assist today.

e-Mail Newsletters

e-Mail Newsletters – Opt-in newsletter subscribers that deliver a scaled, quality audience are engaged in topics pertinent to their home and lifestyle.

Fact: Consumers prefer e-mail as a primary method of communications in their personal and business capacities. According to Lyris Labs and The Economist, 52% of consumers put e-mail newsletters in their top three preferred methods of communication. In fact, 37% would put e-mail newsletters as number one over social media, word of mouth, mobile communication, and more.

A recent report from LiveIntent notes that 91% of consumers still check their e-mail daily and remains 40x more effective for marketing than Facebook and Twitter combined. Likewise, marketing company Custora found that e-mail consumers were 11% more valuable than the average consumer, especially when acquiring new business.

Ad spending for e-mail newsletters is predicted to continue to rise in 2014, according to eMarketer, to $177.76 billion, an increase of 3.9% over 2013.

A complete list of our e-mail newsletters can be found here.

Articles

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Magazines

Magazines – Leveraging our web properties and e-mail subscriber files, we endeavor to create niche on-line stores.

Facts: There were $1.221 trillion in U.S. e-Commerce sales in 2013, according to eMarketer data. The research firm estimates that number hit $1.445 trillion in 2014. e-Commerce grew by 17.1% in 2013 and was expected to grow by about 18.3% in 2014 with double-digit growth projected through 2017. This growth is aided by the increase in tablet and mobile users and advanced shipping and payment options.

We launched our first e-Commerce craft store in 2010. CutRateCrafts.com stocks over 130,000 SKUs and offers everyday low discounted prices.

In 2013, we began selling and distributing books we create and publish through the Amazon and Apple stores. Each month over 181,000 consumers download our cooking and crafting eBooks to enjoy on their tablet and mobile devices through the iTunes and Kindle stores. Here are a few popular craft and recipe books for you to enjoy.

We launched two premium digital content magazines in 2014, I Like Crochet and I Like Knitting. Each magazine produces six issues annually, filled with high-quality patterns from designers and companies, how-to articles, pattern tips and instructional videos. Consumers can subscribe or buy single issues at our websites and via the Apple iTunes Store.

Communications

Consumers still prefer e-mail as a primary method of communications, according to a new study by Habeas. “E-mail is still vital, and it will continue to be,” said Des Cahill, CEO of Habeas Inc., of the fact that 67% of respondents prefer e-mail as a communications channel compared with other online vehicles and 65% believe this will continue in the next five years.

Consumer Marketing

There is a growing sophistication of Internet users, who are spending less time at portals and directly seeking specialized content at more focused sites. The consumer market is clearly fragmenting.

Broadcasting

Not too long ago CBS, NBC and ABC networks controlled over 90% of all broadcast dollars due to their mass consumer reach. As cable television gave consumers choice, networks share of broadcast dollars declined. Today, this number continues to fall and network television gets less than 50% of broadcast advertising dollars. As well, television has lost broadcast dollars to other media, primarily the Internet.