Book Review: How to Read a Dress by Lydia Edwards

How to Read a Dress: A Guide to Changing Fashion From the 16th to the 20th Century

by Lydia Edwards (391.2 Edw)

 

In How to Read a Dress: A Guide to Changing Fashion From the 16th to the 20th Century, Lydia Edwards provides some amazing fodder for the imagination for sewists, costume designers and others fascinated by clothing and clothing construction. You will find centuries of style represented in sumptuous annotated photographs that reveal subtle distinctions in style and workmanship, and explanations of how different design elements fit into the history of costuming. Edwards honors the skills, talents and visions of the craftspeople who produced clothing artifacts as she elaborates on the clothing items themselves as interesting touchstones for different sartorial and social experiences.

 

Each artifact is presented with general description including museum collection information, as well as some fascinating facts. For example, the “Silk robe a l’anglaise with skirt draped a la polonaise, c. 1775, Los Angeles County Museum of Art” has a skirt which is “looped up into sections in the back using special buttons and ties” In the notes, however, we learn that to make their manual work easier, working class women would achieve a similar effect by drawing sections of the skirt up through pocket slits. Did the style originate with the working class, to be copied by the wealthy, or did the lower classes admire the style and devise their own imitation? Annotations also describe the history of materials used, the design of the petticoats, choice of shoes, style of bodice and which accessories were selected.

 

In today’s world where cloth and clothing is cheap and ubiquitous, it is fascinating to ponder cloth, how it was made and what was done with it, as a reflection of the era that produced it and how it is emblematic of the progression of “civilization.” Not only are the items beautiful to look at, but they each tell a story of their times.

I’m really really really excited about this book. If you are interested in fashion design, women’s issues, world history, or are just interested in how and why things are made, this book is for you.

 

(If you enjoy this, you may also wish to try Icons of Fashion of the 20th Century by Gerda Buxbaum, Worn: A People’s History of Clothing by Sofi Thanhauser, or Only the Clothes on Her Back: Clothing and the Hidden History of Power in the Nineteenth-Century United States by Laura Edwards.)

 

( publisher’s official How to Read a Dress web page ) | ( official Lydia Edwards web site )

 

Recommended by Carrie K.
Bennett Martin Public Library — Public Services

 

Have you read or listened to this one? What did you think? Did you find this review helpful?

New reviews appear every month on the Staff Recommendations page of the BookGuide website. You can visit that page to see them all, or watch them appear here in the BookGuide Blog individually over the course of the entire month. Click the tag for the reviewer's name to see more of this reviewer’s recommendations!

Book Review: A Pictorial History of Costume by Wolfgang Bruen

A Pictorial History of Costume: A Survey of Costume of All Periods and Peoples From Antiquity to Modern Time Include National Costume in Europe and Non-European Countries

by Wolfgang Bruen (391 qBru)

 

A Pictorial History of Costume: A Survey of Costume of All Periods and Peoples From Antiquity to Modern Time Include National Costume in Europe and Non-European Countries by Wolfgang Bruhn, a German art historian and Max Tilke, a German costume designer, ethnographer, historian of fashion design, illustrator, and Kabarett artist.

 

This is definitely a book for one who likes to “read pictures’ about fashion. Included are 500 drawn illustrations mostly in color that include approximately 1900 distinct costumes that demonstrate clothing and dress styles from two thousand years of clothing, up until and including the 19th century. The artist, Max Tilke, was both an artist and a scientist, interested in ethnography as well as costume design. He uses the illustrations to show both the details of costume and accessories, and their relationship to the humans wearing them.

 

Interestingly, this is a book of very few words. There’s a paragraph of introduction, in several languages, a table of contents, and at the back, a description of the plate appearing on each page.

 

It’s an oversized volume with many illustrations large enough to fill a page. For costuming, there’s plenty of inspiration, but it is sorely lacking in labeling and defining. The way it is set up, with the descriptions at the back of the book rather than accompanying the illustrations, makes it difficult to ascertain dates and regions for the costumes. The information that is there seems rather vague and unimpressive. On the other hand, the illustrations themselves are fascinating. The illustrator has gone to much detail work to describe with his drawing tools, the finer points of each outfit, showing both the front and the backside of costumes from similar time periods. A student of fashion design, with experience in drawing patterns, might enjoy the challenge of discerning how these items are made.

 

Being a visual person who enjoys “reading pictures”, I did enjoy reading this book and I can see using it as a resource if I were brainstorming ideas for my next sewing project, but without text, I don’t see sitting down with it to gather information and to learn about different periods or styles. It feels rather like watching TV with the sound muted and no subtitles. Interesting, but without the words to guide you, it’s not as engaging as it could be.

 

(If you enjoy this, you may also wish to try What people wore : a visual history of dress from ancient times to twentieth-century America by Douglas Gorsline, The complete history of costume & fashion : from ancient Egypt to the present day by Bronwyn Cosgrave, or Costume by L. Rowland-Warne.)

 

Recommended by Carrie K.
Bennett Martin Public Library — Public Services

 

Have you read or listened to this one? What did you think? Did you find this review helpful?

