Books for thought episode four: Fashion

For episode number four the study area that we have selected to make our book recommendations about is Fashion, a creative area in constant evolution.

At the end of this article there’s other recommendations such us interesting documentaries, podcasts and museums that are wonderful for those of you interested in Fashion.

Let´s get started with book one…

Book One: Biography / Autobiography

This month: The House of Gucci

• Written by Sara Gay Forden
• Published by Harper

Picking a book for this category has been really hard for me because they are so many great biographies and autobiographies out there.

I had a hard time not choosing other wonderful books like Jo Malone’s inspiring story, Gods and Kings the terrific biography of Alexander McQueen and John Galliano, a memoir from the amazing Yves Saint Laurent, the untold story of the Cartier family, Girlboss the success story of the founder of Nasty Gal and even the funny and refreshing autobiography from the creators of the Juicy Couture brand.

After struggling with all these options I finally chose The House of Gucci written by Sara Gay Forden and published by Harper. This book is described on its cover like a sensational story of murder, madness, glamour and greed. Sounds amazing right?

Well it is. In this book we discover the remarkable story of the power of the Gucci Dynasty and their famed luxury goods house. This book combines in a brilliant way the business story with the family drama, that to my surprise was deeply intertwined.

I’ve enjoyed a lot learning the story behind some of their iconic creations such as its loafers or the Gucci Bambu bag.

I want to share with you my favorite quote from the book: “Quality is remembered long after price is forgotten”. Aldo Gucci put a plaque with this sentence in all of Gucci’s workshops.

Run and read the book before the film staring Lady Gaga is released next year.

Book Two: “In the words of an Expert”

This month: The Little Dictionary of Fashion

• Written by Christian Dior
• Published by V&A

For this category I have chosen a book from one of the most talented and incredible fashion designers of all time.

The Little Dictionary of Fashion by Christian Dior, a guide to dress sense for every woman.

It was written by Dior in 1954, however the majority of its content its timeless. In fashion many trends come and go, but the advice and rules Christian Dior gathers in this book have stood the test of time and are fashion laws that will last forever.

This book is like going inside Christian Dior’s mind and getting to know more about him through his way of thinking. It’s a must read for aspiring fashion designers.

Book Three: Guidance and Orientation

This month: The End of Fashion

• Written by Teri Agins
• Published by Harper

For our third category I have chosen The End of Fashion, how marketing changed the clothing business forever written by Teri Agins and published by Harper.

This book helps you build knowledge and understanding of the history of the fashion industry and how it works. It has been so much fun reading about the origin of fashion houses and their struggles to become viable businesses or about war over the United States flag between Ralph Lauren and Tommy Hilfiger.

I want to highlight that among the most important lessons to be learned from this book are those regarding the fashion world transitioning from an elitist focus to a mass market-centric focus. Agins does an amazing job explaining the why’s and how’s in this required fashion reading.

Book Four: Inspiring and Informative Fiction

This month: When Live Gives you Lulemons

• Written by Lauren Weisberger
• Published by Simon & Schuster

I’m sure most of you are familiar with the classic The Devil Wears Prada because you have either read the book or watched the movie. In this last category I want to recommend you the third book in this series. Many of you will be thinking OMG is it a series?

Yes it is my friends and the third book When Live Gives you Lulemons by Lauren Weisberger is as addictive as the first one. In this book you get to follow Emily Charlton’s adventures again, she is not first assistant to Miranda Priestly any more, now she is a highly successful image consultant who´s just landed the client of a lifetime.

Prepare to laugh and cry with this engaging novel as you get a sneak peek of the fashion industry world

“MUST” RESOURCES:

Podcasts:

• True Tales of Luxury: this podcast from Harrods Editor in Chief Tiffanie Darke has some amazing interviews of people in the fashion industry. Discovering some of Harrods’ most desirable objects is lovely.
• How I Built This: in this program Guy Raz interviews many inspiring innovators, entrepreneurs and leaders from the Fashion industry. Our recommended episodes for young students interested in the fashion world are: Jo Malone, Steve Madden, Rent The Runway, and Sarah Blakely.
• You can also read this Conde Nast article with the best fashion podcasts.

Documentaries:

• HBO Spain: in this platform our recommended documentaries are: Ralph Lauren, The man behind the brand, and In Vogue: The editor’s eye.
• NETTFLIX Spain: our must watch documentaries from this platform are: Franca: chaos and creation, Jeremy Scott: The people’s designer and Maddman: The Steve Madden Story. Two fashion series you should wath are: Girlboss and Versace.
• PRIME VIDEO Spain: in amazon’s platform you must watch: Yves Saint Laurent and Luxury: Behind the mirror.

Museums:

• The Garment Museum is a must visit for all students thinking about studying a career in the fashion industry.
• Always check the exhibitions on the Thyssen-Bornemisza museum because many of them are related with fashion.

I hope you enjoy this books and the other resources and you get to know more about the amazing fashion world. See you on the next blog of Books For Thought.