Review of Spiffy Kitchen Collectibles (Paperback)

I just recieved Spiffy Kitchen Collectibles and was quite disappointed to find out that it is exactly the same graphics and photographs as contained in the Warmans Kitschy Kitchen Collectibles Field Guide, just in larger format. I saw they were by the same author, but didn't think they'd be exactly the same inside!

Product Description
A "collectors" place is now in the kitchen! Readers will experience an enjoyable visual view of the kitchen, with this full-color, generously illustrated book highlighting postwar collectible kitchen gadgets, plastic house wares, accessories, and much more.

This impressive identification and price guide features more than 1,200 color photographs of vintage advertisements and magazine covers. For collectors who want to value their collection, it also contains listings and prices for 2,200 kitchen and food preparation items, such as utensils, mixers, pans, molds, juicers, shredders, slicers, can openers, and more. Dealers, decorators, designers, and historians alike will appreciate all this rich and entertaining guide has to offer.

* Over 1,200 color photographs of vintage advertisements and magazine covers offer an enjoyable visual view of kitchen collectibles* Includes listings and prices for 2,200 postwar gadgets

About the Author
In the 1990s Brian S. Alexander set out to redecorate his home in a style that closely mimics the 1950s, exposing himself to all types of kitchen gadgets and household items of the period. His interests as a collector took him to numerous antique malls, shops, flea markets, shows, and on more than a few Internet excursions. As Brian's collections grew, he thought someday he might write a book on the subject, and in 2001 he signed up with a motivational program focusing on long put off ?someday projects? Through the Chicago Tribune. He presently works as an architect in Gurnee, Illinois and has homes in Evanston, Illinois and Michigan City, Indiana.

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Review of Montgomery Ward & Co. Catalogue and Buyers' Guide 1895 [FACSIMILE] (Paperback)

The Montgomery Ward catalog is just what I needed. I'm writing a historical romance set in the 1890s and the catalog has been so helpful as a visual aid with the clothing, furniture, and even kitchen utensils available to people at that time.

Product Description
Before the Internet, Wal-Mart, and the shopping mall, there was Montgomery Ward.

"Our mail order methods meet many wants," wrote a poetic but anonymous copywriter on a page of the 1895 Montgomery Ward & Co. catalogue. He had a gift for understatement. At its zenith from the 1880s to the 1940s, Montgomery Ward, like its cross-town Chicago rival, Sears, sold virtually everything the average American could think of or desire-and by mail. This was a revolution, and Ward's fired the first shot. To buy spittoons, books of gospel hymns, hat pins, rifles, wagons, violins, birdcages, or portable bathtubs, purchases that used to require many separate trips to specialist merchants, suddenly all the American shopper had to do was lick a stamp. This unabridged facsimile of the retail giant's 1895 catalogue showcases some 25,000 items, from the necessities of life (flour, shirts) to products whose time has passed (ear trumpets). It is an important resource for antiquaries, students of Americana, writers of historical fiction, and anyone who wants to know how much his great-grandfather paid for his suspenders. It is a true record of an era. 20,000 b/w illustrations.

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Review of Switchblades Of Italy (Hardcover)

The serious collector as well as the curious automatic knife buyer will find this author's work to be extensive on the subject of Italian Automatic Knives. With 128 pages, including high resolution photography of "tang stamps," this title covers topics ranging from the evolution of the automatic knife in Italian production to the ignoble standing this type of cutlery has been labeled with by the media over the years. Detailed information on specific manufacturers and the history of these companies give the reader specific information that is not easily found elsewhere, proving this book to be an invaluable source of information for the collector seeking to authenticate rare Italian Stilettos. A must for the knife collector or dealer.



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