This book is wearing a garter. And on the inside, it is decorated with ribbons, stars, pieces of fabric, photographs, lists, pockets, sequins, glitter, a jingle bell, and other things that relate to the text. I haven't finished reading it yet so there is much more to come. This kind of reading takes a long time because I have to stop and go hunting for stuff quite often. I don't know why I am so compelled at times to do this with my books, but I love doing it. I copied this fantastic photo of the three authors and pasted it on the inside cover, along with each of their portraits to the left. They are Leanne Shapton, Sheila Heti, and Heidi Julavits. This is a book about real women and their real clothes (642 of them!) with all the accompanying angst and glory that comes with their candid stories. Personal fashion (maybe that's the only really important kind of fashion there is?) runs deep, especially when we look at what it says about who we are and how we communicate that persona in our daily lives. I underline, highlight and doodle while I read. I want to remember certain moments and be able to return to them...
and sometimes I find myself wandering through the pages.
The first image above is a drawing from the book of some "tried and discarded items" from a women in the process of deciding what to wear. The second image is a photo of my own clothes on the floor of my bedroom after getting dressed in the morning. The photo is taped over the drawing, like a flip card. There is no place in the book where anything that I have added has covered or obliterated the text permanently. The book can still be read in its entirety.
A short section about two women meeting in an elevator and discussing glasses prompted me to make a detailed list of my own reading glasses. And one of the women interviewed is adamant about how she does NOT want to look like Audrey Hepburn!
And of course there is a section about mothers, so I added my own. We all have our memories of those mother/daughter wardrobe moments. Next to the photo of my mom I attached a paragraph about how disappointed I was that she never wanted to buy me any clothes when I was a teenager.
This book also provides plenty of inspiration for spicing up your own style. The Chanel duct tape idea is one that I particularly like because it makes me laugh. Maybe I will try it next summer at the beach. Its both a nod to the allure and power of the fashion elite and a comment on its excessive frivolity. And hopefully, it will elicit a chuckle or two.
But in the end, I think it all comes down to finding the style that expresses both who you are and the kind of relationships that you want to have in your world. And if you don't want to go to the effort of dressing that way, then at least top off whatever you are wearing with a great pair of earrings! After all, its usually the little things in life that speak the loudest.
