Ask Angie: Fashion Magazines and Books

Nadine

So I adore your blog every morning. I was especially enchanted by all of your blogs on Hong Kong fashion. But it makes me want more!

As a novice fashionista, it can be kind of intimidating to know where to start. I want to understand different eras of fashion, what different items are called, what the most current fashion trends around the world are. I've started ordering catalogs from stores that I really like. But I feel like there's a fashion world that I'm standing at the window of, unable to get inside.

Are there certain American magazines you would recommend? Great fashion books? Websites? How do you get a feel for cutting edge international fashion?

Thanks for any direction you can offer! And I would love to hear where everyone gets their fashion inspiration from.

17 years ago

General

11 replies

Latest reply was from Oneirix

Oneirix

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Active Member

Hey Nadine! I'm actually interested to see what Angie says about this question; where DOES a personal stylist get her inspiration?

I replied to your other thread so you have a little bit of an idea where my personal inspiration comes from. I've been through a bunch of different magazines and books, so here's what I've gathered so far (I probably don't need to say this, but this is all personal opinion; I'm sure plenty of people disagree with me!):

Elle, Vogue and Harper's Bazaar: I lumped these three together for a couple of reasons. Personally, I really don't like these magazines. They are the most ad-heavy of any fashion magazine (out of a 900-page Vogue I counted 35 pages of content), and they focus more on high fashion, so even if you DO happen to comb the densely-packed spreads and find something you like, it tends to be either unavailable for ready to wear purchase or ludicrously expensive. The spreads seem disorganized to me, and some of the articles are questionable (the merits of "eat one day, fast the other" dieting? Not exactly a message I agree with).

Glamour: A bit more on the gossip-y celebrity side of fashion, but their articles are generally interesting and well-written, and the fashion aspects they choose to focus on are both accessible and reasonable without being boring. Their constant polls of women can be really interesting and I'm especially fond of their "glamour girl" article, where they pick one person and have her talk about her style and where she gets her stuff.

In Style: Definitely one of the better-funded magazines. I don't really like how celebrity-oriented it is, and personally their aesthetic doesn't appeal to me, but they have beautifully organized spreads, and lots of information despite so many ads! If you like what the editors put together, this could be a winner.

Lucky: My favorite! I like their aesthetic and they could be particularly helpful for you because they do a lot of "business casual with a twist" that I personally really like, although I have no need for that attire. They seem to be the most fashion-oriented and the items they choose to showcase vary from super cheap to rather expensive (but more like "savings" expensive instead of "I could never ever buy that" expensive).

Nylon: To be fair I haven't really critiqued this one because I flipped through it and knew it wasn't right for me. It's much more "hip" and "cutting edge," focusing more on the younger end of fashion. I'm in that age demographic, but this magazine is more about articles with few pictures and it seems too self-conscious; I get the "we're so hip" vibe from it.

Phew! And for books...there are so many, but these are a couple I've combed through and bought:

Lucky: I own both the shopping guide and style guide, and I highly recommend them! They're simple, visually appealing and very informational.

InStyle: I felt like the information from Style 101, Instant Style and Secrets of Style overlapped too much and were pretty basic. They're nice books and I can definitely see them being helpful, but for me they weren't terribly useful. In fact, if you want them I'll send them to you.

Pocket Stylist and Style Rx: I'm not a fan of these. Not to say they aren't informational, but when I was reading them, they just promoted the idea of putting my body into a category and then going from there. I felt like they closed off more options for me than opened them, and instead of making me feel good about my body I felt more self conscious about it.

Nina Garcia's Books: I really love these. The Little Black Book of Style has a fashion time line Cliff's notes at the back which is really helpful! The 100 makes you want to buy things you can't afford, but I love reading the list. It really integrated me more in fashion history than anything else.

Tim Gunn's Book: It's not very visual, but it has great information about carriage and how to feel better about yourself! I like it, but it's just not very pretty...

Isaac Mizrahi and Daniel Vosovic's new books are supposed to be great but I haven't taken a good look at them.

Wow I need to not type so much! I hope that was helpful instead of daunting. I'm happy to talk more about this subject since I'm personally invested in this search myself! Best of luck to you!

17 years ago

Alecia

Veteran

It is so funny that you should post this. I was just thinking to myself that I should start a thread on this. Great minds...

My favorite is InStyle. I think a lot of that has to do with it being what I know. But I also think it has some more practical stuff than a lot of magazines. I really like their section where they put together outfits. They recently reformatted and I'm not sure if I still love it as much. We'll see.

I picked up Glamour this month and was really disappointed by the real limit amount of actual fashion in the magazine. I have generally avoided Vogue because I find the writing to be so condescending to the working stiffs, which I undoubted am. I have a hard time getting inspired when my feathers are all ruffled. I haven't read (shopped through) Lucky much but I think I could appreciate it because it's a bit more functional. It's kind of like here are the hot trends, here's where to find them.

I used to enjoy Latina magazine. They often had great fashion spreads that also incorporated a lot of different looks and they always had a spread with real women, which was so refreshing. But, alas, they too have reformatted. I ended my subscription.

I'm interested to hear what others have to say, too.

17 years ago

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

To your surprise Oneirix, I adore Kendal Farr and believe her book “the Pocket Stylist” to be brilliant. I wouldn’t bother too much with the rest.

