Vintage Fashion & Couture

"I thought I knew almost everything about the history of fashion until I met Kerry Taylor. The inside-out knowledge she has of garments will inspire both students and designers to look at fashion with fresh eyes." - Sarah Mower, US Vogue

"This beautiful book by Kerry Taylor - the go-to woman for vintage and antique couture - is a treat for collectors and fashion lovers alike." - The Wall Street Journal

"Whatever my question about vintage, Kerry Taylor has the answer. Her expertise, knowledge and historical anecdotes have raised the level of interest in this subject hugely." -Lisa Armstrong, Daily Telegraph

Named one of Glamour Magazine's "Must-Read Style Books"!

Profiled by Vogue and The New York Times and courted by style icons with wardrobes to sell and top designers in search of inspiration, Kerry Taylor is one of the world's leading experts on vintage fashion and couture. In this lavishly illustrated book, Kerry tells the story of a century of fashion through the work of its key design talents and the memorable women who have worn their creations. All the fashion stars are here from Poiret to McQueen via Lanvin, Chanel, Schiaparelli, Madame Grès, Dior, Balenciaga, Mary Quant, Ossie Clark, Vivienne Westwood, Alaïa, and Margiela. For each designer Kerry explores their career through a dazzling range of clothes and accessories, explaining what makes each item so desirable to the collector or wearer of vintage fashion.

Each chapter includes at least one 'style icon' whose relationship with fashion has had a lasting impact, including Baba D'Erlanger, Lauren Bacall, Grace Kelly, Catherine Deneuve, Paloma Picasso and Kate Moss. Illustrated with a mix of gorgeous fashion photography plus images from Kerry's own astonishing archive, this book is set to become an invaluable guide for collectors of vintage (whatever their budget) and all those who love fashion.

Contents includes...

Foreword by Hubert de Givenchy
Prologue by Christopher Kane
1900s
- Paul Poiret
- Lucile
- Mariano Fortuny

1920s
- Jean Patou
- Jeanne Lavin
- Chanel in the Twenties

1930s
- Elsa Schiaparelli
- Style Icon Wallis Simpson
- Madeleine Vionnet - The Architect of Couture

1940s
- The effects of War on Fashion in Europe
- American Fashion in the Forties
- Christian Dior - The Saviour of French Haute Couture

1950s
- Pierre Balmain
- Cristóbal Balenciaga - The Master
- Style Icon Grace Kelly

1960s
- Mary Quant
- Hubert de Givenchy
- Style Icon Audrey Hepburn

1970s
- Yves Saint Laurent in the Seventies
- Zandra Rhodes
- Vivienne Westwood and Malcolm McLaren

1980s
- Italian Masters
- Azzedine Alaïa
- John Galliano

1990s
- The New Romantics
- Thierry Mugler
- Style Icon Kate Moss

2000s
- Later McQueen
- Style Icon Daphne Guinness
- Collecting Vintage

..And so much more!