Features
The Reason for the Season Nativity scenes from around the world depict birth of Christ
The Night Arch Nativity is beautifully hand-carved and painted by artisans in Indonesia. (image courtesy of TenThousandVillages.com)December 2023Cover Story The Reason for the Season Nativity scenes from around the world depict birth of Christby Corbin Crable For...
Posters’ Persuasive Power U.S. propaganda during WW II attempted to rally Americans around war effort
J. Howard Miller’s “We can do it!” poster was designed to boost morale among American women who went to work in factories and in shipyards during the labor shortage created by World War II. (Image courtesy of 1st Dibs)November 2023Cover Story Posters’ Persuasive Power...
Honoring the dead Dia de los Muertos has colorful traditions, history in both Mexico, U.S.
A row of colorful skulls sits surrounded by marigolds and other flowers. Both have been longstanding parts of the imagery and altar decoration during the Day of the Dead, or Dia de los Muertos celebrated every Nov. 1-2. (Image courtesy of Getty) October 2023 Cover...
A Head Above The Rest, Lady head vases brought touch of class to one’s home
Lady head vases can be found for sale online, with prices for more common pieces ranging from $10 to $100. (Image courtesy of eBay)September 2023Cover StoryA Head Above The Rest Lady head vases brought a touch of class to one’s homeby Corbin CrableThey added a dash of...
Fifty years of ‘Discovering’ began with a modest ‘guide’
Discovering front page images collage by Patti Klinge August 2023 Cover Story Fifty years of ‘Discovering’ began with a modest ‘guide’ by Ken Weyand After spending a decade as a copywriter (and later copy chief) in the advertising art department of The Kansas City...
A modern style Art Deco movement was elegant but accessible
This 1931 Packard Model 840 Dietrich Convertible Victoria was the centerpiece of an exhibition on the Art Deco movement at the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art in Kansas City, MO. The exhibition, “American Art Deco: Designing for the People, 1918-1939,” ran July 2022...
Stores shine spotlight on ethically sourced, sustainable items
https://firefly.adobe.com/generate/imagesDecember 2023Everything Old Stores shine spotlight on ethically sourced, sustainable itemsby Corbin Crable If you’ve ever taken a leisurely stroll throughout the picturesque, quaint downtown Overland Park, KS, you likely have a...
Holiday celebrations made special with cherished traditions
https://firefly.adobe.com/generate/imagesNovember 2023Everything Old Holiday celebrations made special with cherished traditionsby Corbin Crable Far too often, we don’t truly appreciate traditions when we’re living them in the moment. This is especially true for those...
Item tied to former Kansas mayor, his family
Wallet Photo by Jonathan Duran on UnsplashOctober 2023Everything Old Item tied to former Kansas mayor, his familyby Corbin Crable Last weekend I enjoyed my first visit to Merchant Square in Independence, MO, where I had the pleasure of interviewing Jace Sanders, the...
Items crafted in Occupied Japan were designed to kick-start postwar economy
Photo by Tianshu Liu on UnsplashSeptember 2023Everything Old Items crafted in Occupied Japan were designed to kick-start postwar economyby Corbin Crable Made in Japan If you’re a collector of ceramics and porcelain, it’s likely that you’ve checked on the bottom of...
Happy 50th anniversary, Discover Vintage America
As the years rolled on, the cost of color printing became more affordable, and four-color printing became the standard. The printing process has become more streamlined as well, with digital files now being sent to our printers in Breese, IL, where the magic happens....
Goodbye to a longtime colleague
Photo by Christelle BOURGEOIS on Unsplash July 2023 Everything Old Goodbye to a longtime colleague by Corbin Crable Honor to dedicate this issue to ... Just because we know that death is a part of life, that acknowledgment never makes that loss any easier when it...
Prices vary for early Russel Wright-designed items
1927 - 2023ANTIQUE DETECTIVE Prices vary for early Russel Wright-designed itemsby Anne GilbertThe big hunt for Russel Wright (1904-76) Fiesta pottery, chrome objects and furniture that began in the late 1970s and ‘80s, has leveled off, as have prices. It all depends...
Would you recognize a Chinoiserie-finish antique?
May 2023ANTIQUE DETECTIVE Would you recognize a Chinoiserie-finish antique?by Anne GilbertJapanning or Chinoiserie Whether you call it Japanning or Chinoiserie, if it was made before the 20th century, call it expensive. Even some examples made in the early 20th...
Once-popular painted porcelain plaques can be pricey and reproductions
April 2023ANTIQUE DETECTIVE Once-popular painted porcelain plaques can be pricey and reproductionsby Anne GilbertPainted Porcelain Plaques Back in the 1970s and ‘80s, 19th-century small or miniature painted porcelain portrait plaques were hot collectibles. When they...
