‘The most comprehensive and ambitious guide to vintage fashion ever produced’ – Vintage Explorer Magazine
‘… opens
a window on how good ideas skip the years to fertilise a future
designer’s imagination’– The Guardian
‘Brilliant
… beautiful … a real definitive guide to style throughout the
20th century and an incredible reference for anybody interested in
vintage fashion and design’–
NorthLondonVintageMarket.blogspot.co.uk
‘Indispensable
as a reference book for the vintage fashion enthusiast, 'Vintage
Fashion Complete' truly is a “Fashion Bible” ’–
Inretrospect Magazine
• Explores every
aspect of a woman’s vintage wardrobe in over 1,000 stand-out
examples, from dresses and skirts to hats, shoes and bags, drawn from
fashions from the 1920s to the 1980s.
• Not just another
history of fashion, this is a survey of how fashion past continues to
inspire fashion present – as seen on the street, on the catwalk,
and on devotees such as Kate Moss and Sienna Miller.
• Designs by
world-famous names feature alongside lesser-known brands beloved of
collectors, such as Lilli Ann and Horrockses Fashions.
• Unique handmade
pieces as well as icons of vintage fashion, from Marilyn Monroe’s
bra to the Ossie Clark dress that famously features in David
Hockney’s painting.
• Includes
invaluable practical tips on how to build a collection, and how to
date, clean and care for vintage clothing.
Nicky Albrechtsen is
a costume designer and the proprietor of the vintage resource studio
Vintage Labels, which sources inspirational clothing for fashion,
textile and costume designers. She is the author of The Printed
Square; Scarves (with Fola Solanke); and Fashion Spectacles,
Spectacular Fashion (with Simon Murray), all published by Thames &
Hudson.
Vintage Fashion
Complete
Nicky Albrechtsen
ISBN 9780500517611
30.80 x 24.00 cm
Hardback without
Jacket
432pp
With over 1,300
illustrations
First published 2014
Vintage
Fashion Complete
Reviewed by:
Jeffrey Felner
“an
objective, insightful, well researched, heavily documented and
illustrated book . . .”
Vintage Fashion
Complete is one of those books whose title might or might not be a
misnomer. The fact and reality it is that this is an epic undertaking
that looks at the world of vintage clothing and accessories in the
most comprehensive, authoritative, and encyclopedic way. Albrechtsen
provides the reader with an all-encompassing point of view that is
remarkably unbiased and factual without ever being preachy.
If you are expecting
a book filled with names from the annals of fashion history, then
move on as this is void of such, but if you want to know the origins,
the trends, and the evolution of fashion then this is indeed should
be your book of choice.
What keeps the
reader so rapt is that the approach taken here is not the same path
as been taken before by other titles dealing with this area of
fashion. For instance, this epic volume uses a physical timeline as
only one division or aspect for the book instead of basing its entire
format on chronology.
Combine the timeline
with trends in fabrics, silhouettes, prints, millinery, shoes,
fashion jewelry, swimwear, aprons, and much much more, and it is then
that you start to comprehend the full breadth of the subject matter.
Even more to her
credit, Albrechtsen unearths some names and trends that have long
since been forgotten and yet were major components in the history of
fashion such as the brand Mister Pants and a 70s phenomenon of the
beaded butterfly top. It is so easy to forget or overlook what
existed, when there are marquee names that so often overshadow other
brands and trends.
Another case in
point is the name of Dorothee Bis which is most certainly overlooked
in related titles. The book leans heavily on the Brits of fashion,
but given that Albrechtsen is British, well, it is understandable.
For some this might be a deficit.
As a summary of
sorts, Vintage Fashion Complete serves as a history of fashion as
well as a directory of vintage fashion. Albrechtsen is to be
applauded for turning out an objective, insightful, well researched,
heavily documented and illustrated book that is a credit to her
knowledge as well as to the industry, past and present. This is a
book to be used as reference, as education, and certainly for
pleasure.
Jeffrey Felner is a
dedicated participant and nimble historian in the businesses of
fashion and style. Decades of experience allow him to pursue almost
any topic relating to fashion and style with unique insight and
unrivaled acumen.
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