Olden Days Beaded Handbag
These days an average woman’s handbag measures roughly sixteen by twelve inches. We fill them with a cellphone or tablet, make up, money, ID, vaccination record, dog potty bags, wallet, …
Mystery of a Loved Ewer
LD owns an ewer and basin she has known of for her 80 years. She writes about her parent’s life stories, and she asked me to piece together the ownership. …
Bricks Go Back Thousands of Years
JF sent me a photo of his lovely entry hall. He added a piece he found at a thrift store, a series of antique drawers, actually old wooden boxes. I …
Saarinen Solved Furniture Problem
TP asked me to research what she thought might be a Saarinen design in a consignment store find. I eagerly researched her pedestal table and four tulip chairs. The question …
What to do with a piano
My mother was a concert pianist, thus I have been intimate with all types of pianos, and appraised pianos for years. Many of my clients DO own an upright, a …
Hengeler and Roeseler Illustrated Flavor of an Era
Two artists received top billing for illustrations in this book, Adolf Hengeler (1863-1927) and August Roeseler (1866-1943). The entire flavor of an era comes contained in this one little book. …
Hotel Hamper Led to Laborious Laundry
JP sent me a photo of a huge linen hamper, four by five-and-a-half feet of woven willow, which indicates a European origin. People saw these beasts in hotel corridors in …
Masking Through the Eyes of Michelangelo’s David
I love my amusing and clever readers who connect historical objects with present day realities. Santa Barbara reader FR sent me a twenty-five inch MASK she collected in Venice in …
Porcelain Dish Once Deemed “White Gold”
RE loves her blue turquoise oval porcelain dish with images of two exotic birds. She wonders why she likes it so much. MAYBE because of its VAST history, and at …
How to JUDGE a Painting
JS owns an oil on canvas with no signature. The back reads “Carmel Art Association.” She wonders if I consider the painting good enough for her to do considerable research …