SYNOPSIS: This fashion guide is a fascinatingly strategic approach to identifying, refining, and expressing personal style and building the wardrobe to match it. You will learn how to shop smarter and more selectively, make the most of your budget, master outfit formulas and colour palettes, tweak your wardrobe for work, as well as assess garment fit and quality like a pro. This book will help you create a unique look you love, and ensures you always have something to wear that is authentically you.
AUTHOR: Anuschka Rees is a writer from Berlin, Germany. She is the founder of popular style blog “Into Mind”, with The Curated Closet being her first book that has been translated into a number of languages. She has also written a second book, “Beyond Beautiful” , which is a feminist image guide for the social media era.
COVER: The photography on the cover of this book resembles a somewhat minimalist room in that there is no actual closet, rather a hanging rod with clothing on it near a chair and a pouf. It would look entirely off-putting if there weren’t select pieces of the same shade in different sections. I can honestly say it is perhaps 50/50 whether I would have picked up the book had I seen it in a bookstore.
FORMAT: The book is divided into four sections that is further broken down into subsections based on that section. Each of these categories draws you through the process from concept to actuality in regards to your ideal wardrobe.
WRITING STYLE: This book does not tell you what to wear, but rather leads you through a series of activities to help you discover a personal style authentic to you. It teaches you how to turn your random purchases into a workable wardrobe that is an expression of self and fits in with your lifestyle.
CONTENT: Anuschka Rees believes clothes should inspire and give confidence; that they should, like Marie Kondo said, spark joy. The author delves into the how we end up with outfits we dislike, how to discover our own personal style, and how to shop for our dream wardrobe. While Rees does also advocate culling your closet, it should not be done in a wholesale way that isn’t budget friendly.
PERSONAL THOUGHTS: I had picked up this book on the recommendation of a youtuber I have been following for some time. She had read it along with Marie Kondo’s The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up and loved it, so I thought I may as well give this one a go too. While I had never been excessively into fashion, I have become frustrated of constantly being mistaken for a college student and had no idea where to even start in regards to fixing that issue. I was surprised to discover, through one of the activities, that a good portion of the clothes I decided to keep because they “spark joy” will actually fit in well with my ideal wardrobe.
QUOTE: Our clothes tell a story. Our clothes reflect our personality and what’s important to use.
VERDICT: This book is like being in “The Devil Wears Prada” movie without actually having to deal with a boss from hell. Like Andrea, I have become far more interested in clothing and what my outfits say to other people about who I am as a person than I was before reading it. I found it really helpful and would recommend it to anyone who is ready to make a lifestyle change, because the right wardrobe can change your life.
JaimeKristal 