3 comments about Complete Guide to Beauty & Glamor Photography.

1. When I was young and still in school, the people who wrote books on difficult subjects were EXPERTS in what they did. Rarely was someone only fair at their skills and had a ego to go out and advertise themselves as "professional". This book suggests that it is: "The Complete Guide . . ." and it is nothing of the sort. The book does have some pretty women inside, and a few interesting comments and shots, but all in all this book comes up short when it comes to a "guide". Little is shown in how an image is created, but more than that the images themselves are very average at best. Most of us who would buy a "glamour book" are visually sophisticated, and I dare to say, that unless you are an absolute beginner with no knowledge in glamour photography, most likely this book will teach you little and completely disappoint you with it's artistry!



2. This book was more like a "look-at-these-Playboys-I've-photographed-in-all-these-exotic-places". This book was filled with tons of completely nude, implanted women but no diagrams, no set up explanations, no posing discriptions. The only technical aspects were "here you can see I used a mirror to reflect the model's face while focusing on her splendid rear".
   
   AND the book referred to film only.
   
   Total waste of money and time.



3. Hey Guys, if your a amature photographer looking to figure out photography of glamour then this book is for you. it has a lot of great ideas, even for the advace photographer as well what a great refresher.. i love to reed books on photography.. and this will remain on my desk not the book case.. there is a lot of information that will help you to produce better images if your having trouble.. and if your looking tweek your images a advance photographer this will help as well.. as a pro photographer i liked it as a refreasher for me to say hey i rember that and go to the next session with that idea in mind.
   so if your looking for a good starter or a slaparound to get you going agin get this one..

2 comments about Women's Wear of the 1930's: With Complete Patterns.

1. For what it is this book is over priced. I didn't find the patterns that unusual, or the garments interesting. Using the patterns is restricted.



2. If you are an experienced sewer who wants to make your own clothing from the 1930s, this is the book for you. It doesn't have hats or hose, but it has everything else from foundation garments to outerwear. A big plus for this book is that for a few of the garments, they give the pattern drawing and a photo of the complete garmment on a real person. The book is also a good resource for dating the patterns in your pattern collection, as it gives the general outline of styles from each year of the 1930s. To use the patterns, you must be an experience sewer, as the patterns must be enlarged and the directions are sketchy.

1 comments about A World of Head Adornment: Africa, Asia, Oceania, America.

1. The book is visually stunning: some readers may be disappointed, depending on what they are seeking. The book consists of superb shots of pieces from Asia, Africa, Oceana, and (South)America. The pieces consist of a variety of head ornaments: combs, bands, nose ornaments, etc., but do not include earrings (which are covered in A World of Earrings) or hats. The representation is uneven, with the collections for Asia and Africa being much stronger than for Oceana (perhaps 24 pieces) or South America (perhaps a dozen pieces). Since this is a catalog of a personal collection, one obviously cannot have pictures of what is not there, and this is not a criticism. However, the person researching international jewelry should recognize the limitation.
   
   The pictures themselves are stupendous: large with extremely clear detail. Depending on the item, there may be several on a pages (as with small hairpins) or one piece may have a double spread. The pictures are solely of the pieces; there is no attempt to display them as they would be used. They are arranged in geographical sections, with a brief introduction to the jewelry of that area. All of the caption information is collected at the end of the book, which I suppose avoids detracting from the pictures, but which some may find annoying. At least every page seems to have a discreet page number, so it is easy to match them to the captions. Anyone with a scholarly interest may find this disappointing: there is minimal information about the size of the pieces, generally the largest dimension only, and only one, even if multiple pieces are shown in the same picture. Only a very broad provenance is given, and little about the age. One comb for example, notes that this style was derived from the Spanish mantilla beginning in the 17th century, but it does not indicate if it is also contemporary. I a a little confused by the notation in the caption about a piece from Nigeria referring to Pharaonic Egypt. Does this reflect cultural sharing? Does this mean that the piece is from the time in history? The precise comment is that the ancient Egyptians often copied natural forms, but looking through the pictures, isn't that true of most cultures?
   
   The index is very detailed in that one may, for example, look up pieces from Ming Dynasty China under either Ming or China. It would be helpful if a time period was specified for the dynasties. Also, the page numbers refer only to text, either in the section introductions or the captions. Thus, one is directed to the captions for the jewelry, and goes from there to the pictures. There are also maps and an extensive bibliography.
   
   Well worth oohing and ahhing over, but will be only a supplement for a person with scholarly interests.

No comments about American Bandanna.

2 comments about 80 Godey's Full-Color Fashion Plates (1838-1880).

1. While it would be rare to find a Godey's book with every fashion print in it, this book gives you an excellent variety of the best dresses from Godey's. The descriptions give an idea of color mixes, fabric and decoration. This book is a great reference tool for the Lady Civil War or Mid-Victorian Reenactor or Costume Designer.



2. I have 8 prints that don't appear in the book from 1865-1870. Want to find more info about my prints to include their value (at least an estimate). Pictures in the book are beautiful and pretty true to the actual work...except the real ones have a little "browner" paper. The history in the beginning is also very well done, and helpful in knowing the art. Thanks JoAnne.

2 comments about Red Carpet: 20 Years of Fame and Fashion.

1. the book is very well done in photography but the pages began ripping after first looking through it. also the cover was partly damaged.
   good pictures.
   bad product.



2. This is a fun book, with beautiful pictures. Just wish it had gone further back to the sixties and seventies.

2 comments about New York Fashion.

