8 Must Read Fashion Books To Help Slay Your Life

Here are 8 Must Read Fashion Books To Help Slay Your Life

The fashion industry has been responding aggressively to the pandemic

Shows are going digital, Influencers are becoming more connected via the internet but in a country like Nigeria where connection is poor and wifi is weak.

My advice to every fashionista feeling frustrated

‘Try using this time to train yourself and develop your mind, or simply just expand on your passion and knowledge of fashion.’

One great way to achieve this is to turn to books

1.That Extra Half an Inch: Hair, Heels and Everything in Between

By: Victoria Beckham

Vicky B is one of my main points of inspiration when it comes to style and even Kourtney Kardashian will attest to this fact.

She went from Posh Spice in that spiky short cut to a now highly recognized style icon and designer.

Her book That Extra Half an Inch should be on your list.

There is a section on pregnancy dressing,

how to shop for accessories,

why jeans are a must

and so much more.

The book reads as if she is sitting next to you having a girly chat

and will make you feel like her bestie for just a moment.

2. Work Your Wardrobe: Gok’s Gorgeous Guide To Style That Lasts

By Gok Wong

Following the success of his UK TV series How To Look Good Naked and his first publication How to Dress: Your Complete Style Guide for Every Occasion

The acclaimed Fashion stylist Published this must read in 2009 and despite being ten plus years

it still has vital advice and inspiration you’ll need to look

and feel totally fabulous, whatever the occasion.

Reading this book is like having your very own personal styling session with Gok.

Lots of stellar advice in store

Spanning how to style, restyle and re-rock whats already in your wardrobe.

Gok also dishes on where to buy wardrobe staples and basics

(you could wear during the pandemic and style up when the pandemic is over).

Lastly I was pleasantly surprised at this part;

lots of spectacular make-up tips

were for the every broken down

to satisfy any female who isn’t a make-up pro.

3. Rihanna

by Rihanna

Published in 2019 this book took the world by storm.

Rihanna basically gave us a sneak peek into her world with this stunning visual autobiography.

Expect never before seen images

From her Barbados childhood to her worldwide tours,

from her iconic fashion moments to private time with friends and family,

the book showcases intimate photographs of her life as an artist, performer, designer, and entrepreneur.

The business mogul published three limited editions

Love, Rihanna: Luxury Supreme
Signed by Rihanna
Edition of 500

Rihanna: Luxury Supreme
Signed by Rihanna and The Haas Brothers
Edition of 1,000

Rihanna: Fenty x Phaidon
Featuring a Tattooed Hand Stand

4. Naturally Tan

by Tan France

Author, Tanweer Wasim aka “Tan” France is an English fashion dictator

and the male anchor of the show Next In Fashion

and is also the fashion expert on “ Queer Eye ” on Netflix.

But these are a drop in the bucket when we consider the number of jobs Tan has worked in life.

Naturally Tan is part memoir and part advice.

The advice is dispensed in a casual, friendly manner and includes numerous style-related tips, as well as a few regarding the management of relationships, and how to bounce back from bullying.

5. Elsa Schiaparelli: A Biography

by Meryle Secrest

After Cynthia Erivo wore that stunning pink Schiaparelli dress to the Oscars I needed to get the full tea on the fashion house!

This book is the answer.

Expect an eye-opening telling of the life and career

Elsa Schiaparelli,

Meryle Secrest’s biography is well-written and easy to read.

This holistic take on Schiaparelli educates the reader on the designer’s personal life, design influences,

friendships with notable artists and the ways in which the political landscape of her time affected her work.

This book leaves you with an understanding

of the impact Schiaparelli’s work had on fashion today

and is the long awaited sequel to her Autobiography

‘The Shocking Life of Schiaparelli’

6. Speculum Of The Other Woman

by Luce Irigaray

Dior’s women designer Maria Chiuri Grazia

actually put this up as one of her

must read list.

(Photo WWD)

Honestly this is the first I’m hearing of this book

but

if the vey first artistic director of DIOR Femme says so

then it’s automatically on my must-read list.

7. GURU

by RuPaul

In order to understand why this is a must-read, you need to appreciate and educate yourself on the person that is RuPaul.

‘RuPaul (born RuPaul Andre Charles) is an American drag performer, dance music singer, actor, and songwriter who gained fame in the 1990s; appearing in a wide variety of television programs, films, and musical albums.

His most influential being tv series Ru Paul’s Drag Race

which is truly binge-worthy.

In my opinion, Drag Queens actual serve the best makeup and fashion tips because they have no choice but to employ a number of Research and Development tactics to make their masculine features more feminine

They know more than most females about what flatters their shapes best.

GuRu is packed with more than 80 beautiful photographs that illustrate the concept of building the life you want from the outside in and the inside out.

8. Don’t Touch My Hair

by Emma Dabiri

Emma Dabiri is the author of 2019’s powerful Don’t Touch My Hair and a lecturer at SOAS University of London

“There’s A Commitment To Convincing Us Our Hair Is Inferior, And It’s Rubbish”: Emma Dabiri Is Changing The Conversation Around Afro Hair”

The book illustrates the oppressive hair journey that black people have been on

Through detailing her own experience and examining the stigmatisation still held within society

Ms. Dabiri wants to put an end to the discriminatory behaviour surrounding afro hair.

Currently, she is campaigning against the UK ruling currently in place around hair by asking members of the public to sign a petition to amend the Equality Act 2010.

The UK Equality Act 2010 protects colour, nationality, and ethnic or national origins, but hair — specifically afro hair — is not a named “protected characteristic”.

Being born Nigerian with Irish descent,

this is Emma’s bane of existence and she uses her book,

Don’t touch My Hair

birthed 9 years after the Equality Act,

as a medium to inspire legal change.

By: Joan K. Vincent-Otiono