Shopping Books

I used this book and the 1999 version of "Shopping for Furniture" by the same author when I moved in 2004. I had absoultely no knowledge about furniture, live in NYC where prices are high and had limited financial resources. This was the first time in my life that I was going to buy a large quantity of furniture at one time. I had heard about the North Carolina furniture outlets, but with a small child I did not have the ability to go there. Having faith in the merchandising power of the internet, I bought this book and "Shopping for Furniture" and proceeded to search. Through e-mails, and armed with the knowledge and terminology set forth in Mr. Lewin's books, I was able to find out a lot in regard to the quality and pricing for many pieces. I had been told by one manufacturer that I was "very educated" regarding the construction of furniture.
Through the use of both books I learned what to look for in a quality piece and how to go about finding the furniture I wanted for the best prices. Although I did not use the any of the merchants listed in these books, I did use the information in them as a springboard for finding other merchants.
I did look for furniture makers that Mr. Lewin recommended, searching their lines on the internet, finding out where they sold in my area, and going to these stores to check them out in person. Thanks to Mr. Lewin, I was able to rule out a lot of pieces that looked good but actually were quite poor in quality. For example, each time I opened a drawer on a piece and I noticed that it did not contain dove-tailed joints, I immediately closed the drawer and walked away, knowing that it was an inferior piece of furniture and that it would not last.
For my bedroom furniture I decided I wanted Louis Phillipe furniture manufactured by Pennsylvania House (which no longer makes furniture in the USA), a company on the same level as Ethan Allen which waas not really affordable for me). Through the internet I found a merchant whose prices were excellent. Since the merchant was not listed in Mr. Lewin's book, I e-mailed him and he immediately responded that the furniture was good quality, the price was excellent and the seller was reputable. I was able to furnish my bedroom for approx. $5,500 when using local merchants would have cost me well over $10,000 for the same furniture.
My dining room and entertainment unit I got for $2800 fully delivered when locally I would have had to pay $3500 for the same pieces (on sale for Memorial Day)plus local tax (which is high here in NY) and delivery. I figure that buying locally would have cost over $4200 for the same pieces.
Thanks to these books I was able to get alot of "bang for my buck" insofar as furnishing my house was concerned. Not only did I get info from the books but I also was able to receive advice and info from Mr. Lewin who was happy to hear from me and most gracious with his quick responses.
One of my colleagues is in the process of furnishing a new home and I have highly recommended that she buy these books, since she wants to get good quality furniture for as little expenditure as possible. I really look foward to seeing what she comes up with.

Interesting that a book advertised to help you navigate the internet and avoid rip offs is the biggest rip off itself. All of the links are to search engines or are outdated and the authors email is no longer valid. All the other info you can find yourself. Save your money and dont buy this book!!

The author hasn't a clue as to how to negotiate with the Chinese and does not give the correct warnings or prices. She is a "princess". I just returned from my 31st trip to China. There is almost no silk or original merchandise at the Silk Market. However, it is a lot of fun. There is not a shirt or blouse there that cannot be bought for 30 yuan ($3.60). North Face knockoffs can be bought for 130 yuan ($15.60) for their most expensive long jacket. Pearls at the Hong Qiao (Pearl) Market are of very low quality. Most strands cost about 100 yuan ($12). Learn the difference between salt water and fresh water pearls and how to tell the quality difference. Know how to tell if the pearls are fake before you go there. The fourth floor stores are just a different form of marketing pearls so don't be fooled by their nicer western look. Remember that only the store knows their price - and they will only sell to you if they can make a profit. Always walk away after making an what you may consider an absurd offer and after you let them know that you really want to buy the item. Make them make at least two offers before you make your absurd offer. There is not relationship between their initial offfer and what the item is worth. All this takes a lot of time so be prepared. Comparison shop before buying. All stores carry the same items.

I purchased Suzy's last edition on Hong Kong, to guide me around this great shopping city. It was very helpful. She tells you the places to forget, and the places not to be missed. When I heard that she was releasing a new edition with Shanghai & Beijing, I purchased it also, for an upcoming trip to Beijing. I was a little disapointed to find that she had trimmed alot off of the Hong Kong section to make room for the mainland cities. But it's still a must have if shopping is on your "to do" list. Suzy seemed to list all the things I wanted to buy on my trip, she does have impecable taste.

Suzy's Hong-Kong only book was wonderful. It recommended specific shops, not just neighborhoods, for every type of good imaginable. It also gave fantastic hints like where not to bother looking if you wear a size on the upper end of the spectrum.

The new book including Shanghai and Beijing is next to worthless. All of the shop recommendations for HK have been ommited. Some of my favorites from "Born to Shop Hong Kong", like Gemsland in the Mandarin Hotel, deserve to be mentioned as providing amazing service, great quality and reasonable prices to every visitor planning on coming to HK.

I purchased the book in preparation for an upcoming trip to Shanghai. With the exception of the overview of the markets, very little else was of use. There are almost no local shop (non-department store) recommendations and suggestions for totally random (and useless?) things like wedding photos. In fact it only gives shopping suggestions for 9 categories- and included in that 9 are things like Drugstores. How are you going to Shop til You Drop in a drugstore?

Additionally, the index is horrible. There is a whole paragraph on the Hoabao Building in the Yu Gardens, but good luck finding any reference to it in the index. This is just one example, there are many more.

I was so disappointed in this book. Entirely way too much time spent on travel logistics. Anyone going to China is not going to purchase this book as their sole resource guide. Leave the logistics to those who do it best, and spend more time on where to shop!

this book and others in this series are not worthy books of their price. They are small size, without much color, too much text, not presented well. I am dissapointed

"You get what you pay for" The information was nothing new. It had some good points and summaries. I would not put this publication on the top of my best buys list.

Looking for a map of New York for an upcoming trip I purchased this one. Only after I received it did I find that it is too small to read. Other than a novelty item it is totally useless and I had to buy a second map.

This book is great if you haven't had your baby yet. I bought it when my baby was 9 months old. Most of the information was useless by then (lots of maternity and infant info).

This book is a disappointment. Honestly, you'd find better information on Portland Citysearch or any website that compiles family stuff.

The book doesn't list hours and days that places are open. That's a drag when you drive your whole family somewhere (not easy with a baby!) and it's CLOSED MONDAYS.

I've only used this book a few times and find it hardly useful. There are quite a few brands and products that I use that aren't listed in this book. This book is small and difficult to use. There also seems to be a stong bias to certain brands only. You'll get just as much use reading the back of packages yourself or reading the plastic bags in the produce department. Don't waste you money.

by this author. I was so unimpressed. There was just nothing to satisfy the hunger the name of this book had built up. Every site I came across, in Fashion, either was already known or ho-hum! I will say, I pretty much limited my initial quest to shoes, bags, jewelry - the fashion things. I did not look at the men's clothing, home stuff, etc, and I am, now, not motivated to do so.

The author does get a star for the idea and a star for actually getting the book published. Next time, make it "knock-a-door-down" full of juicy, juicy!

Great idea! Flat delivery!

I moved to the Portland area early 2001 and bought or got 3-4 books on the area. I bought this one but didn't realize this was published in 1998.
Besides being out of date, I found it lacking in content compared to many of the others. It did have good info on restaraunts.
Look at a few other books or citisearch for the latest and greatest.