My Fashion Life

Are we living in the “fugliest” era of all time? Fashion bloggers, Heather Cocks and Jessica Morgan of Go Fug Yourself think so.

And to mark this moment in history they’ve written a book that’s just as addictive as their blog.

Go Fug Yourself presents The Fug Awards, dishes out awards such as, “The Sag Awards”, “Put it away” and “The Cher-Alike” to those celebrities responsible for the most atrocious crimes against fashion.

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I’ve had a review copy of fashion editor, Hadley Freeman’s new book for a while now but only just recently managed to sit down and have a proper read of the fashion bible that’s being dubbed an “A-Z of fashion and style”.

It’s titled The Meaning of Sunglasses and in it Freeman dissects everything fashion related - from Topshop to low slung belts to drugs and of course sunglasses. No major trend, personality or irony goes uncovered. For the fact that I can completely relate, my choice topic had to be “Fashion shows”. Here’s a favourite quote,

“Fashion journalists like to think that they are the most important people at the show and the sit on the sidelines like Roman emperors while the designer waits with bated breath to see if their manicured thumb will point up or down. They are disabused of this illusion when they are kept waiting for two hours……because front-row guest Tori Spelling hasn’t arrived yet.”

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Upon first glance of the title, “Wife Dressing: The Fine Art of Being a Well-Dressed Wife”, which was first penned in 1959 by model and designer, Anne Fogarty, I instantly thought that this recently re-released “how-to” book would be outdated or even degrading for on-the-go, modern day women like ourselves.

I mean, we’ve come a long way from the days when career women were the new breed, and when wearing petticoats, pearls and white gloves at home on a Sunday afternoon were the standard.

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We had a fabulous time Tuesday night at the book release party for Susan Redstone’s newly published fashion bible aptly titled “JUST TRY IT ON! A Month by Month Guide to Shopping and Style.” The soiree was held at the Alison Nelson’s Chocolate Bar in the style guru’s favourite department store in NYC, Henri Bendel, and the venue was packed and absolutely abuzz in celebration of her new book.

With years of experience in fashion journalism and as a stylist, and a self-declared thrifty shopper at heart, Susan has been a go-to style expert for fashion mags like Elle and In Style and has appeared on major network TV programs as a guest fashion commentator.

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With all the style guides around right now it’s getting harder and harder to impress us. So when we received the recent addition to the pack, Great Style: Best Ways to Update Your Look - written by Jenny Levin, senior editor and writer at Harpers Bazaar - we thought we were getting a coffee table book with gorgeous pictures. We were half right. The pictures are stunning but most importantly they are relevant. However it’s packed full with so much great advice and info that we just can’t relegate it to the coffee table. Instead it now has a permanent home on our bedside table.

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Trying to break into the “biz” but don’t know where to start? Kym Canter, creative director of J. Mandel, penned Star Von Bunny A Model Tale – an adorable tongue-in-cheek look at how a small, furry, unconventional-looking model made her way into the inner circles of fashion and Hollywood.

The book serves as a true rags to riches memoire of Star Von Bunny, a stuffed animal hailing from Hallmark, who steadily and confidently paws her way to supermodel status.

In the book, Star divulges secrets to breaking into the industry, offers health and beauty tips, favorite L.A. hangouts, and even shares personal photos of herself with high profile rock star, designer, and celebrity friends (including Bono, Beyonce, Nina Garcia, and Christie Turlington!).

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These days the stylistically challenged have no shortage of fashion guides with snappy names and cumbersome subtitles. Want to look like Nicole Richie? Read Style A to Zoe: The Art of Fashion, Beauty, & Everything Glamour. Or learn how to make it work with Tim Gunn: A Guide to Quality, Taste, and Style. And for those in search of a more individual look, there’s the newly released Japanese Schoolgirl Inferno, a handbook that instructs its readers on the latest in Tokyo street fashion.

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I’ve never been a huge fan of style books that claim they’ll tell you the best places to shop and how to dress perfectly. Reading about how to buy shoes may be amusing while browsing at the book store, but it’s hard to imagine actually spending the twenty plus dollars to buy the book. Nevertheless, given the limitations of the genre, The Goddess Guide by Gisèle Scanlon, offers some useful information and surprising insight.

On an aesthetic level, the book is beautiful. Scanlon includes photographs of real fabric, store receipts, and other found objects to give her guide a scrapbook-like, vintage feel. Interviews with industry legends (she talks to everyone from Christian Louboutin to Miss Piggy) include little known details about the lives and tastes of the subjects.

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Think about how many pairs of jeans you have to try on before you find your perfect fit and color. The same is true for self-help books; with as many shapes and sizes that women come in, there are a million times as many personalities and situations that are targeted by self-help books, making it even trickier to find the right “fit” for your personal situation.

That said, Rachel Weingarten, author of Career and Corporate Cool, has done an admirable job of writing a book that everyone can stand to learn from. And, listen to Weingarten we should: her own, highly successful career path is proof that the advice she offers works.

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