2 comments about The New Decorating with Pictures: Collecting Art and Photography and Displaying It in Your Home.

1. Plenty of books provide advice on how to collect art and what to choose, but to few focus on display techniques appropriate for the home. The New Decorating With Pictures: Collecting Art And Photography And Displaying It In Your Home is the perfect item of choice for any who would collect art and photography and display it in a home, blending Simon Upton's fine color photo examples with Stephanie Hoppen's survey of techniques and common challenges. Divided by subject, chapters are arranged for quick consultation.



2. Making good pictures is difficult, but hanging them well sometimes seems to be equally challenging. I have a growing collection of nicely framed photographs that are standing around aimlessly because I can't make up my mind as to where exactly they fit on the walls of our house. That is why I turned to Stephanie Hoppen's book (which, surprisingly, is one of the very few on the subject.) Hoppen has sound credentials to speak authoritatively: she runs an art gallery in London, writes on interior decoration and has a son, Michael, who established one of London's most renowned photography galleries.
   
   "The New Decorating with Pictures" is not about turning family pictures into kitchen clocks and shower curtains. The book has a double focus: it wants to help in building an art collection and in showcasing it tastefully in a homely setting. The discussion and examples are not limited to photographs only but to anything artistic that can be stuck to a wall (including paintings, drawings and mixed media works).
   
   There are four main parts: "Choosing pictures", "Choosing subject", "Framing" and "Displaying". Clearly, Hoppen favours a thematic approach, where pictures are collected around a given subject matter. A significant part of the book is devoted to discussing and showing examples of art around four main themes: "people", "art & architecture", "the natural world", and "leisure". "The natural world", for example, divides further into subthemes such as landscapes, animals, gardens, etc. Personally I think this approach is a fairly weak point of the book - the more so as it takes up a significant number of pages - as many people will collect art because they like an artist or a medium, and not because they are looking for a thematic thread or a narrative in their collection.
   
   Hoppen focuses the discussion in the "Framing" and "Displaying" section on two points: the material used to frame and display pictures and suitable proportions between the frame and the space around it. In terms of really practical advice, the discussion is fairly thin. Hoppen is reluctant to formulate hard and fast rules. Her main advice is: "get a specialist to help you out, or, if you want to do it yourself, try lots of things and have lots of patience."
   
   Despite these shortcomings, the book is a pleasure to browse and read. Its real value lies in the many inspiring pictures of interiors that illustrate the first and last two sections of the book. There's an excellent mix of period, modernist and contemporary interiors, with corresponding styles of framing and displaying of paintings, drawings and photographs. The settings go beyond the living or dining room and include kitchens and bathrooms as well. It is rewarding to scrutinise these case studies as they encapsulate lots of experience and learning by their owners. Personally I find it exciting to see how a real picture of, say, Irving Penn or Michael Kenna finds its place on a wall. Hoppen's captions are instructive as they always mention all the artists that figure in a given setting.
   
   All in all a rewarding book that lends itself to both casual browsing and a closer study of its rich collection of splendid interiors.

1 comments about Fashionable Clothing: From the Sears Catalogs - Early 1970s (Schiffer Book for Collectors).

1. This is an amazing resource, loaded with full color photos of those groovy, crazy styles of the 70s. Featuring mostly women's clothing, this is no disco party -- this is a total Mary Tyler Moore/Rhoda fashion parade. Each page is more insane than the next!! Super duper cool. Gee, think I like it much?

2 comments about Fenton Art Glass 1907-1939: Identification & Value Guide (2nd Edition).

1. This book provides an excellent history of Fenton. The photography and guides are very helpful for identification purposes.

   Explanations of the Fenton evolution in glass making provide insight into glass making. Excellent for the novice or seasoned veteran. Nicely done!




2. This is a extremely valuable and complete book on my new hobby.
   The pictures of the art glass are perfect for help and the information on the Fenton family is very interesting. The book has helped identify Fenton glass perfectly.

2 comments about High Fashion Hats: 1950-1980.

