HALLOWEEN EPHEMERA collected

If you're not familiar with some of the books of ephemera that Taschen has published you're missing out on some serious visual candy. One worth putting in your collection is Halloween: Vintage Holiday Graphics. A volume with page after page after page of wonderful imagery: postcards, photos of children in costumes, illustrations from children's books, masks, advertisements, etc. This will not be a book you'll

 thumb through once and put on the shelf. You'll be back to this one over and over again and each time you'll see things you didn't remember seeing the last time you picked it up. Okay, I'll say it...I give it two thumbs up. Thumbs seriously covered with chocolate from that Snickers bar I forgot about that's now melted into the seam of the bottom of my trick or treat bag. 

VALENTINE, VALENTINE, wherefore art thou?

I also collect valentines. Well, I have a few dozen, nothing more. I have to draw the line somewhere. I still love looking at them. Wonderful illustrations meant to bring some sort of gut reaction. Usually they just make me smile. 

There's a wonderful book put out by Taschen entitled Valentines: Vintage Holiday Graphics which is nothing more than page after page of valentines. It really runs the gamut from romantic to pure silly. No information is given about any of the illustrators. I fear that information is long since gone. But I do find work in the book that is similar to some in my collection. I can imagine people searching and searching for one particular illustrator. Good luck with that. 

I've posted a link in the left column to the book at Amazon where you can read more about it. Don't be alarmed that it says French and German edition. This simply refers to the preface which is provided in English, French, and German. There's no text in the rest of the book. And the trim size is very nice. Makes a nice reference book or a wonderful gift for someone who loves valentines.