Vintage Betty's Book of the Week

[Vintage Betty]

Wining & Dining with Rhyme & Reason, 1933

*This post is dedicated to Mr. Scotrace, who likes Picture Books*

Wining & Dining with Rhyme & Reason, 1933

I have absolutely no idea where I picked up this book, but the brochure from the Quebec Labor Commission was inside it.

 

[Vintage Betty]

I posted these images in a thread asking about men's shoes.

Bernard Hewitt Catalog, 1920

 

[Vintage Betty]

Charles William Catalog 1926

Charles William Catalog 1926

 

[Vintage Betty]

Galeries Lafayette 1935

Galeries Lafayette 1935

 

[Vintage Betty]

No. 55 M.W. Savage Company Fall & Winter 1929-1930 Catalogue

No. 55 M.W. Savage Company Fall & Winter 1929-1930 Catalogue

 

[scotrace]

Wonderful!!! These just get better all the time. Thanks so much for doing them!

 

[Dr Doran]

At first I thought those women's booties were supposed to be men's shoes and they looked very qu. but then I realized they were for women. Got a shock there though.

 

[Marty M.]

Stepping up the Kicks.

No. 55 M.W. Savage Company Fall & Winter 1929-1930 Catalogue

I love those Scotch Grain shoes. Hard to beet the price, ain't it? Thanks VB.
Marty Mathis

 

[BegintheBeguine]

Thanks for all your efforts, Vintage Betty. I'm enjoying these and getting some good ideas.

 

[~*Red*~]

The Wining and Dining Book is too funny, yet very helpful at the same time!

 

[Vintage Betty]

What’s in a name? Or buying books blindly online

What’s in a name? Or buying books blindly online.
Part 1

Sometimes, you want a book but can’t remember the exact name. And so you hunt around, remembering some of the title, but are faced with a plethora of choices online, almost all of them without pictures. Does getting the name close count? You see a title that seems familiar, for a low or reasonable price from an international seller. He won’t be open for 12 more hours. Do you buy the book and hope it’s the one you want? Or do you inquire about the book, only to have someone purchase the elusive copy you’ve been looking for?

Let’s take two books with similar names and compare them see the differences.

The Magic of Color Harmony In Dress
By Mona Moncrieffe
Published by Bebarfald’s Ltd., Sydney
Copyright 1927

Retail price online: $200
Price I paid $0

This is a highly sought after copy of a 1920s fashion book. It is oversized, it is made out of pulp paper, and most importantly, it has fashion plates pasted into the book. Retail price at this time is about $200.

What does oversize mean?
In the book world, there are various sizes attributed to books. A standard hardcover that is on the NY Times Bestseller List is usually the same size as the hardback book next to it. Anything over this size is generally called Oversized.

What is pulp paper?
Pulp paper is a type of paper that is wood that is pulverized and is of a cheap quality. Remember the movie Pulp Fiction? It refers to pulp paperbacks of the Golden Era, in which cheap paper (pulp paper) is used for books. Due to the acid content of pulp paperbacks, the edges usually brown quicker, the paper disintegrates faster than higher quality paper, and it tears easier, among other problems.

This book uses pulp paper, which means that existing copies are deteriorating fast, and less and less copies of this book are available.

What are fashion plates?
Fashion plates refer to pictures, usually with ladies in them of the fashions of a certain period. In the case of this book, the quality of printed plate is a better quality paper than the pulp paper. Many fashion plates were removed, or fell out of books due to the poor quality of glue adhesive of the period.

Why is this book in short supply?
With all the clues given above, PLUS the fact this appears to be a giveaway with the purchase of a Bebarfald-Bluebird sewing machine PLUS the fact that this was published in Sydney Australia, makes this a rare book. Some people like to remove the fashion plates to frame them, or else they simply fall out of the book, which means even if you purchased a book in good condition, you could still loose a plate accidentally.

So what can you tell me about the book?
This book is eye candy. It’s very fun, and gives a snapshot of the period, telling women what is culturally correct to wear, to think about in terms of fashion, and even helping them plan their wardrobes. Obviously, the sewing machine company had some smart people working for them, as the wardrobes listed were fairly large for the time period, and a woman had to sew and sew to achieve this many pieces for herself and her family.

It is a very nice colorful book that is enjoyable even today, and gives a good solid amount of fashion advice. All types of women’s bodies are listed, so that all women can look good and achieve their “best look” as well as a “foundation wardrobe” for themselves and their body type.

So fess up, how did you get a $200 book for free?
I traded it for a book I will be showing in this thread shortly.

Anything else you want to add?
I predict that the retail value of this book will rise as more copies deteriorate.

 

[Vintage Betty]

What’s in a name? Or buying books blindly online.

