Combining stunning visuals of both exciting and rare designs with an insightful text, this history shows the new pathways in fashion design development which have forever changed the way we dress today. It features 75 of the world's most legendary designers, their personal lives and innovative collections over the last century from Hermès, Worth, Burberry, Gucci, Chanel, Schiaparelli, Balenciaga, Hartnell, Dior, Balmain, Cardin, Givenchy, Oscar de la Renta, Ungaro, Armani, Mary Quant, Barbara Hulanicki, Yves Saint Laurent, Issey Miyake, Ralph Lauren, Vivien Westwood, Calvin Klein, Ossie Clark, Jil Sander, Paul Smith, Versace, Donna Karan, Prada, Lacroix, Jean Paul Gaultier, Helmut Lang, Dries Van Noten, Dolce & Gabbana, John Galliano, Tom Ford, Marc Jacobs, Alexander McQueen and Gareth Pugh among them. Arranged in a broadly chronological order, the book uses boxed features to display key dates, pull quotes and one glamorous full page left hand example of the designer's work, often modelled by celebrities, models or actresses like Yves Saint Laurent's muse Catherine Deneuve wearing a strictly tailored double-breasted velvet coat in 1970. One exceptionally glamorous image is Valentino's last haute couture show in Paris in 2008 with a finale seeing the models wearing identical backless, signature red bias-cut column dresses. Brocade, sequins, florals, denim, Twiggy modelling Biba, Peggy Moffitt wearing a sleeveless mini dress with a central plastic strip and houndstooth patterned boots from 1966, or David Bowie's Ziggy Stardust costumes by Yamamoto, this is a visual feast. 312 huge pages in sturdy softback, 19.7 x 29.2cm.
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A box set containing 50 stunning colour postcards showcasing some of the unique specimens and architectural gems of the Natural History Museum. Ranging from the amazing to the amusing, they are stored in a chunky keepsake box with and internal ribbon. The giant panda, a gorilla, famous scientists and botanists, the famous museum staircase, sculptures and drawings, a cheeky giraffe peeping from under the famous arches, and of course Dippy the Diplodocus and other famous artifacts, the collection represents the fascinating history of plants and flowers through exquisite botanical prints to keep, send or frame. Specimens and antique black and white photographs all printed on large quality postcards with a very brief description on the back. 50 unique images.

Dubbed the 'Bible of the Antiques Trade', this 43rd anniversary handbook remains the essential and trusted guide which no collector, dealer or auctioneer should be without. It is compiled by Judith Miller, the world-renowned antiques expert and co-founder, who selects the year's 8,000-plus featured antiques. Sections cover ceramics, furniture, glass, silver and metalware, jewellery and objets de vertu, clocks and watches, books, Asian antiques, textiles, toys, porcelain, scientific instruments, Russian antiques, lighting, architectural accessories, Bible art, musical instruments, and modern decorative art to collect like Clarice Cliff, de Morgan, Doulton, Raskin and more. Since the UK edition is rarely remaindered (and probably pulped!) we have imported this most recent 2022 edition with helpful guideline prices in US dollars. The beautiful layout, thousands of colour photographs and brief descriptions and Judith's Picks make this a browser's delight. 600 pages, 20.45 x 27cm, colour coded pages through glass to furniture, samplers and collectable books.

