Antiques Collectibles Books

If you collect Modern Foreign this book is a MUST HAVE, I have looked up 100 or more coins and have yet not to locate the coin I am looking for. It is comprehensive, has good pictures most of the Obverse and Reverse some just of the Obverse.
I highly recommend this book, its great.
David Jackson

This publication is essential for anyone buying, selling or evaluating coins.

This is the most comprehensive coin catalogue and when put together with Catalogue of World Coins 1901 - 2006, it really gives you an accurate picture and value report of what you have in your collection or are thinking about adding to it.

This is a book that every collector whose interests exceed his backyard and go beyond his birthdate must have at home. There is no better help to start expanding your collection beyond 1901.
There is no better does not mean that there cannot be a better one. Some remarks must be taken into consideration
- this is an American catalog so prices in your country (if you're not American that is) are most certainly different and there is no point to waste your time to prove Krause wrong. E.g. prices of German states' coins in Germany are 50 to 100% higher than in Krause. They are which means that if you are looking for them you move to eBay and look for them elsewhere but not in Germany. Foreign dealers treat Krause prices of foreign coins seriously.
- this is an American catalog which has a soft spot for American coins. Most foreign readers will be mildly amused by eighteen pages of remarkably uninspired designs of the US patterns (fortunately most of them are not shown) or twelve pages of "territorial gold".
- this is an American catalog so you may find some of coins from your country missing completely or missing a picture.
If you can accept all this, you will be happy with your purchase. If you can't, you should think if you won't be much happier with a more specific coin catalog but be sure that no other can give the kind of general view you find in this one.

Material is horribly dated. Publication date apparently 2004, using 2001-2003 price date. Effectively useless.

You MUST show date of publication in description of item.

Not likely to buy again.

What a creative and practical book! I love origami and have incorporated it into my card making, gift wrapping, decorating, and table setting for years. However, I had never made jewelry with it. The techniques in the book have opened a whole new area of possiblilites for me.

I ordered this book without high hopes and was pleasantly surprised. Finally, an origami jewelry book that goes through the process step by step with clear photos as a guide. All the questions I had regarding origami jewelry making were answered. In the past, much of my paper jewelry making was based on guesswork.

As someone who is a novice I found this book relatively easy to follow. I have been doing origami for a long time, but I am not consistent with it. It is something I love and I know basics, but not something I am constantly working to excel at, even though I wish I had the time to. With a stressful job I needed an outlet and so have taken origami up again to relax and have a creative outlet. I saw this book and thought, wow how cool. I really want to try this. I am more than happy with my impulse purchase. The pictures are clear and concise. She gives you all the basic folds in the front so you don't have to go looking in other materials for them. The author also allows your creative juices to flow. She shows many different project pictures with the same origami shape. This allowed me to take her projects one step further and really make them my own. I have never made jewelry before (other than macaroni necklaces in kindergarten) and she details all the tools and materials you need. Really, if this peeks your interest, the take the plunge and buy it. You won't be disappointed.

Origami Jewelry: More Than 40 Exquisite Designs to Fold and Wear Very nice presentation. Instructions and diagrams are fairly easy to understand. The pictures of the finished fold are nicely shown. I've been doing origami for 30 yrs and never thought of making jewelry. You always learn new things.

I am relatively new to Origami so I found this book a welcome addition to the library, it covers the obligatory choosing of papers, tools to use and importantly for newbies a good solid instructional section on the "basic folds". The jewellery created was quiet nice, a little kitsch for my personal taste, but easily accomplished with a bit of practice.

The big thing for me though came with Metal Clay "paper", I am primarily a jewellery artist and use Metal clay a lot, I love the product of silver sheet clay or paper clay as some people call it as I can fold this like paper in origami styles and then fire it to produce minature fine silver jewellery. Good ideas in the book for me to transfer to silver replicas.

The diagrams were clear, easy to understand and photographed well. Thank you Ayako for a good book.

this replaces the same book that i mysteriously lost. it's a great book for a beginner, which is what i am. easy to understand with good photography and projects. it's the book i use the most when hand building.

This is an excellent book to have, if you enjoy and want to learn more about hand-building with clay. It has projects connected with all three approaches to handbuilding: coiling, pinching and slabbing. It also teaches how to make plaster molds, including 2-part molds. This is a great skill to learn if you want to be able to make reproductions of your own clay pieces. I've been working with clay for about 2 years and I found lot of tips and tricks that I didn't know. Definitely a worthwhile book to own.

