Image of woman with hair curlersI’ve been reading this book on vintage fashion as research for a writing project, and it’s dangerous stuff! Starting from the 1900s, it goes chapter by chapter through the decades, discussing not only influential designers, but also historical influences (like wartime fashion), technological advances, and new sewing techniques that created the now-iconic 20th-century silhouettes, from the slinky bias-cut starlet gowns of the 1930s to the bullet-bra sweater girls of the 1950s.

It’s clear why this book is giving me a temporary fashion obsession (and may or may not have led to the impulse purchase of a pair of retro red suede platform-heel oxfords this morning), but sometimes the effects are subtler. Too many Regency novels can lead to compulsive browsing on estate-jewelry websites, while a nonfiction exposé about our fat/lazy/wasteful consumer culture inevitably results in a guilt-fueled resurrection of something from the back of the closet (and, later, a furtive bag or two of thrift-store donations by the door). Any book about gems, obviously, leads to a frenzy of jewelry shopping on Etsy.

Do you have more willpower than me, or are you just as suggestible to the costumes, hairstyles, and jewels of the era you’re reading about? Have you ever tried to do sausage curls or a Victory roll after reading too much British fiction? Tell me all about it… and then give me your opinion on these red suede shoes.

Stephanie Perry
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