Showcasing the greatest collection of inspirational product design, here are 500 of the most innovative, beautiful products from the last five centuries that are still in production today. The book includes not only classic objects by Breuer, Le Corbusier, Eames, Castiglioni and Philippe Starck, but also anonymously designed pieces that have achieved perfection in design and functionality. These objects have shaped our society and improved the function of homes, offices and public buildings all over the world and this accessible guide documents not only the history of design, but also the history of taste and culture. We can appreciate by way of a half page colour photograph the object beautifully photographed together with the designer, dates and summary. Among our favourites are the Nuvola Rossa Bookcase of 1977 with its collapsable frame and six removable shelves, Ellen Levy's Aluminium Shelving Brackets, Starck's Ará Lamp of 1988, Post-It Notes 1980, Frank Gehry's Wiggle Chair of 1972, the Moulton Bicycle, the Tulip Chair, the Bisley Multi-drawer Cabinet of 1951, Alessi's Coffee Service of 1945 and more chairs and day beds and tables and the US tunnel mailbox and the Moleskine notebook (1850) and right back to Chinese Scissors of 1663 and the Arare Teapot of the 1700s, the Yale Cylinder Lock and the Swiss Army Knife of 1891. Compact, classy heavyweight, 500 colour photos, 512 pages.
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With their iconic tiny yellow square heads and expressive features like scowling eyebrows, happy smiles, pirate eye patch and stubble, or clowns and hundreds of thousands more, the LEGO minifigure, often referred to as a minifig, is the small plastic articulated figurine made of special LEGO bricks and produced by Danish building toy manufacturer the LEGO Group since 1978. Usually found within LEGO sets they are also incredibly popular collectables sold separately. The little yellow figurine has never looked back and over 40 years exploded into a pop-culture phenomenon. Deceptively simple in design and yet endlessly adaptable, it is a true work of art. This landmark volume explores the making of an icon and its colourful history, milestone moments, evolving design, and lasting impact with compelling interviews and essays, lush photography and never-before-seen visuals from inside the LEGO archives and beyond. A beloved toy, a singular global icon, the minifigure is one of the most recognisable toys on the planet, synonymous with the joy of play and the power of imagination and endless expression. Packed with colour photos, 144 large pages, 23.5 x 28.5cm.
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A Victoria and Albert Museum publication reprinted many times, we have the now rare 2012 latest edition cataloguing 120 masterpieces from the Ceramics Collections at the V&A, one of its greatest glories. The museum was founded originally as a museum of manufacturers to display both historic and contemporary artifacts as examples for students of design, and from the start ceramics formed a substantial part of the collections. The museum also started to buy historic ceramics, mostly of the Renaissance period, and received major gifts and bequests including Italian and French Renaissance pottery, Dutch Delftware and in 1884 over 1,500 English ceramics were added following a generous donation. China has contributed more to the worldwide development of ceramics than any other country, and in the opinion of some, the wares of the Song and Ming dynasties set a standard of artistic excellence that has never been surpassed. Trade in ceramics between China, the Middle East and Europe led to a cross-pollination between the potting traditions of these lands, criss-crossing the globe. Both lustre painting and tin-glazing were widely practiced in Spain during and following the years of Islamic rule and exported in considerable quantities to late Medieval Italy where it was greatly admired and imitated. From Italy knowledge of the tin-glazed process percolated throughout Western Europe where it dominated fine ceramic production until the 18th century, when tough, inexpensive earthenwares from Staffordshire finally drove it out of the market. Italian Renaissance Maiolica is celebrated for its polychromed figure decoration, and much 18th century French and German faïence was made in imitation of contemporary European porcelain, but a great deal of Dutch and English Delftware was inspired by Chinese blue-and-white, a costly and exotic import. Industry and art and how trade and cultural interchange has shaped potting tradition is celebrated in this magnificent volume, conceived as a visual timeline. Outstanding new photographs reveal an array of stunning pieces from dramatic Chinese funerary sculpture to exquisitely painted Italian Renaissance pottery and bold modernist wares. Tea sets, vases, coffee pots, soup tureens, tankards, and a spectacular flower pyramid, much to enjoy in these hundreds of colour photos. 144 large pages, 22 x 27.5cm.

With its streamlined shapes and forward-looking approach, the Art Deco style still looks modern today. In the 1920s and 30s, designers and craftsmen made innovative use of both natural and man-made materials to produce elegant pieces that broke with tradition and celebrated the future. In this magnificent heavyweight compendium, antiques expert Judith Miller explores the key makers and pieces of the movement, explaining what to look for as a collector. The key areas of collecting she covers are furniture, glass, ceramics, sculpture, metalwork, silver and plastics, prints and posters, rugs and textiles, all with their clean lines, bright colours and bold motifs. Art Deco cocktail paraphernalia, streamlined radios and travel posters advertising exotic destinations catered for new leisure pursuits and designers such as Emile-Jacques Ruhlmann and René Lalique produced beautiful furniture and glassware for the luxury market. See bronze and ivory, a graphic gallery, animal sculptures, often in bronze depicting sleek panthers on wedge-shaped marble bases or and Erté cold-painted bronze of a woman in theatrical costume, French gilded bronze and enamel clocks, a rare table clock by Cartier in rose quartz and shaped like an egg, wrought-iron items with strong vertical lines and bowls and candlesticks and cocktail stands which are utilitarian and extraordinarily beautiful in their aesthetic design. One of the most renowned silversmiths was Denmark's Georg Jensen (1866-1935) whose silverware in geometric and aesthetically elegant curves and designs remain beautiful to this day. There is an enamelled glass gallery, Italian colourful glass and collectable figures whether in the Egyptian or the Wiener Werkstätte mould. 241pp, 25 x 28cm, hundreds of colour photos.
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