"McQueen said, I'm not big on women looking naive. There is a hidden agenda in the fragility of romance."

"Now the mouth is back as bloody gash, a visible wound. This mouth bleeds over everything, cups, ice cream, table napkins, towels....We will leave our blood spoor behind us, to show we have been there....They all dripped blood over everything as they stalked sophisticatedly to their dooms. In their wake, lipstick traces on a cigarette stub; the perfect imprint, like half a heart, of a scarlet lower lip on a drained Martini glass; the telltale scarlet letter, A for adultery. On a shirt collar on the kitsch poetry of it all! ... The revival of red lipstick indicates, above all, I suppose that women's sense of security was transient."

This anthology blew me away. Aside from my passionate love for Alexander McQueen, I know next to nothing about fashion. This book was extremely approachable for someone who has never interacted with the subject of fashion. It's well-curated--every essay stood strong on its own but fit well with others in its grouping. I learned a lot and also found some recommendations for future reading on the subject!

Thanks to NetGalley and Bloomsbury Academic for an ARC of this book!