Kim Kovel

BOX OUT TIP: Ordinary beer is great for cleaning a gilded mirror frame. Just pour it on a soft rag, rub gently, and dry.

Some designers become so popular that their name becomes synonymous with their style. This can make matters confusing for collectors. Duncan Phyfe furniture is one of the most famous examples.

What could be more representative of early American furniture than a Federal mirror? While the term can describe several types of mirrors, including

The invention of the electric light bulb didn't just introduce an improved, more convenient, safer light source. It gave designers new inspiration.

There is a general rule in antiques: If it makes a sound (and is supposed to), it's worth something. The rule usually refers to chiming clocks, music boxes, instruments, and noisemaking toys. If you look into the history of these items, you can start to see some similarities. While mechanical musical devices have existed for hundreds of years and appeared in stories even older than that, the music box is believed to be the invention of a Swiss watchmaker in the late 18th century.

Terry and Kim Kovel Updated l BOX OUT TIP: TIP: To find a small crack in porcelain or glass, try this. Put the piece on a table.

Biscuit tins, first made about 1830, were some of the earliest commercial food packages. The first tin toys were made about the same time.

Blue and white ceramics have been made all over the world, from Chinese porcelain to Dutch delft to the cobalt blue decorations on American stoneware. One type, Hirado ware, comes from Japan. Its name comes from the Hirado Domain, which lasted from 1587 until 1871, when the domain system was abolished. It is still made today and is also known as Mikawachi ware, after the kilns that produced it. It is available in several styles and colors, including all-white pieces, but the blue-and-white designs are the most famous -- and most collectible.

Ice cream and carnivals are two of summer's best treats, but, for glass collectors, they are a delight any time of the year. Ice cream bowls are a favorite type of carnival glass; their size and shape make them an excellent showcase for the rich colors, pressed patterns, and iridescence.

For art glass collectors, a peachblow vase can be as much of a treat as a perfectly ripe peach at the peak of its season. Peachblow is one of the many types of two-tone art glass popular in the late Victorian era.