Antiques Collectibles Books

The photography is the old original work, and while it's not up to today's standards it is nice. There are prices for each piece, which is amusing, seeing a $12 price for a table.

There are measurements for most of the pieces, which is not surprising as the furniture was sold via catalog. There are no plans, this is from a catalog to sell furniture, not plans. But, between the pictures and the measurements you can develop your own plans.

There is also some history and text pages from Stickley's catalog/magazine.

The best candidates for this book are those who have purchased or are planning to purchase a Craftsman-style home; however, that should not exclude those who just want to replicate the style in their decor. Although there are many style characteristics of the Arts & Crafts era that are easily identified, this book sheds light on a wide spectrum of pieces with literal authenticity.

While not a complete collection (items such as light switch coverplates and heating register covers are not included) these reproductions of Stickley's catalogs are the perfect foundation for those looking to purchase Craftsman-style interior accents.

If you desire to maintain as much as possible the look of the Arts & Crafts movement in your interior design, this book should definitely be a staple in your library.

Horrible prints, can hardly see details, blury pictures in black and white (a very few colored). Set up is okay, but again, pictures are horrible and crammed into the page. A waste of money!

Absolutely useless. Waste of money. Not worthy of its description. This is NOT A REFERENCE BOOK. This is a (poor) photographic journal of a collection, with speculative values based purely on opinion.

This reference book for postcard collectors is entirely given over to images of the cards themselves, with no history, grading guide, or other information. That being said, it has thousands of photos of various kinds of postcards, well organized by subject (but I wish the reproduction were clearer). The prices are dated, and do not reflect the impact that Ebay, Amazon, and other online auction houses have had on postcard availability. All in all it's a nice pictorial reference, but not a must-have.

The title "Collector's Guide..." led me to believe that there would be informational text about dating, printing techniques, and other descriptive information about post cards. The book is entirely illustrations of post cards in various categories and their prices...fine for long-time collectors, but useless for someone seeking historical information.

It was a very perfect delivery and I am very satisfy with the book. I know the book before I purchased it. I have seen it by a friend and therefor I want to have it.

Louise uses the original French patterns and sews them as they were meant to be done. Her work is inspiring.

The book starts with a little history of the doll from French and great vintage pictures are added (through out the book) to show how things were back than and there are instructions how to make the right embroidery stitches that were used. Patterns are actual size and easy to trace. Instructions are easy especially when you're an more experienced sewer but also the novice can have an easy start sewing because there are all kinds of patterns to find in this book. From very easy to complicated (more pattern pieces, pleats to make, put trimming on etc.)you will always find the right pattern to start with.
The pictures of the fashions to make, are the size of one page - 9"x12" - so all kinds of details are there to see. What can I say but this is a wonderful addition to your doll(pattern) books and I'm sure you'll love it! Good for hours and hours of reading and sewing pleasure.

The book is very incomplete: a great many dolls are not listed; mostly only composition. The dolls that are mentioned are way to often not pictured, which i found enormously frustrating.I thought paging through my new book would be fun but instead it was just irritating. And of course the prices change, so ones really needs to check the internet for those. It's a horrible pictoral reference. Better to invest in the more specific books like Cindy Sabulis's guides.This book is not recommended.

Dawn Herlocher's 200 Years Of Dolls Identification And Price Guide, 3rd Edition unlike competing doll guides, over 5,000 dolls of all kinds are identified from Raggedy Ann editions to Barbie. The book comes packed with color photos - but the inclusion of manufacturer's marks, comparison charts and histories is what makes 200 Years Of Dolls so special. Of course, there's the latest pricing to aid in valuations. Over 275 doll manufacturers are included in a lovely coverage.

I used this book while conducting an estate appraisal of a collection of some 45 high-end collectible dolls, all in pristine original condition with boxes, hang tags, etc. and some with custom-made display cases. Only 20-25% of the dolls in the collection were listed in this book.

I just got done looking through this book, which is the 3rd edition and is dated 2005. I bought this book for $2 used on Amazon and that is all it is worth to me. I bought it for business purposes and if I'd paid the full retail price, I'd have been inclined to return it.

The photos are nice, full color and close up enough to get a good feeling of what each doll looks like, but there are many more dolls mentioned in text that are not pictured. It makes it hard to identify a doll if there's no photo of it.

