Hi Sycorreale, Welcome to the painting forum. Like all things,the popularity of painting seems to go in cycles. The 80's, 90's and early 2000 really were exciting times for those of us who enjoy painting. There were lots of little shops selling books and supplies and where you could take classes. Most of those are gone now, the ones that remain are usually Multi-craft type stores and the big guys like Michael's, Joanne's, Hobby Lobby, etc. However, there is still the Society of Decorative Painters and several online places where you can buy books and wood. In fact there are some posts on this forum that list places online where you can buy books and even a post of places where you can find free patterns too. I wish we had a way to keep those posts at the top of the page, but am told there's not. You might just try the search box to find them. If that doesn't work, come back and tell me and I'll find them and bump them back to the top of the main page for you. As for the styles you mentioned, they sort of went hand in hand with the Country and Primitive style decorating that was popular at that time. Primitive, Realistic, Shabby Chic, are all still pretty popular. Luvs

My favorite sites for books are:

www.artistsclub.com (look in the clearance section)

http://www.viking-publications.com/
(every other month they offer a selection of books at $2 or below)

and http://www.painting-books.com/ (Susan Scheewe's site)

All of the above sites offer great values on decortaive painting books on a regular basis.

you might check your local library, as they tend to keep old books forever. I would go to the main county branch to see what they have on hand. OR several of the local "antique/collectibles stores may have some or know of an old book dealer to contact. Good luck!

l.marie