Dear Reader,
Happy Friday!
I like to write historical short stories. Someday I might be brave enough to dust them off and share them with you. But in the meantime, I want to share a short list of books I read to get the historical clothing accurate. These books are ridiculously fun, whether you read them for research or not.
The common denominator for all of these books is history.
Fashion: The Definitive History of Costume and Style covers the history of clothing and accessories from prehistory through the present day. The illustrations, photographs and drawings are incredible and plentiful. The book provides explanations of the history of style and introduces the various designers throughout the centuries.
How to Read a Dress: A Guide to Changing Fashion from the 16th to the 21st Century by Lydia Edwards is a fun overview of the history of the dress. The author shares photographs of historical dresses from her collection, and there are plenty of illustrations, drawings and photographs.
Forties Fashion: From Siren Suits to the New Look by Jonathan Walford covers fashions and styles from the 1940s in North America, Europe, Australasia, and Japan. It also discusses the fashion during occupied France, and of course, the creation of Mr Dior’s ‘New Look’.
I admit I bought Fashion: A History from the 18th to the 20th Century Fashion purely for fun. It’s a two-volume set published by Taschen. The set is comprehensive and stunning. If you love fashion history and don’t know where to start, I recommend this set.
Lastly, if, like me, you are a bit obsessed with the history of fashion, you might enjoy listening to Dressed: The History of Fashion, hosted by two knowledgeable fashion historians, April Calahan and Cassidy Zachary. An entire episode is devoted to their favourite fashion books.
As always, thank you so much for reading Books & Victorians. I appreciate your time and am grateful for the space you make for me in your inbox.
Have a wonderful weekend!
Thank you for this!! I'll definitely be picking some of these up when I can. May I also recommend Fashion Victims by Allison Matthews David? It delves into the history of exploitation within fashion production, among other things, and it's fascinating. 🖤
All sound wonderful! Especially the first 2. Thanks for the recommendations.