Wife Dressing is a reprint of a 1959 book by fashion designer Anne Fogarty. It is a complete guide to wardrobe – everything from necessary pieces to breaking fashion rules to caring for your wardrobe. It is a little old-fashioned, but has some good tips and a lot of charm.
One of the most useful chapters is “The Care and Feeding Of Your Wardrobe.” Timeless advice includes to never use wire hangers, the best way to hang and store clothing (for example, I did know it is best to fold the bodice of a strapless dress inside-out, and clip it to a hanger at the waistband). Another tip? If you find yourself with dull leather shoes and nothing to buff them with, use your stocking foot.
The chapter in which Anne answers some of the questions she is most frequently asked ranges from the kinda-helpful (“should my shoes always match some other part of my outfit?” “how do you stay so slim?”) to the ridiculous (“should the family car go with my wardrobe?” “I have big feet. Can I wear red shoes?”). Other chapters include a new bride’s wardrobe necessity (right down to the number of gloves); budgeting your wardrobe; a glossary of fashion terms; and a very complex rumination on what constitutes a bargain (it’s not just 80% off).
Wife Dressing is an odd mixture of quaintness and old-fashioned chauvinism. Good clothing care and attention to detail never goes out of style. However, the introduction explains that this book is really for the husband: how you should dress for your husband all the time. Fogarty insists that the “first principle of wife dressing is Complete Femininity.” She suggests the reader “choose the kind of ‘look’ you want to convey as a wife.” As a modern woman -- one who doesn’t cook or clean, who puts career first, who did not take her husband’s name, who is not going to have children -- it seems patently ridiculous to dress for your husband before yourself. But taken with a grain of salt, this book is like digging around in grandma’s closet.
Article comments
1 - Douglas Mays
Absolutely Fabulous!