New reviews appear every month on the Staff Recommendations page of the BookGuide website. You can visit that page to see them all, or watch them appear here in the BookGuide Blog individually over the course of the entire month. Click the tag for the reviewer's name to see more of this reviewer’s recommendations!

Book Review: Icons of Fashion of the 20th Century by Gerda Buxbaum

Icons of Fashion of the 20th Century

by Gerda Buxbaum (391 Bux)

 

Focusing on fashion developments of the 20th century, the editor Gerda Buxbaum invites a crew of fashion experts to write essays on variety of intriguing topics. Set up in a scrapbook style, each essay is surrounded by illustrating photographs and drawings. The pictures are excellent, the information fascinating. Warning, you might need a magnifying glass because the type is that small, but it’s worth it. Flipping open the book opens portals on topics such as: “Radical Chic” (a discussion on how “the poor dress up but only the rich dress down” and features photos of “vintage find” clothes which were fashionable in the late 60’s) or “Disco” (Illustrated with photos of John Travolta in Saturday Night Fever, and other dancers, this essay discusses the reflection and shimmer of 1970s dance fashion) or “Wedge and Triangle” (Elaborating on deep V back décolletage, wedge heels, and bias-cut dresses, amongst other things, this essay shares characteristic elements of 1930’s fashion.) or “Coco Chanel” (In six paragraphs of brief but meaty prose, the writer shares a compelling description of the designer’s influence that began in the 1910’s and extending to today.) there’s approximately 75 of these essay/photo/scrapbook combinations on a wide range of topics and designers; they’re easily browsed through and fascinating.

 

The only thing I would change about this book is I’d like to make it about twice as big. It would be easier to read the text and easier to enjoy the illustrations.

 

(If you enjoy this, you may also wish to try How to Read a Dress: A Guide to changing Fashion from the 16th to the 20th Century by Lydia Edwards, A Pictorial History of Costume: A Survey of Costume of All Periods and Peoples From Antiquity to Modern Time Include National Costume in Europe and Non-European Countries by Wolfgang Bruhn, or Worn: A people’s history of clothing by Sofi Thanhauser, or Only the Clothes on Her Back: Clothing and the Hidden History of Power in the Nineteenth-Century United States by Laura Edwards.)

 

See Scott C.’s review of 50 Women’s Fashion Icons That Changed the World from the August 2018 Staff Recommendations here on BookGuide!

 

Recommended by Carrie K.
Bennett Martin Public Library — Public Services

 

Have you read or listened to this one? What did you think? Did you find this review helpful?

New reviews appear every month on the Staff Recommendations page of the BookGuide website. You can visit that page to see them all, or watch them appear here in the BookGuide Blog individually over the course of the entire month. Click the tag for the reviewer's name to see more of this reviewer’s recommendations!

The Steampunk Adventurer's Guide: Contraptions, Creations and Curiosities Anyone Can Make

The Steampunk Adventurer's Guide: Contraptions, Creations and Curiosities Anyone Can Make
by Thomas Willeford [646.48 Wil]

I've been on a Steampunk binge for the past couple of years -- reading a lot of Steampunk fiction, and looking at the increasing collection of Steampunk related non-fiction books the libraries have been picking up -- dedicated to costuming, jewelry making and decorating. The Steampunk Adventurer's Guide is a marvelous addition to the libraries' Steampunk collection. Classified as an "adult" item, this is actually aimed at responsible teens and even pre-teens. Each chapter of this nifty volume features a short continuation of an ongoing Steampunk adventure story, focusing on the escapes of a couple of brilliant but reckless kids, lavishly illustrated by Phil Foglio, whose work in Dragon magazine many years ago was among my favorite fantasy art. In recent years, he has written and illustrated the adventures of Girl Genius -- a series of Steampunk graphic novels. Alternating with the storyline in this volume are sections in which author Thomas Willeford provides detailed step-by-step instructions for how to create pieces of Steampunk costumes, from things as simple as airship goggles, to as complex as glider wings, a rocket pack, or a rivet gun. The illustrations that accompany each craft project as simple and straight-forward, and Willeford adopts a very easy-to-follow conversational tone in his instructions. Anyone with an interest in Steampunk trappings and a modicum of craft skills will find this book an excellent introduction to how to create accessories for simple Steampunk costumes. I particularly like Willeford's "invention" of Fleather -- a flexible craft fabric made of soft craft foam and double-sided duct tape, which very closely resembles leather if not examined too closely. [Check out my Steampunk booktalk booklist for some great reads to put you in the mood to create your own costume!] -- recommended by Scott C. - Bennett Martin Public Library [ see Scott's Reviewer Profile and his other reviews ]

[If you enjoy this, you may also wish to try any of the libraries' many other Steampunk craft books, almost all of which are aimed at a far more adult audience.]

[ Publisher's official Steampunk Adventurer's Guide web page ] | [ official Thomas Willeford (author/crafter) web site ] | [ official Phil Foglio (illustrator) web site ]

Have you read this? What did you think? Did you find this review helpful?

New reviews appear every month on the Staff Recommendations page of the BookGuide website. You can visit that page to see them all, or watch them appear here in the BookGuide blog individually over the course of the entire month. Click the tag for the reviewer's name to see more of this reviewers recommendations!