1. VERY DISAPPOINTING...Schiffer's fashion books in the past have usually been very well written with rare examples of clothing and accessories, and I had high hopes when I purchased this on-line and sight unseen, but overall..I found this a Highly Disappointing book. Strictly for the beginner or amateur hat collector. From the book's wrong title (there are almost no true high fashion hats in here) to the poor and too small photos, to the sparse, stilted, poorly written and sometimes inaccurate text, the book is not for the serious or educated millinery reader. The authors admit in thier bios, that they have no background in millinery, or in hat collecting, which shows, and makes one wonder why they were chosen by the publisher to write this book? Written on what seems a grade school level, without any new information to offer the reader. From the title, one would expect to find some classic and beautiful examples of real High Fashion Hats; those unusual,unique millinery creations by coveted designers that make your mouth water, and I was expecting that, but I found none.. save for a few, but none really impressed me. The book has mostly small photos of common, run of the mill lower end hats that can still be found today in second hand shops and tag sales. The writers did not seem to go out of their way to find any truly special hats, and that is not hard to do if you know where to look and what a REAL high fashion hat IS. Mostly showing small photos of inexpensive ready-to-wear hats that originally sold in Pennsylvania and Pocono Mountain mid range department stores that catered to the middle classes and rual communities, and many photographed on styrofoam wig heads (YES!!) the book really disappoints anyone looking for examples of fine millinery. As a dealer in antique and vintage millinery in New York and Los Angeles for over 25 years, and a 35 year long collector of hats, I can say that the price guide is totally useless, and way off, with values placed much higher or lower than the hats are worth, which I feel would hurt and misguide a beginner dealer and or collector. As an example, a small cello straw pillbox with a smidge of veiling, no other trims, circa 1960's with NO label..priced at $45.00? Wool mass produced hats from the 1970's for $75.00 or more? And hand crocheted and hand knit home made caps (please.. these do not belong in this book) referred to as High Fashion Hats? You get the idea. There are some inaccuracies in the text (what little text there is) and glossary of terms as well. .....The 1950's was an exciting time for hats and millinery; from the New Look, the Romantic Post War Revival, The French influences, New York's millinery shops and milliners, Los Angeles and Hollywood milliners and costumers, American couture millinery, Chicago's fantastic millinery artists, St. Louis' hat centers...Southern shops, etc, etc....all very important influences in thier day, but most or all are sorely lacking or not found at all in this book...and any true collector of that time period's hats will surely find this book a complete waste of time and money. Sorry, but this, and other Schiffer fashion books have not been up to their usual high standards lately. It might be fun to leaf through the book, as it only took me 10 minutes to read the entire thing..but certainly not worth purchasing for any serious or seasoned millinery lover.



2. More than a fashion guide, this detailed and authoritative reference compendium focuses on collectible designer hats from 1950-80 and is very highly recommended for both fashion collections in art libraries and collector's reference libraries with its fine survey of the hairstyles, hats and history behind them. The millinery glossary pairs well with period photos of the hats in use and the fine color photos throughout, making for an excellent collection of images, price guides and history perfect for either art or collector's references.

4 comments about Collectors Encyclopedia of Russel Wright: Identification & Values (Collectors Encyclopedia of Russel Wright).

1. Packed with information, this book is cumbersome to use since it doesn't have an index.



2. I am so happy to have gotten this book. I knew little-to-nothing about Wright,and Ann Kerr's book lays out all kinds of information about the man, the artist, and his art. I haven't had much of a problem without an index, as she has all the information chaptered out, and it is all easy to access. The accompanying photos are excellent and there are many. She also explains any areas which may be ambiguous, such as color, size and shape anomalies. Due to getting this book, I often know more about the pieces I find than the dealers do, as she tries to fit in every piece of information that she has, on every aspect of the collectible items. I love this book!



3. I just started collecting Russel Wright dishes, and was looking for a definitive reference guide to help key out the pieces I had. I thought this book had a lot of helpful information about determining pattern and manfacturing locations, but I was a bit disappointed overall. Though the cover of the book features only pottery, the book itself has examples of all that Russel Wright created in his long, prolific career-- all the way down to the radios and lamps. It would be great for the diehard RW fan, but I wished it just focussed on the pottery.



4. We've been collecting RW since 1998, and have hundreds of hard to find and many one of a kind pieces.
   
   Pros:
   -Some new photos.
   -The most comprehensive author of Russel Wright, covering all designs from all eras, including furniture and plastic
   -Detailed price guides
   -History and chronology of lines based on extensive research
   
   Cons:
   -Due to wide scope of the book, it is fairly easy to find incorrect information on pieces, prices, and other data.
   -Truncated some interesting information from 2nd edition, including photos of very rare items that we collect
   
   Neutral:
   -Moved prices to back (for easier reference?).
   
   Bottom line: 2 stars for accuracy, 4 stars for breadth, 3 stars for depth. Thus the average rating. If you seriously collect RW and do not have either the 2nd or 3rd edition of this book, you should buy this as without doubt this is certainly better than other RW books (and we have several others), but again not necessarily a must have for those with the 2nd edition.

No comments about Little by Little: Six Decades of Collecting American Decorative Arts.

4 comments about The Bakelite Jewelry Book.