As far as mags go – I try to read them all. I particularly enjoy comparing British, German and French magazines with their American versions. I read European mags as frequently as American mags because its interesting how the trends diff

17 years ago

Nadine

Active Member

Oneirix, thank you so much for your detailed breakdwon. It was incredibly helpful. Especially because I've found the same issues with the ones that you've listed that I have read. I'll try Lucky and see what happens. Like you said, InStyle tends to be hit or miss for me in terms of their aesthetic but I like the way they put their magazine together. I'll also try Nylon, I've never heard of it to be honest. But all the others do tend to be high fashion and/or have hardly any real content. In terms of books, I think the Nina Garcia books interested me the most of all the ones you listed. I think books that cover trends tend to get dated very quickly so it's easier and keeps you better informed to use magazines for that purpose. But maybe fashion history is more easily covered in books.

Alecia, I'll definitely try Latina magazine even though they've reformatted. It sounds like there is some variety which can be lacking in all the others named.

Angie, I would love to get my hands on some American versions of European magazines. Where does a girl find a thing like that?

17 years ago

Ana

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Veteran

I like Nina Garcia's book, "100 Things" (I haven't read her other one). I would suggest reading it for the entertainment value and history and maybe to help you start thinking about what items would be essential in your own wardrobe, more than as a literal list of 100 things every girl needs--this is definitely not the case (she makes that clear in her introduction anyway).

Also, I enjoyed "Lucky's Guide to Mastering Any Style." I already have a pretty solid idea of my own personal style, but it was fun reading the different sections and finding the one I identified with most (Euro Chic). I don't agree with all their advice--ie, that the quintessential Euro Chic pants are super wide legs. I think it's opposite, from what Angie and others who have visited Europe recently have said--it's the skinny jean/pant. Those types of things. Take it with a grain of salt, and again, use it as a jumping off point to generate your own list of things. "The Pocket Stylist" is on my Christmas List," as is the "Lucky Shopping Manual," which gives helpful advice on fit and what to look for when buying certain items.

I really enjoy looking at higher end fashion magazines (Vogue, Harper's Bazaar, etc), and especially looking at their European counterparts, to see the differences. I generally don't read the articles, just look at the spreads and ads. Yeah, I really can't afford to buy anything in there, but I find it gives me lots of ideas on how to put things together from what I can afford. I guess it "hones my aesthetic," although that's sort of high brow. Really, it just inspires me and gets me thinking about my own wardrobe and possible outfits. And I like Instyle and Lucky. Those are primarily the ones I actually buy and look through more carefully (all the others I look at at the bookstore, but don't buy, hee hee).

17 years ago

Tanya

Veteran

I love both fashion magazines and books! I am subscribed to a couple of magazines ( In Style, Lucky, Glamour). From the really high fashion ones I like Harper's Bazaar the best, but also ebjoy looking through vogue and Elle in the bookstores.

I have a lot of these fashion books, and the "Pocket Stylist" is by far my favorite. I only wish it had photos to illustrate some points. The other ones I like are both Lucky ones, the second In Style one, and the "Science of Sexy" ( which takes into account your figure type, height and weight! The only think they forgot are vertical proportions - long waist vs short one).

17 years ago

Antje

Veteran

I subscribe to Lucky, and occasionally browse InStyle. I really enjoy Lucky, though what bugs me is that I often see something in there I like and then try finding it online but have a hard or impossible time actually locating the item. I also sometimes get a People Style magazine. I don't like Vogue, as I find a lot of the ads and photo shoots pretty sexist and I just can't get beyond that.

In terms of websites, I look at these:

- Fashionista (the Streetwalker section is fun and inspiring, showing real women)
- Sartorialist
- What I wore today (I love Kasmira's style)
- Budget Fashionista

Have fun, Nadine!

17 years ago

Angie

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Fashion Stylist

(I also meant to say that I’m pleased you like our site Nadine, and fab job on the magazine summary Oneirix!)

17 years ago

Oneirix

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Active Member

Nadine, I'm glad you found my talkativeness helpful! I hope I've helped you out a little. Oh and you can find European versions of American magazines in some bookstores; I've had the best luck with large local ones, but Borders definitely stocks the British version of InStyle; I've never checked it out though. Perhaps I should...

Regarding Ana's comment about the Lucky style book to be taken with a grain of salt, I TOTALLY agree; I forgot about the whole "iconic" sections because I just ignored them! Yes they are certainly "wrong" to some degree, but I love it anyway.

Hm, maybe I didn't give The Pocket Stylist a fair review? I think that for me personally it was an issue because during the time I was looking to buy it, I was adamant about fitting my body type into a mold instead of recognizing that I have to take bits of advice from several aspects. I'm still not interested in the book, but as it has Angie's vote of approval this means you should check it out Nadine!

17 years ago

Nicole

Veteran

Ha! You guys are really into your mags! I am like that with home magazines. My son's school is doing a magazine drive and I decided to order a fashion magazine instead of a home one! I picked Lucky.

17 years ago

Oneirix

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Active Member

Yay Lucky! I'm a big fan.

I LOVE home magazines! Especially Dwell.

Buy lots of magazines so your son can get the awesome prize! When I was in elementary school the best prize you could get was an inflatable raft with two sets of paddles. I remember wanting it so much...but now that I think back on it, I'm pretty sure I've never had use for a raft. XD

17 years ago

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