I am trying to complain about delaying of this book, but I cannot make anyone to answer my question.

it doesn't contain glaze recipes of the finished pieces that are pictured in the book. that's the only complaint i have. it was given to me when i first started throwing and i've found myself going back to it even as i advance.

If I could only have one book on throwing pottery this would be it, hands down! I've gone through alot of books and found this one to be far and above the best for addressing all of the steps to easier learning and is presented in the most effective way. It is much more detailed than most of the other books. These details of advice and the cutaway photography make all the difference. Having this book as a supplement to my pottery teacher's instruction has been so beneficial. The book covered details that my teacher didn't think to give me and the cutaway photography gave me the visual tools that can't be demonstrated as easily in a live class. Having this book to refer back to often during the learning process continues to be of great value.

I am not a professional arrowhead collector by any means but I enjoy learning about them and have been fortunate once in awhile to come across one. This book is excellent for the purpose of learning about the different kinds of arrowheads, lance points, knives, hand axes etc. It includes history of points. There is a choronological gallery of color points in the front, the rest of the photos are in black & white and the book is sectioned into regions to make it easier to learn what is most likely to be found in your area. For those inclined, it also includes what to look for as a collector and the estimated value of your point/s etc. I like this book!

A new update from the 7th, 8th, and 9th Editions about Native North American Points which I have in my library. By having the most recent edition (the 10th) you can compare how items have increased in value.
A host of new material, including new points, geographic area renaming, etc.
A must for the beginning and advanced collector.

Year after year these books are published with the same poor quality binding and paper. Even more disappointing is the same pictures and descriptions are reprinted in each volume. It appears that a variant point or two are added to "justify" a new printing. Don't waste your money. It's 98 percent old and 2 percent "new".

Outstanding book for those (like me) who do not authenticate points but want to learn about the various types. Includes informative articles on the archaeology of certain points. Lots of beautiful color panels of points arranged by age, in addition to the B&W photos in the identification pages.

10th edition is like the last 9 editions. But it does have an array of every type variant, albeit many, many variants that really are subjective at best. But as many collectors know. the book has ridiculous price estimates. And as a long time collector/dealer my biggest beef about many of the editions, and I can personally 100% say/witnessed that many of the points are not authentic and only make it into the book to increase their "provenance" and individual value. But that said, the book is on type variations for you and not whether the specimens are actually authentic or not. So its really a catch 22. Many people have made it a popular arrowhead book, unfortunately are the same people that think they have a dozen authentic Clovis points(a rare Paleo, high valued arrowhead) they bought at their local flea market.

Hello to all reputable collectors!!!
I am very thankful to authors for this great book!
It is very useful thing to valuate banknotes.
Greetings from Ukraine!!!
Sergey Trushin
http://www.wezom.com.ua
http://www.lacrysil.com

It was a pleasure to work with you. The catalog is very useful and it was delivered in no time. Thank you

As a beginning collector, I didn't really know very much about this subject, and the book helped me immensly. I highly recommend this book both for novice collectors like me, and for those lucky individuals who have been doing it for years. An excellent source!

Having been a major collector of banknotes for 40+ years, I find the SCWPM series of banknote catalogs invaluable, but far from complete or accurate. This volume has improved graphics and updated pricing compared to the previous edition. The numbering system is chaotic, pictures misplaced, signature charts missing or incomplete, latest issues missing, etc. Mr. Cuhaj needs some help.