For example, I mostly deal with Barbie and other fashion dolls and dolls of the later 60's and 70's. There is a section on Barbie but it offers only a few photos and most of the dolls listed are only mentioned in text. If you didn't already know what you had in your hand, how would you be able to look it up?

Crissy is one of the most popular dolls made by Ideal and there is only a mention of her in the 4 pages devoted to Ideal. There is not one photo of Crissy or any of her family. The only photo I saw listed under Mego was a NRFB Cher doll from the 70's. All the other Mego dolls are only mentioned by name. This book also does not list dates for most dolls. I find that frustrating, too. And the prices suggested as the value are very theoretical. Maybe pre-Ebay somebody would have spent so much for Barbie, let's say, but prices are not that good today, although the author does state she based prices on the doll being in mint condition and with original box, outfit and accessories. Still, I haven't seen too many Barbies in the condition she describes go for quite that much online.

Now, I don't want to say this book is all bad. Its just very incomplete in terms of it being a real history of 200 years of dolls. Its a very brief overview of dolls throughout the last 200 years and most of the photos that are featured, are of antique dolls, not fashion dolls, even though many fashion dolls are listed in text. I don't feel it would be worth $30, which is the suggested retail price. This book would be greatly improved by adding LOTS more photos and if it were spiral bound. Its very heavy and thick (415 pages) and pages don't stay open well. There's a whole chunk of pages seperating from the spine already and this book was like new! I also think the year for each doll should also be added next to the description. Again, a nice effort but falls short. It may be that it is too great of an undertaking to be covered in one volume. I feel the author should have covered less to give us more.

I refer to this doll book often.
Any author who attempts to include 200 years` worth of antique and collectible dolls in one book has quite a feat ahead. But the author does a wonderful job.

This hardback book is printed on quality paper.
The photos are very nicely taken.
Information is very helpful.

This was a gift to a 14 yr old collector who lives in Rome Italy, He says it is wonderful, read the whole thing right thru. He actually finds this stuff (parts of)in fields near Rome!

Yes, i said awsomer. The point of the fact is that this is one smashing toy book, it is packed with photo after photo of crazy designs from various artists. And if you love the work of Jim Davis then, then so the better. I highly recommended this book for toy lover, illustrators and designers for creative inspiration.
I just wish there were more interviews with the artists, there is a couple, including one with Jim Davis. This is my only complaint with is book.

great cross section of today's contemporary toy scene. designer vinyls and more! check out the insurgents wilderness gruppo toy line by www.rocketworld.org . ;-)

"Collectible Silver Jewelry" provides a brief, yet reasonably comprehensive, guide to silver jewellery and jewellery makers from around the world. This book covers most of the major silver jewellery producing countries of the world, including the U.S., Mexico, Peru, Scandinavia, the U.K., Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Eastern Europe, the Middle East, China, Japan and Siam, and for each country, it provides a guide to all of the main silversmiths and manufacturers of that country. For each manufacturer, a brief history is given, along with a photograph or illustration of the maker's marks used. A valuation guide (with pictures) is also provided at the end of each section to give the reader some idea of the style of jewellery produced in each country and its value (although this book was first published in 2001, all values were updated in 2005).

This book is very well presented. It is a large size hardback with glossy pages and full-colour photographs throughout. A glossary of jewellery terms is provided at the back, as is a detailed index, making this book very easy to use.

This was a general book on Silver and I felt it did not go into depth. I do not like it as much as others but it covers many country silver jewelry.

I haven't found another book that covers what this one covers. It is well organized and has lots of good photos. There are written commentaries about the various manufacturers of silver jewelry, discussions about mid century artisans, and great information about silver jewelry from Scandinavia, Mexico and other places in the world. There are additional resources in the back of the book and lots of information about hallmarks as well. I can go on and on but take it from me, this is the best book out there on silver jewelry.

This book has been fabulous because it includes a broad span of silver jewelry, not just one specific type. It has helped me identify many pieces. Great pictures, great explanations. Includes many different marks. I love it and use it all the time.

Whether you are an expert collector or a neophyte, you will find this book a valuable reference source. It is illustrated in full-color and covers the range of silver jewelry makers exhaustively, maker by maker, including illustrations of makers' marks.