1. It may seem funny to speak of high fashion as being a subject for patriotic pride, but in fact, Americans don't need to look across the Atlantic for great couturiers; there are plenty of 'em in the Big Apple! Caroline Rennolds Millbank, who's also written the excellent _Couture_ and _The Couture Accessory_, turns her attention to the great designers, past and present, of the New York fashion scene. She reminds us all that Paris and Milan are not the only places that can produce superb couture, with hundreds of splendid B&W and color photographs (many in full-page format) and in-depth commentary on American designers from Mainbocher to Norell to McCardell. Kudos to Milbank for looking at great designers who aren't covered as often as they should be in books.



2. What a way to meet the talented American designers. .Before Calvin, Ralph and Donna, there was Norell, McCardell and Mainbocher. Caroline Milbank introduces them and shows you their signature designs. A "must have" for fashion fans!

5 comments about Kate Moss: Model of Imperfection.

1. of this book is one of the greatest authors ever for unauthorized biographies of super models who used to be famous.
   
   I read the book, it was very informative, I liked it.



2. This book should be called "Johnny Depp" because it is more about her relationship with him than about herself. I expected a biography on her life but it's about how this super-waif got famous and then those who made her famous turned against her. Then the rest of the book was about her unhappy relationship with Johnny Depp. I really like Kate Moss and would like to have read a book about her...not her ex-boyfriend.



3. my friends all just read this and we're all disappointed in it, maybe someone who knows less about kate moss would get more from it. it IS articulate and factual, and it's not that it's BAD writing, it just didn't give us anything new to talk about. i wish there were other biographies - even if totally sensationalized! - about kate moss out there!
   
   my recommendation? maybe a good beach-time or bus-ride read, but don't expect anything revealing.



4. My friends and I just read this as part of our new "Fashion-Group Book Club"...I didn't dislike it as much as they did, but it does give one reason to marvel at how much completely unspectacular writing and recycled bollocks make it to publication. It even came to us recommended so I'm surprised at how just-not-good it is. Even the pictures, the best part, are all ones I swear I've seen a million times before. So, if you're looking for photos of Kate, I remember a book that came out on her in the nineties, a lot more expensive of course, but that one was excellent. "Model of Imperfection": not recommended!



5. my friends and i just chose this for our monthly fashion-oriented book club (we've previously enjoyed easily appropriate selections like "the devil wears prada", etc.) and were unanimously disapointed (they all are about to write their own reviews here, though). maybe this could be good for someone who isn't already a Kate fan, or has never heard such things about models doing drugs or being too skinny - like people who live in a bio-sphere or something. i guess i just expected more indepth info - like, how about a FREAKIN' INTERVIEW WITH KATE HERSELF! - from an author who ran "the web's most popular Kate Moss site" for like 5 years. some "fan"!

5 comments about Fashion Sourcebooks the 1940s (Fashion Sourcebooks).

1. Please change the price as I would like to buy it.



2. I found this book to be a great starter book. The drawings are done well enoungh so that you get a general idea of what clothing looked like back then, but not detailed enough to help you find those sort of fashions in thrift stores or on line.(They never show the backs of the clothes). I did like the drawings of the shoes and hats. I found those to be done well enough as to help in finding those actual items. If you are looking for 1940's fashions this book will help somewhat, but I wish the was more detail.



3. I really like the two fashion sourcebooks I have. I bought them for inspiration in designing some clothing that will have a retro flair to it. While certainly not all the illustrations are of things that I like, overall I think the book is a good value and very interesting. Certainly the sketches are not very detailed, and if you're looking for a book of patterns, this isn't it, at all. Also be aware that the sketches are black and white.



4. Great women's clothing, but if you're looking for men's styles -- don't blink. Looks like 1 men's for every 8 women's drawings.



5. Look closely at the cover of this book. It is filled only with such rough sketches of the day, evening, and sports wear from the decade. This is not a detailed, pattern-oriented fashion book. Rather, it would serve better as a reference guide for a designer looking for inspiration from classic styles.

5 comments about Chanel: Her style and her life.

1. I absolutely loved reading this book! It provided me with an insight into the life of Chanel including all of her successes and struggles. It really made an impression on me and I would encourage anyone who is looking for a good read to pick up this book. Not only was it very informative, it also provided a great story full of saddness, love, and many other touching and motivating elements.



2. I have always been fascinated by whatever's written about her ever since I received a Chanel purse for an 18th birthday present. There have been a number of books written about Chanel, I'm sure but Janet Wallach's will not disappoint any reader. It is simple and elegantly written with beautiful black and white illustrations. Even if one is not a fan of Chanel's style, you will be intrigued by her notorious life as told here. Either for yourself or a friend, a nice book to keep and look through now and again.



3. This book is very good. The text isn't hard to read, and in this book are allot of pictures, only in black and white. There should have been also a few colour pictures. This book is only looking at the period that Coco Chanel designed the collections and not the Karl Lagerfeld era.



4. I haven't read the book but I really need a picture of Coco Chanel. Is there any about? I need it for my A Level French Course work!!!! Any Help Thanks xxxxxx



5. This is a spectacularly beautiful and insightful view of a woman who was the major force in 20th century fashion. It is elegantly written and sumptuously illustrated and no doubt will become the definitive book on Coco Chanel. I learned a great deal that I did not know before and I had a long career in fashion. This book will delight men as well as women because it contains many revealing stories about Chanel's sexual escapades. Buy it by all means!