What’s in a name? Or buying books blindly online.
Part 2

In contrast to the above, here is another book of a similar name:

Harmony in Dress
By the Woman’s Institute of Domestic Arts & Sciences, Scranton, PA.
Originally published in 1924, my copy is the third printing, printed in 1933.
The book was originally printed in Great Britain, my copy was printed in the USA.

Retail price online $10-50
Price I paid $10

If you don’t know what you are searching for, this book with a similar name could easily be misunderstood for the book above. But actually, they are quite different.

First impressions count. This is part of a series of book by the International Textbook Company, who produced many thousands of copies of books for women during a specific time period. Look at the name of the publisher: International Textbook Company. That should immediately give you a clue that this isn’t an art book. The cover is actually a single color with a coated canvas, and reversed impression to give it the raised look of leather. Pretty clever technique, and pretty popular in publishing and printing, even today. It’s been made to stand up to the rigors of the classroom and the student; it’s definitely more waterproof than the book above, and is easily carried in a bookbag or purse. Note the page numbers are not consecutive; that is because the book is divided up into sections for the student to study.

So what about the paper? Is it also pulp?
Actually, no. It’s a better quality paper, coated in fact. The paper was also manufactured with students in mind. It has less acid, so it hasn’t browned as fast. And due to the fact that it’s a better quality and coated, it’s much more likely to resist stains.

Does it have any fashion plates?
No, and this is what makes this book less desirable and worth far less than the above book. It has printed images, but does have color plates, dealing with…color. It doesn’t have the very pretty women of all sizes, colors and body types like the first book. This is an instructional book first and a fashion book second. It is a practical book about teaching women basic fashion skills to keep the looking good and for them to keep their husbands. (see text).

Is this book in short supply?
Actually no. I found this copy online for $2.50 at a bookseller site last week. These are very common, and are part of a series published for the homemaker. Most people buy these separately, as not everyone is interested in the entire set. You can pick up one of these for as little as a couple bucks on ebay if you are patient. Since they were printed in the thousands, many women had them during this period, either as students in a school dedicated to homemaking, or purchased out of mail order catalogs.

Since they were made to withstand usage, that’s exactly what they are doing. My copy has a few bumps and chips (chips are bumps which remove a small bit of the cover), but is otherwise ok. After nearly 100 years, the pages are still tightly bound, the paper is bright and easily readable, and it can withstand normal reading.

So what do you recommend?
Set a low price and stick with it when searching for this book. It is easily found.

So what did we learn?
We learned that two books with very similar names and even subject matter can vary vastly in pricing, subject matter and art. We learned that books about fashion can cater to the select audience, whether it is someone who purchased a sewing machine in Australia or is a homemaker in the USA who needs fashion advice to keep a husband happy.

Should I play book roulette?
As long as you are willing to settle for something similar to what you want, and can be satisfied with your purchase, why not? For a couple bucks it is sometimes fun to purchase an unknown book. Just remember, the cost to return a book sometimes exceeds its value, so gamble within your means and enjoy the result.

 

[Vintage Betty]

It's been a while since I posted in this thread. Maybe I should rename it be:

Vintage Betty's Book of the Week and Than Some?
-------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Sixth and Seventh Book of Moses, Moses' Magical Spirit-Art

This book I originally owned in two editions:

The 1916 edition in green, and I believe the other edition was 1920 or so.

In the Victorian Era, it was commonplace to respect and communicate with the dead. From daguerreotypes of children and adults who have passed, to Victorian picnics on a relative's grave on a Sunday as a way of bringing the family closer to the deceased. It was believed that the spirits of loved ones were closest to earth in graveyards, and therefore, it was not unusual to spend time in that location as a sign of respect.

This book appears to have it's origins in the mid to late 1800's though a reviewer on Amazon states that the writer appears as early as post-1500's. The book offers spells and magical formulas of "The Old Ancient Writings and Famous Manuscripts of the Hebrews". It is certainly a fun book, full of hand-constructed tables, White Magic and references to Black Magic too.

In addition to the spells, my book came with a bit of melted purple wax from a previous owner, to infuse the seriousness of the spells. The pictorial examples display Hebrew, Egyptian Hieroglyphics, Greek, Arabic, Latin and Victorian symbology referring to death. As a rank amateur historian, I have a few problems with this book or the historical references discussed.

To begin, the book makes copious references to "Famous Manuscripts of the Hebrews." No manuscript of Ancient Hebrew that I am aware of included Latin, Victorian Symbols, Egyptian Hieroglyphics and the more modern day Aramaic. In addition, Latin began during the Roman empire (6th century BC to the 1st century BC), and that period was after the ancient Hebrew manuscripts were written, by just a few years.

The Hebrew in this book is hand-written, and unfortunately has a variety of problems: Some Hebrew letters are backwards or sideways, are incorrectly displayed and the final Hebraic letters ending the sentences are not displayed correctly. There are numerous grammatical errors which could be intentional, however, if these were taken "from ancient Hebrew manuscripts" the writer should not have used the modern handwritten form of Hebrew, but should have stayed with the formal Hebrew from documents, also known in circles as Hebrew Calligraphy or Calligraphic Hebrew. Some Hebrew letters are not factually based, but appear to be made up symbols, representing certain Hebrew letters known to exist 5000+ years ago.