If you collect modern banknotes, you must own the Standard Catalog of World Paper Money, Volume III: Modern Issues (US$50, Krause Publications, ISBN 0-89689-502-5). The simple fact is that there is no other omnibus catalog that covers post-1960 issues in such detail. Now in its 13th edition, Volume III contains 12,000 illustrations of notes from over 200 issuing authorities, most with valuations in three different conditions. The SCWPM is our collector community's bible, and its "Pick" numbers are the lingua franca used worldwide to identify types and varieties. However, anyone who spends more than a few minutes examining the SCWPM soon discovers its many flaws.
Let me begin by stating that I realize it is a gargantuan task trying to ensure the accuracy of so much detailed data on a subject that is sometimes obscured by intentional secrecy. With 1,048 pages, it's inevitable that minor typos creep in and omissions are made. Many errors I had spotted in previous editions have been corrected, yet new ones have cropped up. But the problems I have with the SCWPM are not minor, they are systemic. According to the back cover blurb, editor George Cuhaj compiles input from "more than 80 experts around the world." This alone probably explains many of the catalog's flaws. These unpaid contributors are anonymous, and they bring different levels of dedication to the task of updating their areas of expertise. As a result, the SCWPM is often inconsistent.
For example, sometimes a note with a new date or signature combination gets a new type number, other times it warrants only a new variety letter, and other times it's just grouped together with several other dates. Australia, Switzerland, and West African States all have listings with extremely detailed varieties, while most other countries list only an issued note and specimen. Speaking of specimens, often they are listed without description or price. Does this mean they are unconfirmed or rare? And why is it that the introduction claims the variety letter "r" is used to indicate remainders, though Biafra's notes lacking serial numbers are given "b" variety letters and Cayman Islands uses "r" to indicate replacements? Rather than being systematic and predictable, the numbering scheme is arbitrary and subjective. Fortunately, renumbering has been held to an "absolute minimum" in this edition, but unexplained gaps from previous renumberings exist, as do new discoveries shoehorned into the inflexible scheme with numbers followed by capital letters to distinguish them from lower-case variety letters.
The problem with inconsistencies extends beyond the pervasive numbering scheme to the issue of signatures. If a country's note varieties are clearly distinguishable from one another based upon other attributes--such as date or overall design--I understand there is no need to publish a signature table. However, it is unforgiveable to omit same if the note descriptions make specific references to signatures either by number or name. For example, Argentina SCWPM 275-282 refer to signature titles by letters, but the accompanying table from the 12th edition has been dropped. Likewise, Belgium SCWPM 134-152 refer to signature numbers that have never been documented in any edition. Unfortunately, the signature tables which do appear don't always include the signatory's full name, title, and term of service. In fact, Bhutan's signature table lacks numbers altogether, so references are confusing, to say the least.
I'm happy to report that the list of banknote printers and their abbreviations has returned after being dropped since the 10th edition, but good luck finding it since it doesn't appear in the table of contents (hint: it's in the back of the book, sandwiched between full-page advertisements).
Though it bears a copyright of 2007 and claims to cover modern issues from "1961-present," the 13th edition fails to include many recent releases one would expect. For example, there's no mention of the new families of notes from Azerbaijan and Mozambique introduced in 2006, nor of the European Union notes bearing Jean-Claude Trichet's signature, and these have been out for years. Nonetheless, I would recommend the 13th edition if for no other reason than its black-and-white images are much clearer overall than the muddy illustrations of the previous edition. While the front and back of most notes are shown, not all notes are depicted, and the images are just big enough to aid in identification, but not to savor the details. Inexplicably, all recent editions have also included eight pages in color of randomly selected notes without any commentary or obvious purpose. This costly insert should be put to better use--highlighting new color varieties or particularly attractive new issues--or dropped entirely.
Aside from identification of note varieties, the other purpose of a catalog is to provide accurate values of notes. Here, too, the SCWPM provides questionable guidance. Many countries have not seen any valuation changes whatsoever over the course of several editions. This is simply impossible given the fact that all values are expressed in US dollars, and this currency has experienced a significant drop in exchange rates across the board over the past few years. For example, the high-denomination Haitian notes printed on Tyvek remain listed at relatively accessible prices, despite the fact that I have never seen these rarities offered for sale at any price. Even in those countries which have been updated, the new valuations are unreliable. For example, Romania's notes dated 2005 are all still priced below face value, though not as severely as in the previous edition. On the other hand, the prices of common recent issue Australian notes have spiked beyond reason. And some countries--such as France, Italy, and Qatar--have some VG and VF notes priced at face, despite being demonetized.
If you collect the entire world, the SCWPM is the only game in town, and is a necessary reference well worth the price, even in light of its shortcomings. But if you focus on particular countries or regions, you'll want specialized catalogs instead.

This review first appeared in print in the International Bank Note Society (IBNS) Journal 46.3.

I wish there was a 6 star rate!
Love the quality (overall!) of the book! Amazong for inspiration!! This one goes on my special-favorite book rack!!!!

As a collector of, and dealer in Central Asian garments, I have long been fascinated by the printed, cotton linings of these garments. Some of the fabrics are so beautiful, that my customers turn the coats inside out, and wear them in reverse. How delightful to find a book on these fabrics. The book shows many different patterns of fabric, as well as a number of coats, turned inside out, to show the wonderful patchwork patterns. Well done.

while this extravagantly illustrated compilation of Russian printed fabrics from 1900 to 1950 will be invaluable to both artist and collector, it is a visual delight to the general reader as well. The author skilfully weaves the history of the Cental Asian tribal peoples into the tapestry of mass migration and technology which produced stunning roller and block-printed cotton clothing.

