Innehållsförteckning för September 2025 från Kovels Antique Trader

Q: I am interested in finding out more about this vase. Where is it from, the artist, and the value? The vase is 8 1/2 inches tall with 4-inch width. All sides are quite different, and it features a lot of gold. The elephant handles are cream colored with gold trim. The front and back are indented ½ inch with a raised mountain pagoda and tree. Both sides are painted scenes, and one side has a signature with four characters. There are no marks on the bottom. A: This one was a bit of a challenge. Antique pieces from China with Chinese characters can prove very difficult to translate or understand when done by hand. Fortunately, I do have several resources that offered help in the translation of this inscription;…

Hollywood costume designers help bring characters to life by creating clothing that visually communicates their personalities, social status, and emotional states. Some costume designs are so memorable that they become like characters themselves. But before the sumptuous gowns, stylish cocktail dresses, and dapper suits hit the silver screen, they start as costume sketches. These sketches, especially for movies from Hollywood’s Golden Age, have become hot commodities and are highly valued as pieces of art, fashion history, and film memorabilia. Collectors enthusiastically set their designs on a trove of costume sketches offered as part of Heritage Auctions’ Hollywood and Entertainment Signature Auction July 16-18 by legendary designers, including Edith Head, Hubert de Givenchy, and Walter Plunkett, who dressed some of the biggest stars— Audrey Hepburn, Grace Kelly, Vivien Leigh, Elizabeth Taylor—in…

Marilyn Monroe didn’t leave her wardrobe to chance. She understood how to stand out in the spotlight and dress for it. At one press event, she wore a silk cocktail dress that curved in all the right places. That wasn’t luck. That was Ceil Chapman (1912-1979). There’s no shortage of male designers from the mid-20th century who’ve been canonized. Dior, Givenchy, Balenciaga—their stories have been immortalized. Ceil Chapman worked for many of the same clients during the same years and produced clothes that were arguably more wearable, yet most people today wouldn’t recognize her name. But for two decades, she was the first call for many American starlets who needed to look luminous. Marilyn Monroe wore Ceil Chapman often. So did Elizabeth Taylor, Grace Kelly, and Debbie Reynolds. Some pieces…

Swizzle, the beloved Tiki restaurant and bar in Dallas, recently closed its brick-and-mortar doors, and I’ve been feeling the loss deep in my soul. I’ve been a fan of Tiki for years, but during my Swizzle years, I actually became a Tikiphile. I have truly come to appreciate the Tiki culture and the sense of community it fosters between all who participate. Swizzle in Dallas was never just an eatery or a place to get a cocktail. It was a hideaway, a full-sensory passport to somewhere far away. It served up more than cocktails and Polynesian-inspired plates (excellent Moco Loco!); it dished out friendships, memories, and a sense of belonging that’s rare in any space, let alone one filled with amazingly eclectic and totally vintage Tiki decor and dim lighting.…

To list your antiques-related event (show, auction, convention, etc.) for free in Kovels Antique Trader, and on our website, antiquetrader.com, email event information (date, location, contact information, times) at least six weeks in advance to: ATNews@aimmedia.com. Listings will be included on a space-available basis. Kovels Antique Trader assumes no responsibility for any show not listed in our print editions, but it will be listed in our online calendar. CALIFORNIA Every first Sunday of the month, Alameda. Alameda Point Antiques Faire, 3900 Maine St., Alameda, CA. The Alameda Point Antiques Faire is the largest antiques show in Northern California, boasting 800 dealer booths. All items are 20 years old or older. For more info, visit alamedapointantiquesfaire.com. Every second Sunday of the month, Pasadena. World’s largest flea market at the Rose Bowl,…

I was around nine or ten when my father, a WWII Navy veteran who had served in the Pacific Theater, took me to Yamashiro, a mountaintop restaurant nestled in the Hollywood Hills. Like many U.S. servicemen of his era, he had developed a lifelong fascination with Japanese and tropical culture from his time in the Pacific. Yamashiro, with its amazing panoramic views, koi ponds, and winding lantern-lit paths, was the kind of place that reflected that postwar fascination. I was awestruck. The beauty of the water features, the mystery of the paper lantern-lit dining rooms, and the overwhelming sense of being somewhere far away made a lasting impression on me. When I returned in 2005, the magic hadn’t faded. By then, I was already fully onboard the Tiki train. I…

Whether you’re a museum professional, a collector of antique textiles, or a fashion history enthusiast, a sale by Augusta Auctions is always cause for excitement. Augusta Auctions, known as “North America’s premier auction house for historic costume, vintage fashion, accessories and rare textiles,” will hold this year’s edition of its highly anticipated Autumnal Elegance Auction on Wednesday, September 24, 2025. The auction will be held remotely, with previews available by appointment through Monday, September 22. Augusta Auctions was created in 2000 by textile expert Karen Augusta, a member of The Costume Society of America and The Textile Society of America and served as an appraiser for thirteen years on Antiques Roadshow on PBS. Auctions are held remotely and in Vermont, Massachusetts, and New York City and attract the attention of…

A rare 1940s men’s streetwear gem reflecting American cultural history was the star lot at Augusta Auctions’ Brooklyn Museum Textiles, International Quilt Museum & Vintage Store Stock Auction on June 18. Collectors were so eager to get the vintage zoot suit that they pushed it to $15,000*—three times its high estimate of $5,000. The two-piece wool-blend suit from 1940-1945 features cream and charcoal shadow and pinstripes, and oversized trousers with the characteristic high waist and cuffed flared legs typical of these garments. Originating in Harlem, New York, in the late 1930s, zoot suits were adapted from the London “drape” suit popularized by the Duke of Windsor, Edward VIII. Young men in Black and Latino-American communities across the United States made more eccentric changes to the silhouette. As zoot suits became…

Romain de Tirtoff was told early in his career that he lacked talent for fashion design and was fired. Fortunately, he didn’t let that stop him, and over the next 80 years, the renowned Russianborn artist, better known as Erté, beguiled the world with his brilliance. Dubbed the “Father of Art Deco,” Erté’s costume and fashion designs shaped that ground-breaking movement. They left an indelible mark on the visual aesthetics of the 20th century that still inspires today. Whether it’s his glamorous gouaches of beautiful women draped in sumptuous attire, his sparkling jewelry, his sophisticated bronze sculptures, or a myriad of other designs, Erté also left a legacy for captivated collectors and Art Deco enthusiasts, who avidly seek his pieces. Early Life and Influences Romain de Tirtoff was born into…

Since the arrival of the first model at the turn of the century, Tiffany lampshades have been treasured for their beauty, as they are composed of geometrically shaped, colorful stained glass placed together with copper foil in the Art Nouveau style. They are so treasured that when presented at auction, sales often go over $100,000, as seen at Fontaine’s Auction Gallery’s May 31 event, where a famed Tiffany Studios Daffodil table lamp garnered over $212,000. Credit for this innovative design is often given to designer Louis Comfort Tiffany, the founder of Tiffany Studios and son of Charles Lewis Tiffany. However, many of these iconic styles today originated not from the mind of the Tiffany heir, but rather from the skilled eye of glass designer Clara Driscoll. In 1888, Driscoll moved…