Timeless style book – “The International best dressed List: The Official Story” by Amy Fine Collins

Dear readers, when it comes to the end of the year, there are countless of celebrations almost everywhere! Yes it’s certainly the Christmas (and New Year’s countdown) which makes it the best reason to party, and I think it also gives us an opportunity to start dressing up, and match up with the magical and glamorous ambient around us. Since we were talking about “dressing up” here, one of the great reference is to take a look with the best dressed people, either past or present, to grasp their stylish essence and then infuse them into ourselves, of course adding our very own taste and persona, to create the best version of ourselves, and become someone dazzling in any celebrating parties that you are attending. If you have the similar kind of thought like I do, then I think you will also enjoy the beautiful book titled ‘The International Best Dressed List: The Official Story’.

Photo credit: © Steve Shapiro

Published by Rizzoli, with introduction by Mr. Graydon Carter, Foreword by fashion designer Ms. Carolina Herrera, and written by Ms. Amy Fine Collins, who is a writer and editor at large at Air Mail, and a special correspondent at Vanity Fair. This book is such an elegant and sumptuous copy which gathered the world’s most best dressed women and men, from Hollywood celebrities to royalty, art and fashion icons, as well as high society to cultural figures, a rich story told by the insider and International Best Dressed List Hall-of-famer (the author) herself, with her knowledge and exclusive insights which makes this book so inspiring for those who has a craving for glamour and stylish people, also a relatively comprehensive copy that recorded the most significant and key international best dressed people for almost in the last century.

Photo credit: Getty Images/Slim Aarons

Photo credit: Getty Images/Cecil Beaton/Conde Nast

This book was published back in Oct 2019, however I only got this copy about a couple of weeks ago (which I probably believe it’s the 2nd edition), as I have completely missed it when it first came out, and the bookstore just get this stock back only a couple of weeks ago, and I simply bought it without a second thought, because how much I adore these stylish people who appeared in this copy, especially those starting from the 1930s to 1960s, and somehow it also reminds me that I should make much effort, to master my sensibility of refined menswear and style, also my eyes on detail when it comes to dressing and grooming, so that one day I might able to become one of them too!

Photo credit: Getty Images/Jerry Cooke

While looking at the cover that you might think it’s only for the best dressed women, but on contrary, this book has included some of the best dressed men of the world as well! As the matter of fact, I did a bit of research (from bondofficial.com) about the listing, men were not on the list until 1966, and then in 1968, it finally has its own category, in another words, being well-dressed is not just about vanity, nor being ostentatious and only the effort that can achieve by women, but it’s also an admirable trait for gentlemen, who shows not only his sense of style and taste, but his knowledge and breeding through the cultivation and appreciation of art, fashion and sophisticated things around him; and I think through this book, it definitely helps to enrich our sense of style, especially for all the fine gents and dandies out there, while going through all these timeless people and their iconic attire throughout the past century, page after page, it enables us to pick up a trick or two from these style legends, helping us to be more aware and understand about what ‘style’ really means, and how it influence our way on assembling our own attire on daily basis, also serving as a timeless style guide when it comes to refined menswear and fashion, to guide us to dress ourselves in a more presentable and sophisticated way while expressing who we are.

If you also happened to have a copy of this book, do let me know which period or style legend is your favorite.

Photo credit: Getty Images

Photo credit: Getty Images/Mark Large

Image courtesy of Rizzoli USA.

https://www.rizzoliusa.com/book/9780847864133/