Springtime is rattan time

— Carmela, Boynton Beach, Fla.

A Rattan sets are a signature look for warmer climates. Vintage sets — with large, comfy cushions often covered with tropical prints in a nubby period weave — invite lounging. Currently, sets made in the 1930s and '40s are in transition: The generation that bought them new is dying off or passing them on to children. Others want to sell.

Rattan is a tropical plant in the palm family. Most of it comes from the Philippines. Before it became a fashion statement in furniture, wicker predominated. But wicker designs were delicate and fussy, and the willow originally used was expensive. When furniture design became streamlined, rattan came into vogue.

Rattan furniture has been made for more than 100 years. Some so-called "modern" pieces from the 1930s are stunning and very sought after. In the 1940s, California embraced the tropical look. It then spread into warm coastal areas. After designer Paul Frankel created a signature arm design for rattan furniture, it went mainstream in a big way.

By the 1950s, America's building boom created homes with indoor porches, where rattan fit the look of blond midcentury design. By then, several companies mass-produced all kinds of affordable rattan furniture, from seating to screens, cabinets, home bars and so forth. Many were knockoffs of high-end designs.

Judging from the photos you sent, this set, including a three-cushion couch, appears to be in good to excellent condition. The cushions look like replacements. Four joined bands or tubes of rattan form the chair and couch arms and legs.

Dan Alias, co-owner of the Broadway Antique Market in Chicago, has sold a fair number of rattan sets. The large, multidealer shop, which specializes in 20th-century design, is online at www.bamchicago.com.

"It's all about the bands," Alias said. The most desired pieces, then and still today, have six wrapped or stacked bands. Wrapping involves rattan strips wound in a decorative manner at points of juncture — where arms meet crosspieces, for example. Or they are simply used as decoration. Four-band sets may be attractive but not prime. This set has no wrapping. Joints are nailed with no covering.

In "Rattan: Tropical Comfort Throughout the House" (Schiffer, $39.95), author Harvey Schwartz agrees regarding bands. The text adds that intricate "pretzel" bends contribute to value, as do decorative and well-wrapped joints. Sets should have few dark spots or stem nodes. And the older the pieces are, the better.

"In the spring, people want rattan," Alias added. "By late summer, they are a tough sell — and certainly not top dollar." For that reason, Florida and other warm, coastal areas are best when it comes to resale. Alias pegged current retail for the four-banded set at $1,500 to $1,800, depending on condition.

Q I have two Vogue picture records that I know must be valuable, because I've had them since the late 1940s.

— Laura, East Machias, Maine

A Smart collectors know that age does not automatically confer value — not even on vinyl records, knowing that for most people they have gone the way of the dodo. Many old items are valueless, while some pieces made last year are priceless. Value happens because of demand. Period.

Vogue picture records are so named because the company pressed a color image into the vinyl during production. As such, they are novelties. Big money goes to the rare and unusual, such as early rock 'n' roll or rockabilly, or records made before an artist was famous.

You have record authority Jerry Osborne's word on this: The best place to research realized prices for Vogue records is completed sales on eBay. He found your records there at $61 and $25.49. Online is also the best way (some say the only way) to sell those Vogues.

Watch for the 18th edition of Osborne's "Official Price Guide to Records" (House of Collectibles, $25.95). Key www.jerryosborne.com for Jerry's "Rockin' Records 2007," a guide to records that count. Content is arranged by artist.

» Auction action

A complete set of all 12 issues of "Suspense Comics," printed between 1943 and 1946, sold for $6,194 recently in a Mastro Auctions Classic Collector auction, largely because the set was complete and in excellent condition. What are the odds of an entire run of period comics having intact, tight, bright covers and perfect contents? The sale, conducted entirely over the Internet, featured more than 1,800 lots of sports and Americana. Sale results totaled more than $2.6 million.