Stylebook Book Club - Book 3
Your style inspiration journey needs somewhere to start, right? I think I Love Your Style, by Amanda Brooks is an excellent reference for timeless outfits ideas across many styles. A major theme of the last two reads was going out into the world to find inspiration to inspire your personal look. I think this next book provides an excellent jumping-off point to explore different styles and gather a lot of fashion history.
My favorite part about this book is that she emphasizes evolving your style over time. Always remember that it’s okay to try things out, experiment and have fun! This book is all about inspiration and style evolution. The photos in this book are from the past, but most of them still hold their ground today. Amanda Brooks doesn’t define each category with strict boundaries. I know our previous book, “The Curated Closet,” said to beware of guides with style categories, but I think Amanda Brooks goes beyond style stereotypes. She also provides resources for extended opportunities to explore each style with recommendations on movies and further reading. Many of the women featured in this book were style mavericks of their time and actually came to define the style portrayed.
The “Getting It Right” section has excellent styling tips that give you ideas on proportions and which pieces to pair together. Browse the inspiration images, and then use her tips to put together your own outfit ideas. Even if you think you’ve defined your style already, there's great inspiration to be found in “I Love Your Style.” I don’t agree with everything she says, like her thoughts on hating faux fur, but things have a changed a lot since this book was first published in 2009. Of course, we all know now that even major brands like Fendi have moved to using faux fur and it looks just as good as the real thing!
The book opens with a recap of her own sartorial history, and it sounds like she’s had a pretty hefty clothing budget for most of her life. Don’t worry, though - her tips can be applied to any budget! Have fun exploring this book and her additional resources. I’m personally going to the library to look for some of the books and movies she mentioned in the “Minimal and Classic” section!
- Jess Atkins, Stylebook Co-founder
Jess's Take-Away and Discussion
My style evolution collage
“I Love Your Style” is an entertaining mix of fashion history, style advice and autobiography. I found that every chapter offered some useful advice, especially her shopping tips and outfit ideas on how to put certain looks together. Here are the pages with my favorite shopping tips - shopping strategies for basics, (p.218) cheap chic (p.224) and designer pieces (p.258)
My biggest takeaway from this book is that personal style is flexible and your personal style evolution can span many genres. Throughout the book, Brooks discusses how her style changed over her life and how she never felt shy about experimenting. While she often found herself drawn to classic or bohemian style, she didn’t feel the need to stick with every clothing piece stereotypically associated with those genres. I can really relate to this - while I’m in love with classic pieces like my Brooks Brothers trench or my roll-top handbag, I also love handmade crafty clothes from Free People and Anthropology. There is no need to let a single style define you, even if you wear many pieces from a particular genre. I dug up a bunch of old pictures to see my own style evolution over time, like the author did throughout the book. I’ve tried a cheap chic oversized belt for a museum party (polaroid), a bohemian tie-dyed button-down shirt, and classics like my DVF wrap dress, which I found at a consignment store. It was fun to look back on my wardrobe over time and made me look forward to the future!
My Favorite Chapters
Designer - This chapter walks through how to approach designer pieces, even if you’re working with an average budget. I really appreciated her advice on how to analyze designer collections and avoid making a regrettable designer splurge. This is the ultimate roadmap for embracing designer pieces without becoming a fashion victim. I also think her tips apply to the fashion blogger world. Every month there is a new “hot” bag, dress, jacket - something! It’s easy to get caught up in a shopping frenzy and wind up with a closet full of trendy pieces you’ll never want to wear again because you’re bored with them and they feel old and out of style.
Cheap Chic - At the time this book was published, Brooks could have never imagined how ubiquitous fast fashion would be today. Cheap chic stores are something I struggle with because while I appreciate the democratization of fashion, the quality of some of the pieces is just too bad - not to mention the ethical issues surrounding some retailers. Brooks offered a few tactics for hunting for pieces that consistently look great from ultra-affordable retailers.
Classic, Minimal and Eclectic Chapter - The inspiration sections with further reading and recommended films are really fun! I’ve been working my way through the classic and minimalist inspirations. So far, I’ve dug out my copy of Slim Aarons’s monograph “Once Upon a Time” and checked out some French New Wave films!
Overall, I have a lot of inspiration to explore and a few new shopping tips under my belt to help me build on my personal style.
Discussion:
Comment on the Instagram post below to tell me the most helpful tip you learned from the book.
- Does you style evolve or do you find yourself firmly in one genre?
- Did you discover any new style inspiration through the images and suggested resources in the book?
- What was your favorite outfit or shopping tip?
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The first week of the month: I’ll post on Instagram about what I got from the book and I hope you’ll share your thoughts with me there too!.
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