This book is stunning in a visual sense. Each print illustrates the creative choices of the Central Asian people and also reflect the influences of the world around them. More than a book reviewing Russian textiles, it records the history of a region of the world that is not commonly explored. So beautifully photographed, one can almost feel the weave of the prints. Cloth is so commonplace we take its history for granted. This book reminds us its importance. Its interesting that a swatch of fabric can weave a story of time and people.

This book is not only visually stunning, it is also a fascinating read. This is the first time that these beautiful and unusual fabrics have been given their due recognition both as designs and as an important part of Russian/Soviet history.

If some one like antique furnitures, you got to have this book. it is very completely and tells you most the styles in the history.

This is an encyclopedia of furniture. The information on each subject is limited. It makes a good quick reference, but didn't help me too much..

This is a great visual encyclopedia for learning what parts of furniture and styles from different periods look like. When reading about a reproduction Greek klismos chair with sabre legs or a Louis XV commode with Sevres plaque and riband trim, there is nothing like a visual reference to understand what those words actually mean. Not a light read, but this is an important addition to the bookshelf of anyone really serious about being educated in elements of interior design.

The condition of the book was very good.
The book itself was not very useful, it had a lot of information and enless you knew exactly what you were looking for it was hard to find

THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF FURNITURE is more like a dictionary of design terms with pictures of specific furniture pieces. It gives a brief history of the furniture periods, but it will not aide you in learning about the characteristics of the pieces in each style. It is a good choice if you are looking for a quick reference guide with pictures and definitions.

I really liked this book. It really opened my eyes to see what treasures my antiques really are!

Excellent book with lots of pictures. Easy to use and the shipping time was speedy.

THE BOOK IS JUST WHAT WE WANTED. IT IS UP TO DATE AND EASY TO LOCATE ITEMS

This is a delilghtful and beautiful book for artists or those of us who appreciate others' talent. Curtis has created a labor of love first in his home and then in his book. I was fortunate enough to tour the finished product and it is truly gorgeous. I'm able to relive the experience by revisiting his book from time to time. This book is a winner on all counts.

Decorative Artist Curtis L. Heuser will take you on a true-to-life journey of his purchase of a forgotten historic house in disrepair to it's reclaimed glory. A chance meeting between Curtis and the art director for the book's publisher resulted in this journey being documented for the benefit of creative thinkers everywhere. Where to begin? What to tackle first? How to proceed? Curtis allows us to enter his creative thinking process as he provides the reader with his inspirations, initial preparatory drawings, as well as tips and tricks, materials lists and instructions for executing many of the exciting painted and plaster finishes that he used in this stunning home. From the elegant chinoiserie-inspired garden mural on the cover to the creation of a faux-rusted vanity, Curtis hasn't kept much to himself. He allows the reader generous access to this handsome home and to all of the secrets of it's restored beauty. Your Home, a living canvas will inspire you to rethink your own living canvas and if you like, will hold your hand along the way.

I love reading what people have to say about things I KNOW so well. lol I am very fortunate to have a Curtis Heuser mural in my home and when guest see it, they speak of my home to others as a mansion, not a house. Curt is a would class artist, however, this book gets criticized in some reviews because it is not JUST about murals. Please be thankful about that folks. A mural does personalize a space and add an art feature to a home but Curt then teaches how to complete the picture by showing you how to decorate the space. Curt does not say, "Give me a boat load of money and i'll transform your home", he tells you how to make your house a mansion. I, like Curt, came from very humble beginnings and he has taught me how to live like a king, or at least look like on a shoe string budget. He teaches how to select great paint colors, fabrics, and decorative pieces you can pick up at discount stores or antique shows. People come to my house and look at things I have picked up and marvel at their beauty and I smile knowing that the item might have been $9.00 and I bought it because I loved it. I didn't have to pay a decorator a commission on something purchased form a store that already has it marked up. Please enjoy Curts gift for making your house a home from mural work, faux finishes, collections that you purchase from Goodwill to antique shows. However, having said all this, my best purchase was the mural in my dining room. Check it out on HGTV website, episode 508 on the show Before and After. I hope there will be many more books from this man. He has the gift to create world class spaces. I wish all of you could have your own Heuser mural. His portfolio is amazing.

YOUR HOME,A LIVING CANVAS sits on my living room coffee table and everyone who sees it wants one. Curtis Heuser's work is stunning and his directions for achieving beautiful results in your own home are clear and accessible. This book is head and shoulders above any others that I have read on faux finishes and/or murals. For just browsing for aesthetic pleasure or for guidance in undertaking major artistic redecoration, YOUR HOME is the book to own; the perfect gift to give or to receive.

Being in this house must be like walking around in a dream.This man is highly gifted!