In addition, Hebrew isn't the only language that appears to be mangled. The Latin also isn't grammatically correct, with incorrect familiar deritives of the root. And since when did the Ancient Hebrews mix the grammer with latter day Latin?

The English translation is period correct for the late 1800's but incorrect for the transliteration of common bibical names and these names are presented with old-fashioned grammatical spellings, thus making the spells incorrect by the incantation of the names included. Lots of fun to try if you want to, but if you are a serious student studying this antique book as a source of spells, it starts the student off incorrectly in multiple ways.

So why is this book still popular and why did it survive all these years?

The Edwardian era introduced the "dawn of new age" and ushered in the Victorian thought about death. Most persons believe that Queen Victoria was responsible for "long periods of mourning" but this is factually incorrect. The Victorian attitude to death and mourning was already in place before the Victorian era, and death was an event in which people reached out through seances, study and respect of the dead.

Since the Victorians didn't have television, it was common practice to have evening events such as seances, and books like these flourished, along with many practitioners of the "dark arts". There were many entertainers and charlatains participating in communicating with the dead. To have this type of book at your disposal as a cheap pulp hardbound book meant that you could bring the spirits into your home, without hiring a professional. And you could have your close friends and relatives participate, honoring your loved ones.

It's a fun book, and despite the errors, it's quite an entertaining read. You can get it on Amazon in a modern reproduced copy for as little as $6.

I traded the red copy for the Costume Book above. If memory serves me correctly, I paid $150 for the red edition, thus making the trade a fair one for everyone concerned.

 

[GwenLake]

Thank you so much for doing this, Miss Betty! I always learn something from your posts.

 

[kerry]

Yes thanks Betty, great thread!

 

[Mojito]

What’s in a name? Or buying books blindly online.
Part 1

The Magic of Color Harmony In Dress
By Mona Moncrieffe
Published by Bebarfald’s Ltd., Sydney
Copyright 1927

Must. Have.
Life not complete without!

It's too early to be doing up my birthday list, so I may have to spring for a copy myself. At least I'm in the right country!

 

[Vintage Betty]

Thanks ladies! Glad you are enjoying the thread.

More books coming soon!

Vintage Betty

 

[Shearer]

Vintage Betty - your last book post was just brought to my attention...

I vaguely remember talking to someone about these years ago... this type of thing is just my cup of tea!

Thanks so much for posting the originals... and thanks for the heads up about being able to find the reprints on Amazon.

 

[Vintage Betty]

Vintage Betty - your last book post was just brought to my attention...

I vaguely remember talking to someone about these years ago... this type of thing is just my cup of tea!

Thanks so much for posting the originals... and thanks for the heads up about being able to find the reprints on Amazon.

Yes, these are fun, aren't they? There are many different types old editions reprinted, so if you are interested in this type of genre, you should have a great time!

I'm so glad you are enjoying this thread - that makes it worthwhile for me!

Vintage Betty

 

[Vintage Betty]

The Wide-Awake Window Dresser by Frank L. Carr Jr. 1894

The Wide-Awake Window Dresser by Frank L. Carr Jr. 1894

When I was little, the lure of candy called me from shop windows. I could hear candy calling me, and it was so pretty! The local candy shop had wonderful displays, with bright, shiny colors of candy cascading from the top of the windows.

My admiration of store windows didn't end with candy. Unfortunately for my pocketbook, I spied toys, than clothes and personal goods in shop windows.

After I got older, I travelled and enjoyed the differences between cultures, presentations and goods in shop windows. Occasionally, I'd see something spectacular or different, and take pictures of the store windows. I finally went to New York a few years ago, and saw some of the famous Christmas windows. What a spectacular treat!

There are even websites devoted to the love of store windows and mannequins. Some are pretty amazing, as they include spectacular windows from around the world. These windows can include historical, unusual, seasonal and international windows.

As I had a mild interest in window displays, it never occured to me that I would be creating window displays for over six years. I ended up volunteering for a non-profit, which had two large windows built into the building design.

I filled the two windows once a month for for six years, and realized very quickly that window design wasn't as easy as it looked.

I had to create displays within the sizing requirements of the windows, with no budget.

I learned to recycle materials, hide duct tape to hold up displays, use a glue gun to hold up difficult materials and stack items vertically and horizontally. I learned to drape materials so they looked "pretty" and stack things so they didn't fall down.

I learned that rubber bands are your friends, and that many of the things you do in home decorating and repair can also be used in window dressing. Within a limited time frame, and low lights, you can even use the same materials.

What I didn't realize is that by volunteering to decorate a couple windows, it would start my interest in window displays from couture to historical.