Book Review: The Glamour of Bellville Sassoon

I received an advance copy of this book from the publisher. They had asked me if I would review it for them. I had planned to ask DH for this book for Christmas (he always gives me a book on fashion or sewing), but I'll have to suggest something different. Now, in the spirit of full disclosure, I am not being paid for writing this review, nor am I receiving any kind of compensation. But I did not have to pay for the book; the publisher sent it to me gratis. Now that the disclaimers are out of the way, let's get on with it, shall we?

Title: The Glamour of Bellville Sassoon (Hardbound)

Author(s): David Sassoon and Sinty Stemp

Publisher: ACC Editions

ISBN: 978-1-85419-575-7

Suggested Price: $75.00

Contents:

Forward by Suzy Menkes
Preface by David Sassoon
Beginnings
Royal College of Art
Belting Along with Bellville
Sign of the Times - Bellville Sassoon Through the Decades
Royals
Queen for a Day - Bellville Brides
Jewels and Balls
Vogue Patterns
New Horizons
Acknowlegements
Index

First Impressions: Eye Candy - total eye candy. This book is chock full of pictures of clothing spanning 5 decades. David Sassoon was hired by Belinda Bellville in 1958. During that time he has created clothes that have adorned celebrities, debutantes and royalty, as well as less lofty folk. This book chronicles his career and many of his clientele. It's very fun to see the evolution of fashion through the years. And the text is written in a conversational, easy to read style.

A Little More Depth: I found this book to be both thoroughly enjoyable and, in some niggling sense, a little frustrating. As I say, the book has tons of pictures of the dresses and those who wear them. The pictures are taken from fashion shoots for various magazines, as well as press photos of famous folk wearing them to galas. Sassoon describes his career through the decades in a fun manner. He's quite generous with credit for his assistants, Belinda Bellville and Lorcan Mullany, the current head designer. It's very fun to see the clothing styles of each decade. Many of his dresses could walk right off the page and down the street today. It's also interesting to see how his designs presaged other collections. You can draw a direct line from some of the designs Sassoon did in the late 60s to Yves Saint Laurent's "Ballet Russes" collection. There's another outfit from the 60s that features a highly structured and embellished bra that foreshadows Jean Paul Gaultier's cone bras of the 80s. His description of the London scene in the 60s really evokes the giddiness of the era.

It's very interesting to see how the 70s evolved. The looks from that decade are far more dated. Though there is one dress on page 89 that I could easily see on Cidell and other latter-day glamour girls. While the fashion isn't as interesting to me, the stories are quite entertaining, notably the story of the theft of his collection from the New York Hilton. That event made headlines around the globe, and it in a perverse way probably helped Bellville Sassoon gain a secure footing in the US. The funny story that came out of it is Sassoon's recounting of his night drowning his sorrows at Studio 54, complete with all the name brand celebrities of the day.

The 80s decade was when Bellville Sassoon really hit it big - Princess Diana was the company's premiere client, and Sassoon designed many, many outfits for her. My goodness - the fashions of the 80s are SO recognizable! Living through them, of course, I thought that we were all da bomb dressing that way. Looking back.... well, um, hmmmm.... The 90s saw a (very slightly) more restrained look, and the aughts seem to continue that trend.

Sassoon devotes an entire chapter to the British royals. Except for the Queen and Queen Mother, he has dressed every female member of the royal family. He discretely dishes about them all: from Princess Margaret to Diana, with photographs and press clippings. Most of the chapter is devoted to Princess Diana. But I have to say, the one that had me chuckling was the section on Sarah Ferguson, then Duchess of York.

The chapter on bridal fashion is another fascinating journey through time. It's really neat to see the changing styles: from the structured and high-necked 60s to the strapless boned dresses of today, it's an interesting historical perspective. Sassoon also gives some great, mostly anonymous, dishy recounts of adventures with couture Bridezillas. The Jewels and Balls chapter discusses his dresses in the upper social circles at galas and balls.

My favorite chapter, of course, is the chapter on Vogue Patterns. It's interesting to realize that Bellville Sassoon is the longest running partnership of Vogue Patterns. Vogue first started publishing Bellville Sassoon's patterns in 1965 and have been doing so steadily since. Sassoon describes the process of going from a Bellville Sassoon design on the runway to the paper pattern that we all use. It's fascinating, and it's also a little sad, to read the litany of designers who also worked with Vogue: Schiaparelli, Lanvin, Fath, Versace, YSL. Their ranks have dwindled in the Vogue stable. Sigh.... One of the marvelous photo montages in the book is the two-page spread of Bellville Sassoon for Vogue patterns through the years.

The last chapter looks forward, with Lorcan Mullany at the design helm of Bellville Sassoon. Sassoon was presented with a lifetime achievement award from the Association of Sewing and Design Professionals (formerly PACC) last month in Chicago. Reading this book, you get the clear sense that Sassoon, while not finished, is definitely handing the reins over to the next generation. Kind of like Belinda Bellville did with him.

Do I Recommend this Book? Yes. As I said at the beginning, this is definitely great eye candy. I mentioned that I found it a wee bit frustrating. After writing this review, I think I know why. I wish there was more of a look into the making of a Bellville Sassoon garment. I know - it's a fashion book, not a sewing book. But I would love to get a glimpse of the workroom and the people who take the designs from vision to reality. It's a minor point, but it would make the book complete for me.

Conclusion: As I say, this is a fun book to read and the pictures are fun to ogle. At $75 it is a bit steep, but Amazon.com has it available for pre-order at $47.25, and you can get super saver shipping on it. So if you are looking for a fun traverse of latter-twentieth century fashion, as well as some inspiration, this book is definitely worth it!

Tomorrow DS the younger ("Anakin Skywalker" from yesterday's post) has a dance competition. He's dancing at 8-freaking-AM. I still have to finish his costume for that, so I'll bid you all a fond adieu and

Happy sewing!