Pick-a-Shelf discussion

July Shelf is fashion

What did you read? Did you learn something new? Are you inspired to do something? What is it?

I just finished The Gown by Jennifer Robson. ⭐⭐⭐⭐

I'm really not into fashion, but this was a very good read. It takes place in 1947 when Princess Elizabeth's wedding gown was being created and follows the lives of two of the embroiderers. This is much more about their own lives and their skill at embroidery than it is about royalty (who just are written about here and there in the book).

I finished A Vintage Affair ⭐⭐

This book was a bit of a let down. I didn't feel connected to any of the characters. I didn't like Phoebe, and since she was the main character it was hard to stay interested in the book. At least there were many plot lines.

I'd like to nominate:
witches

I read Revenge Wears Prada: The Devil Returns because I loved The Devil Wears Prada when I read it in 2003. At the time, I had recently left a job with a really bad boss (though not as bad as Miranda Priestly), and I still believed I could one day make a living as a writer (though not for glossy national magazines), so I could relate to Andrea Sachs.

However, now that Andy has aged 10-12 years and I've aged 19 years, we are very different people. I didn't like her much in Revenge Wears Prada, and I didn't like the book much, either. I may read When Life Gives You Lululemons simply to get a sense of completion (and because I love the title!), but I don't think I'll feel a sense of loss if I skip it.

I almost forgot: I nominate Alternate History.

I readThe Paris Seamstress ⭐⭐⭐⭐

It's a story about a young girl named Estrella who flees France right before the Germans arrive. She leaves behind her mother and hopes to get into the fashion business in the US. The book crosses generations and we meet her granddaughter who is trying to find out about her grandmother's past.

Naturally, I join this group just after you do two shelves that are my faves: epistolary and fashion. As I’m late to the fashion party I will just post my fashion fiction shelf. I also collect books on historical fashion so I have another shelf for those non fiction books.

Won’t say these are all gems but for what it’s worth:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/list...

I also read The Gown
3.5 stars

Two young women in 1947 London, embroiders on Princess Elizabeth's wedding gown. And a granddaughter in contemporary Toronto learning about them. This is one of my favourite tropes!
A nicely paced and readable story. The characters were likeable and believable. Not much happened, but I still wanted to keep reading.

Read for JRI
I nominate: asia

I read The Chiffon Trenches by André Leon Talley and gave it five stars.

A fantastic memoir from one of the most influential personalities in the fashion world.

I'll refrain from nominating this time since this was my pick.

I am reading The Conscious Closet: The Revolutionary Guide to Looking Good While Doing Good by Elizabeth L. Cline. This is a book that will take me some time to get through as it is a call to action that I am taking as I read it.

So far, I have gone through my dresser drawers and made choices of what to keep...and what goes. Now to read enough to find out how it should go and where.

No nomination at this time. This is a work in progress.

EDIT: I finished the book and found that I was spurred to tackle me walk-in closet. However, I doubt seriously that my buying habits will change much. Nor will I be inclined to be an advocate for clothing related revolutions. Still, I have tried to recycle my clothing responsibly and reduce my consumption.

I read some of the book Bea read, The Conscious Closet. I found some of it rather interesting, but didn't read it from cover to cover. My daughter has already introduced me to buying clothes at ThredUp, so I enjoyed reading the history of that company. It definitely belongs on this shelf.

Then I tried The Paris Seamstress. I read only the first chapter. It wasn't bad, just didn't catch my interest.

Finally, I found Zero History. I can see why someone put it on this shelf, but it was the plot and characters that made it worth reading for me. It wasn't great, but it was interesting.

Have not read it yet but I picked this up recently at a Salvation Army store for $1: Women from the Ankle Down: The Story of Shoes and How They Define Us While I’m not a big shoe addict it still looks interesting.