1. The Bakelite Jewelry Book by Davidov and Dawes was published in 1988 and it was the first book I bought when I started collecting Bakelite jewelry many years ago. Big and beautiful, with wonderful pictures, this book does a great job of showing the variety and personality of this fun jewelry while also educating the reader about the history of Bakelite. Unfortunately, the price guide in the back is now outdated. This book is a visual feast and, even though I now have a shelf full of books on Bakelite, it is still the first book I grab when I want to check on a piece!



2. This was the first book on Bakelite jewelry that I ever bought, and the mouthwatering pictures wheted my appetite to start collecting Bakelite jewelry. However, after this luscious introduction, I was in for a big disappointment out in the real world. Most of the stunning pieces in this book have long since been snapped up by collectors, and in the years since I got this book I have rarely found a piece of Bakelite that appears in it. In terms of seeing some of the best of the best, Davidov shows Bakelite jewelry at it's finest. She also does much to enlighten collectors about the Bakelite jewelry industry. Although there is a rudimentary pricing guide, it is completely out of date and is of little use to today's collector. None the less, Bakelite collectors will enjoy this book. It's not a collector's guide. Instead, this beautiful book is a glorious celebration of top of the line vintage Bakelite jewelry, and a guilty pleasure to just thumb through and savor....



3. This is a beautifully photographed book. Shows many wonderful pieces of vintage bakelite jewelry. I can't fault it except to say, I wish it had even more examples of bakelite to look at.



4. Love this book! Beautiful photography and good explanation of bakelite history. A must have for a collectors library. Wish I had been involved in the publishing of this book. It must of been a delightful ride to see all the vintage bakelite. Like being in a candy store. Corinne Davidov and Ginny Redington Dawes did a wonderful job. But please invite me next time, okay? :-)

No comments about Turquoise: Mines, Mineral, & Wearable Art (Schiffer Book for Collectors).

5 comments about The Wonderful World of Collecting Perfume Bottles: Identification & value guide (Wonderful World of Collecting Perfume Bottles: Identification &).

1. I'm returning this book in disgust. It contains low end examples that even the newest perfume bottle collector would be bored by. In addition, some of it is poorly resaerched and some is just plain WRONG. Even the physical quality of the book is off.. the pages are strangely thin and floppy. Spend the extra money and buy a book by Jackie Jones North or the Lefkowiths...you'll find this book to be neither a good resource nor a good read.



2. What a wonderful, beautifully designed book!! It is refreshing to see coverage of ordinary bottles for the new collector and many masterpieces from the past. This broad based coverage by the author is just what was needed for the perfume bottle collecting world. Lost bottles are introduced, Sandwich masterpiece bottles are shown in all their glory. Besides coverage of many "never before shown bottles," the author seeks to educate and spark interest in the wonderful world of collecting perfume bottles



3. WOW!! Just what was needed, a general, broadbased collector book for perfume bottle collectors. This book is interesting, accurate, educational, and shows so many bottles for identification. The chapter on the Bacorn Bottles is superb, and greatly appreciated. I cannot recommend this book more highly than a five star*****



4. I was so pleased with this book. I am purchasing four more copies for my daughter and nieces. We are all new perfume bottle collectors, and this is just the book we needed to further our education in the field of perfume bottle collecting. "A GREAT BOOK BY A TALENTED AUTHOR."I hope to see more books from Ms. Flanagan in the future.



5. This is a wonderful book,however it caters mostly for the American collector.
   Regardless of this fact I am constantly referring to it. Well presented and good information.

1 comments about The Ethics of Collecting Cultural Property : Whose Culture? Whose Property?.

1. This goal of this volume is to present a variety of perspectives on cultural heritage issues to a broad audience, from archaeologists to collectors, museum curators to the general public. As editor of this volume of essays originally published in 1989, and author of the 1999 update, I believe it is extremely important for all of us to be part of an ongoing dialogue about how to preserve the past for the future. When the University of New Mexico Press approached me to update the original volume, I was struck by the changes that have occurred in the last decade. In the United States, the passage and implementation of the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act, or NAGPRA, has had a major impact on the treatment and disposition of American Indian objects of cultural heritage. And the world wide web has had a major impact on the kinds of information that is readily available to anyone, whether for the trade of antiquities or for tracking down stolen artifacts. At the same time, the problem of illegal and unethical destruction of the past continues--and in some areas of the world, has worsened. I hope the reader will find the essays thought-provoking and the appendices, including an overview of U.S. and international laws, statements of professional ethics, and a listing of resources and organizations, to be helpful in developing one's own stance on stewardship of the past.