Clothing book

[punkrunner]

It seems that many of you active users have different books about mens clothing and fashion. As newbie I was hoping that some of you more experienced members could post a list of quality fashion books for us new members to try and obtain.

 

[artdeco73]

Check your independent book store for titles by Alan Flusser. A clothing designer himself, he is recognized as one of the top authors in the field of men's clothing. He can be dogmatic sometimes, and occasionally what he presents as an immutable fact is really more of a conjecture, but even so I find that he offers a lot of useful information. The reason I said indpendent bookstore, by the way, is only because I always encourage everyone to support them. Feel free to search Amazon.com if that's your cup of tea. In fact, some of Flusser's books are now out of print, I believe, and so may be easier to find through some of the used book dealers that list on Amazon. There is also Andy Gilchrist who publishes a web site and a book on CD-ROM: http://www.askandyaboutclothes.com/ His site also offers a discussion forum similar to this one, although it is currently down for repairs. Best Regards, Tony

 

[mistahlee]

"The Men's Clothing Guide"  by Steve Brinkman (a/k/a Steve B., one of the moderators of The Style Forum) has some good advice, particularly about dressing on a limited budget.

 

[Duveen]

I highly recommend the list of books at JD Erickson's site: http://www.jderickson.com/clothing/books.html J, Can we make this an HOF and get this question fully answered once to make it easier for those just joining?

 

[Manton]

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[LabelKing]

The CEO of Brioni, Umberto Angeloni, also has a text out called "Style in One's Lapel."

 

[kidkim2]

I second Duven's motion. This is a topic ideally suited to long-term treatment.

BTW: A good way to save money while supporting small business--and to do so without sacrificing convenience--is to purchase books through the AddALL meta-site, a compendium of hundreds (thousands?) of used and rare book dealers' lists. (For example, it is, as far as I know, the only time-efficient source for the increasingly rare and punishingly expensive "Men in Style.&quot

I do not now have, nor have I ever had, any pecuniary interest, of any sort whatsoever, in AddAll (or its subsidiaries, should there be any such). Cross my heart and hope to die.

 

[esquire.]

I'm confused- are you recommending John T. Molloy's book or not? You disparage it, yet its on your list. What is exactly wrong with it?

I'm asking because I just bought the older paperback edition, not the new and improved one, from the 70s for a quarter. But, I wonder if its even worth the effort to read it.

 

[FIHTies]

I recently posted a similar topic on the Andy forum and got a list from here to tomorrow of reading material. http://www.askandyaboutclothes.com/F...?TOPIC_ID=2579 Definately a read for those that have an interest in the timeless books relevant to Men's Clothing. JJF

 

[faustian bargain]

ah yes, i knew i had seen this topic somewhere before, but couldn't recall where it was. that was a great thread to re-read, and the contents of some of the posts should be included in our hoped-for sticky-thread. has anyone seen this book: Men's Fashion: The Complete Sourcebook by John Peacock? Is it worth getting? /andrew

 

[Manton]

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[jcusey]

Yet that is all Molloy cares about, and he claims to have applied the "scientific method" to figuring out what works and what does not. I have no doubt that he seriously believes in his approach, and that he did all the research he describes. I claim only that anyone who follows his advice will end up looking drab, drab, drab. Safe, yes, but drab.

I have no doubt that he believes his method to be scientific, but it's certainly not. His idea of a controlled experiment is to observe reactions when a woman goes into a meeting wearing a navy suit, leave in the middle, and comes back wearing a red suit. Surprisingly enough, people pay more attention to her after she's come back, probably more to her bizarre behavior than her clothing. He also doesn't give enough details of his experiments, his methodology, or his results for anything he does to be repeatable. It's garbage masquerading as science.

 

[LA Guy]

Molloy's book is almost unrelievedly awful. Those of us who come to this board are interested in stlye. We do not see clothes solely in terms of how they will help us advance in our careers, make a sale, get a job, etc. Yet that is all Molloy cares about, and he claims to have applied the "scientific method" to figuring out what works and what does not. I have no doubt that he seriously believes in his approach, and that he did all the research he describes. I claim only that anyone who follows his advice will end up looking drab, drab, drab. Safe, yes, but drab.

I agree completely. The guy is a boob, and clearly not a scientist (or if he is, his alma mater should disown him.)Anyone who talks about clothing as a tool for "success" probably does not love clothing, but probably does love money - a particularly unattractive quality.

 

[Bic Pentameter]

It has been some 5 years since I read Dress for Success, but I liked it when I read it. (I bought my copy for $1.25 at Goodwill). I occassionally refer to it, along with the other books in my collection.

Agreed that loving money is an unattractive quality. However, being interested in style and giving consideration to the effect that clothing has on things like the reaction of your audience (the jury you argue before, the clientele you sell to, the patients you treat) and the salary your superior chooses to give you needn't be mutually exclusive.

I don't recall the experiment (activity?) involving changing from a navy suit to a red one in the middle of a meeting. That certainly would be jaring. Some of his other activities involving pictures of the same people in different shirt, tie and jacket color combinations was interesting, and I think relatively instructional. The famous raincoat activity, where secretaries' response time was measured when messengers wearing different colored raincoats (tan and black), sending two job similar candidates into interviews with identical resumes, one wearing a necktie and one without, offered a bit of insight into how people react to clothing.

I won't suggest that his methodology was scientific, or that his experiments were not flawed, but many other commentators (Flusser, Boyer Roentzel) would say something like: "The tan raincoat has been a classic since the Doughboys stormed the European trenches in the Great War. The height of elegance and mark of a gentleman." or "A true gentleman always wears an elegant necktie with a finely tailored suit to a job interview."


Just my two cents....

Bic