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read in October, 1999
Jenny said:
"I can't add six stars, so I'll have to go with five. This is my hands-down favorite book about fashion, history, and how the two are irrevocably intertwined.
At first glance, "Let There Be Clothes" is wacky, colorful, and irreverent. T...more
I can't add six stars, so I'll have to go with five. This is my hands-down favorite book about fashion, history, and how the two are irrevocably intertwined.
At first glance, "Let There Be Clothes" is wacky, colorful, and irreverent. Though the cut & paste images and the snarky, punny sense of humor might turn off the casual reader, this book is packed with tidbits about clothes, how they were worn, why they were worn, what colors meant, what was in the makeup, the beauty tricks...gosh, everything is here. You want to know how the Dutch women kept those tulip-shaped hats on their heads despite the high winds? It's here. Ever wonder how people ate over the ridiculously large lace ruffs in Elizabethan England? Got your answer. Just why was Benjamin Franklin such a huge hit in France? All is revealed within.
"Let There Be Clothes" crosses the lines between what people wore and how they lived, painting a complete picture with a few well-chosen words. Schnurnberger has a real sense for drawing parallels among a variety of historic periods, the present, and geographic areas.
I might never have found this book except that I took the basic "History and Fashion" course at Central CT State University several years ago, and this was one of our textbooks. Since then, through three moves and many life changes, I have jealously held on to my copy. The book is a fantastic introduction to fashion history for anyone, but also contains enough information that I refer to it even today.
I heartily recommend this book to our modern-day fashionistas, anyone working in theatre or historic reenactment, and for good measure, everyone else. The phrase "everything old is new again" was never so well-explained as it is here....less
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