Kitchenware in the hearth and heart of the house
December 2023Good Eye Kitchenware in the hearth and heart of the houseby Peggy Whiteneck Old kitchenware, from pots and pans to small utensils such as mixing spoons, large draining spoons, jar openers, egg beaters, and so on, is not only an affordable option for...
Collecting Miniature Porcelain Critters
November 2023Good Eye Collecting Miniature Porcelain Crittersby Peggy Whiteneck When I was a kid, I collected bone china animals. These were not expensive to buy nor worth much money, but I sure did enjoy them. The adults in my family enjoyed them, too, as they could...
Hickory, Dickory…. Clocks! – Antique American Timepieces
October 2023Good Eye Hickory, Dickory…. Clocks! - Antique American Timepiecesby Peggy Whiteneck Antique clocks from the 19th and early 20th centuries were made in many forms, from mantel clocks to tall case “grandfather” clocks to banjo wall clocks. Their cases were...
My Old Kentucky Home – Quilt adventures with the American Quilt Study Group
December 2023Covering Quilts My Old Kentucky Home – Quilt adventures with the American Quilt Study Groupby Sandra Starley I recently revisited “My Old Kentucky Home,” having lived there briefly as a youngster, for the Annual Seminar of the American Quilt Study...
The Rolling Stone Quilt Pattern
November 2023 Covering Quilts The Rolling Stone Quilt Pattern by Sandra Starley As I noted in last month’s column, the Rolling Stone block is a classic early pattern that has been popular for more than 170 years. Part of its appeal is the simple, aka easy piecing:...
Rolling Stone Revisited
October 2023 Covering Quilts Rolling Stone Revisited by Sandra Starley Rolling Stone is a classic early quilt pattern that has been gaining popularity for more than 170 years. The block can be constructed in two separate ways: as an even or uneven nine patch. Both...
Red Wing’s MidWinter Weekend to feature sales, social events
February 2024.. Red Wing’s MidWinter Weekend to feature sales, social events The Red Wing Collector Society’s MidWinter Weekend will bring enthusiasts to Des Moines for the 2024 MidWinter Weekend, Feb. 1-3 at the Holiday Inn Northwest. The RWCS MidWinter event offers...
Greenwood Vintage Market to host pair of holiday, winter events
January 2024 Greenwood Vintage Market to host pair of holiday, winter events Greenwood Vintage Market in Greenwood is the place to be this holiday season for festive shopping and fun.The merchant will host its 12 Days of Christmas sale, Dec. 26-Jan. 6. Stock up on big...
All aboard for the Midwest Train and Toy Show
December 2023 ... All aboard for the Midwest Train & Toy Show Model train enthusiasts, it’s time to don your conductor hat and hop aboard the Midwest Train and Toy Show, Dec. 10. This is the 40th year for the event. The show, to take place at the KCI Exhibit...
Old Bible witnessed two decades of family history
December 2023Vintage Discoveries Old Bible witnessed two decades of family historyby Ken Weyand When my grandfather, a struggling grocer in Keokuk, IA, married a young milliner from neighboring Warsaw, IL, in 1880, their lives changed considerably. No longer would...
1926 souvenir book marked America’s first 150 years
October 2023Vintage Discoveries 1926 souvenir book marked America’s first 150 yearsby Ken Weyand At the bottom of a cedar chest with other family memorabilia, I found a souvenir book of the 1926 Sesqui-Centennial Exposition, held in Philadelphia. It featured...
Visit to threshers’ show brings back ‘farm memories’
September 2023Vintage Discoveries Visit to threshers’ show brings back ‘farm memories’by Ken Weyand As a farm kid who grew up in the days when farmers were transitioning from horse-drawn equipment to tractors, a part of my brain still remembers when a threshing...
One Hundred Years of Valentines
February 2023Books for Collectors"One Hundred Years of Valentines" by Katherine KreiderBy Corbin Crable Remember sitting at your desk in elementary school on Valentine’s Day and anxiously waiting for your crush to slip a small envelope into the box you had...
“Valentine Treasury: A Century of Valentine’s Day Cards”
February 2022Books for Collectors“Valentine Treasury: A Century of Valentine’s Day Cards”By Corbin Crable What would the month of February be without the traditional exchanging of Valentine’s Day cards with your sweetheart or best friend? It’s a ritual we all...
“Cabbage Patch Kids Collectibles” By Jan Lindenberger
January 2022Books for Collectors“Cabbage Patch Kids Collectibles”By Corbin Crable The birth of the Cabbage Patch Kids craze in 1983 changed the doll industry forever – and made a veritable mint for Coleco, the company that produced the dolls. But, as author Jan...