No comments about Beauty & Make-Up (Practical Handbooks).

No comments about Fashion Designers' Gardens.

1 comments about Visionaire No. 49: Decades (Visionaire).

1. This book (okay, it's not actually a book but we'll get to that shortly), arrives in a hugely impressive foil box, both figuratively and literally. It is only when you open this impressive box that you find you have paid $175.00 for a small number of pamphlets. Quite large pamphlets, but pamphlets nonetheless.
   
   To compound their ignominy, the work isn't even that great (though that is obviously a personal opinion). The majority of the work suffers from being enlarged to fit the oversized pamphlet specs but a lot of the work, regardless of the size, is just mediocre, plain and simple. The work that stands out the most is by Karl Lagerfeld which certainly surprised me considering the distinguished list of photographers involved.
   
   All in all, I would have liked to keep the box. Since that option was unavailable, I returned the item, beautiful box, pamphlets and all.

2 comments about Heads - Hair by Guido.

1. .... Simply the work of a single minded, progressive genius.
   
   However if this book does not conceptually make sense to you initialy, then please read the introduction (its all there!!). Don't become sad or closed minded!



2. If you are expecting beauty, hairstyling ideas, or a nice coffeetable book, you will be disappointed. The photos are not visually appealing and don't seem to have any artistic intent, though some do have the dark lurkings (without the genius of lighting) of the back-room B&W nude photos by Mapplethorpe. Aside from a young Kate Moss, these young faces exhibit marked sun damage and acne scars; perhaps these were "before" photos for a dermatologist's office. The hair cuts and styles are crude (perhaps intentionally), and with the amplified pits and valleys in the skin they leave the reader wondering what Guido's intention was in publishing this, as it hardly flatters his talent or esthetic sensibility.

4 comments about Fashion Brands: Branding Style from Armani to Zara.

1. Tungate writes in a style that's easy to follow, articulate, and knowledgeable. The book is broken down into 21 chapters that cover everything from street style to haute couture to counterfeits. It's a must read for anyone who is in the fashion business and wants to know just what it takes to make a brand. The branding style that Tungate covers are the biggest designers to date as well as those up an coming. It reads very smoothly and you walk away with an immense knowledge of all these different brands. Did you know that the first Nike shoe was created by pouring rubber into a waffle maker? Exactly. Neither did I.



2. Most of the content has come up in the leading fashion and culture magazines and business media. And the topic of how marketers create consumer demand and the story of individual brands such as Nike and Gucci have been covered in other books. But Tungate brings all of these subjects, all of these themes, and all of these prominent fashion brands together for a picture of the system of which they are all a part. With his broader perspective, he also gives a global perspective not limited to the vibrant, shop-til-you-drop, U.S. market and its advanced ideology of consumerism where many of the "branding" ideas and techniques originated, but including also European and Asian markets. A media, marketing, and communication journalist, Tungate writes in a popular style with many references from popular culture and the well-known fashion marketplace.



3. The book is lacking in two big areas:
   
   First, the book does not have enough photo and past advertising materials to let readers to really see how the brand owner transform and execute their concepts towards building the brand identity they inteded --> (impractical, and just talk.)
   
   Second, fashion branding is even more conceptual than the classical FMCG branding, and really take a branding professional to handle it properly. If the author is only a journalist, he should at least include some works from branding professional to make the book more useful.
   
   To be frank, the book is just a bit better than reading fashion magazine and this is only my opinion.
   
   William Chan
   Sales and Marketing Manager



4. If you want to understand the true meaning of style, the fashion world can explain it. No other industry is as adept at transforming a commodity into an art form, and doing so repeatedly on a seasonal basis. Journalist Mark Tungate presents a terrific overview of many key aspects of this gritty yet ephemeral business. His wide-ranging book covers everything from fashion photography to haute couture, modeling agencies, accessories, second hand clothes and even the history of department stores. He goes into journalistic detail about established and avant-garde designers, photographers, ad agencies and trend consultants who work side by side to sell image to the public. This is a serious book, complete with the URL's of key Web sites, and profiles of the top designers who create brands. Tungate goes inside fashion firms that know how to sell dreams and illusions made of Italian fabrics and fine leather. We recommend this book to marketers - even those who are not fashion minded - who want to rejuvenate their creativity and pick up some new sources of inspiration and style.

1 comments about F**K FASHION: The Erotic Photography of Ben Westwood.

1. Page after page of in-your-face photos of sexy models in hot fetish attire. Some are a little more tasteful and restrained while others probably cross the line into what some would label as porn, but there's no question that this book makes an impact on the viewer. It's hot, fun, sometimes playful, but never boring. I like photos that grab you by the balls and force you to look at them, and this one's got the shots that do just that.

No comments about Fashion Apparel, Accessories & Home Furnishings.

No comments about Just the Right Shoe: 2009 Mini Day-to-Day Calendar.

1 comments about 365: A Year in Fashion.

1. An interesting concept of a photo taken every day for a year by one of the UK's leading fashion photographers. Fashion images sit side by side with personal "snaps" that create a very interesting "fashion fly on the wall" book. A must for any serious followers of fashion and the images that shape it.

1 comments about Embroidery (Kids Can Do It).

1. This book contains several things that I was looking for as I searched for a beginning book to use to teach my nine-year-old granddaughter to embroider. The book has simple drawings that are easy to understand and text that gives clear instructions. The first couple of pages are dedicated to the basics of needle threading, using an embroidery hoop, etc. The remaining pages have cute, easy craft ideas that use the basic stitches that are taught in the book. Though I already have a knowledge of embroidery, it was great to have something in print to share with my granddaughter. She has completed her first project and is working on a more challenging second project. I would recommend this book to anyone wanting to learn to embroider as well as to teachers or parents.