Paris Fashion Week – where 106 houses presented their spring-summer 2025 women's ready-to-wear – ended at the beginning of October, but if you are passionate about fashion, prolong the pleasure with this non-exhaustive selection of books.
1“Naomi, in fashion”
The work Naomi, in fashion was published for the Victoria & Albert Museum exhibition in London which is on at the museum until April 6, 2025. After almost four decades in the fashion industry, her work, both on and off the catwalk , still makes headlines. Opening with an interview conducted by Tim Blanks, this book presents twenty-five outfits from her career selected and commented on by this creative, energetic and iconic top model. He explores the extent of his work as a model, muse both to legendary designers like Lagerfeld, Alaïa, Versace, Chanel and McQueen, and to emerging talents, particularly African ones, like Marianne Fassler and Kenneth Ize. A true retrospective, illustrated by photographs by Steven Meisel, Peter Lindbergh, Paolo Roversi, Ellen von Unwerth, Patrick Demarchelier, Arthur Elgort, Karim Sadli or Mike Jansson. Pleasure for the eyes!
“Naomi, in fashion.” Rizzoli New York Editions. 60 euros.
2“Madame Grès couture Paris”
Discover Madame Grès, one of the greatest French fashion designers of the 20th century. A pioneer of sophisticated minimalism, respect for the female body and its enhancement, she left her mark on haute couture and constitutes a reference, despite her more discreet success than that of her contemporaries Gabrielle Chanel or Jeanne Lanvin. Feminist, her creations allow freedom of movement of the body, complex and delicate, they evoke ancient statuary. Renowned for her characteristic drape, her perfect mastery of the fold and her asymmetrical dresses, she continues, even today, to inspire designers like Mossi. To discover, photos – taken during exhibitions Sewing at work at the Bourdelle museum in Paris in 2011 and The Art of Draping organized by the SCAD Fash Museum in Atlanta (United States) in 2023 -, archive photographs and original drawings to which Olivier Saillard's texts bring an expert perspective. A reference of timeless elegance.
“Madame Grès couture Paris”. Texts by Olivier Saillard and Anne Graire. Rizzoli New York Editions. 60 euros.
3 “Iconic”
Years after their creation, certain pieces continue to embody elegance and style. The passage of time and successive fashions have no influence on them. Discover eighteen style icons as well as their creators, eighteen timeless pieces with eternal chic: the borsalino, the sailor top, the Hermès scarf, the trench, the Chanel 2.55, the little black dress, the jeans, the stiletto , the Chanel suit… The genesis of each piece, its repetitions, its variations are explained and magnificently illustrated. What's in fashion doesn't necessarily go out of style!
“Iconic” by Federico Rocca. Larousse edition. 34.95 euros.
4“Dico mode & styles”
Both a fashion lexicon and a guide to all styles, this book is essential for fashion enthusiasts. Eight chapters trace the history of fashion, the symbiotic relationships between music, dance and styles, styles linked to culture and counterculture, styles emerging from costume trunks – and which constitute an idealized or fantasized self – or even gender-neutral fashion. This dictionary examines a wide range of looks, studies their roots in history and culture, and shows how they are organized and combined. Gorecore, hygge, beatnik, athleisure and body conscious will no longer hold any secrets for you!
“Fashion & styles dictionary. The gender-neutral guide to styles and their meaning” by Hannah Kane. Marabout Edition. 35 euros.
5“Little stories about our clothes”
This book is an exploration of our wardrobe: from the anorak to the veil, including sneakers and the little black dress, the author ofHistory of fashion and clothing revisits our cupboards and drawers and takes us back to Antiquity. Where we discover that the ancestor of our hoodie was banned by Charles VI, before being adopted five centuries later by the New York hip-hop community who baptized it “hoodie”; that kangaroo pants were not born in the 1940s, but already existed in the Middle Ages; or that it wasn't until the 1960s that women could seamlessly wear pants on the street. A tasty and funny alphabet book.
“Little stories about our clothes” by Denis Bruna. Textual Editions. 25 euros.
6“The Pajamas. A story between night and day”
On the occasion of its 40th anniversary, the French brand Arthur – an expert in men's innerwear and underwear – retraces the history of pajamas and boxer shorts through a two-in-one book: The Underpants, the underside of the storyet The Pajamas, a story between night and day. Historical research, advertising archives, cinematographic references, it is a journey through the centuries where we discover, for example, that pajamas have transcended the boundaries of the bedroom to conquer social evenings and red carpets. For its part, the boxer shorts were even featured in a song – who could forget that of Good King Dagobert – but did he win the battle with the underpants? To each their own side.
“Le Boxer shorts, the underside of the story” and “The Pajamas, a story between night and day“. Éditions Porte-plumes. 35 euros.
