Thursday, January 27, 2011

Vintage Valentines - Pete Hawley Illustrations





Just sharing some vintage Valentine photos with you!   Busy listing tons of vintage cards in my store -- many, many more up this week and next.  I believe all the cards in this post have Pete Hawley illustrations.  Pete Hawley was an illustrator who was very popular in the 1940's - 1960's;  you may recognize his work from magazine illustrations of that time.  His illustrations of children were especially charming.  Very nice remembrance of the artist located here: blog article on Pete Hawley's life and art.

Wednesday, January 19, 2011

Mechanical Valentines

I really love mechanical Valentines.   They are vintage cards that have a moving piece that adds special character to the card.  They were especially popular from the 1920's to 1940's.  I listed a mechanical Valentine today that I absolutely love.  It combines everything I like most about vintage Valentine cards.  There is a cute dog (a Beagle howling), a sweet child (little 1940's vintage girl who reminds me of the girls in the Moffatt Family series of books by Eleanor Estes), and it is mechanical.  You can raise the little girl's left arm to sit on the piano keys as she plays music along with her dog.  It is so incredibly sweet!   Right now it's located in my store at Piano themed mechanical Valentine here.   And of course I have more mechanical Valentines (and many more on the way, the next couple of weeks) in my store:  selection of mechanical Valentines at Birdhouse Books.

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

World War II Vintage Valentines for Children

I love, love, love these 1940's vintage die-cut Valentines for children and just had to share them with you!  They are all in my store -- 1940's Valentine cards at Birdhouse Books on eBay.

This is my personal favorite card in my store -- a sweet little girl with her Scottish Terrier by an old fashioned grandfather clock:


A cute little cat watches a goldfish in a fish bowl:


A dressed goat - almost in an Uncle Sam outfit - tips his top hat:

A precious little kitten wears a dress and flowered bonnet:


This is a very large card with unusual illustration -- Freixas ??   It depicts a girl juggling:


Another of my favorites -- a sweet little yellow Terrier - maybe a Jack Russell or JRT mix - waits at an old fashioned school house door:



Monday, January 17, 2011

New Clearance Section in My Store

Hi all! 

Just a note to let you know that I have a new clearance section in my vintage store -- Birdhouse Books on eBay.  You'll find over 300 goodies at a low sale price -- for a limited time only, as these items are being discontinued in my store.   They include vintage children's books like this cute 1960's vintage Wonder Book:


A great selection of CDs, like this Great American Songbook album by Tony Bennett:


Many vintage Roadside Americana postcards -- all with free shipping:



Vintage cookbooks like this cute retro recipe book from the 1960's featuring almonds:



... and lots of little surprises, like this vintage Pug dog figurine:



They're all waiting at this link:  new clearance section at Birdhouse Books

Thursday, January 6, 2011

Baby Boomer Vintage Valentines for Children





Just sharing a few vintage Valentines for children (all unused die-cut cards) from my store.  My favorite is the little girl who is painting a card with the help of her Dachshund.  Which do you like best?