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It's All About the Dress: What I Learned in Forty Years About Men, Women, Sex, and Fashion [Hardcover]

Vicky Tiel
4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (22 customer reviews)

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Book Description

August 16, 2011

Vicky Tiel started as an “it” girl of the 1960s and has had a four decade career designing clothes that make real women look fabulous.  Her sexy, fresh hot pants and miniskirts were used by Woody Allen in his first movie, What’s New, Pussycat?, her classic design inspired the red dress that transformed Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman, and her creations are worn today by stars such as Halle Berry and Kim Kardashian.  Tiel’s own life has been dance-the-night-away fun, from her earliest days flunking out of Parsons to design on her own, to starting a chic boutique with best friend Mia Fonssagrives in Paris, from marrying MGM’s top make-up man to becoming Elizabeth Taylor’s dear friend and part of her longtime entourage.  Tiel forged her own path, and picked up some distinctive and hard-earned lessons from the rich, famous and celebrated along the way.

In IT’S ALL ABOUT THE DRESS, you’ll get a glimpse of what it’s like to be Hollywood royalty (think yachts, tiny dogs, giant pearls and peanut butter sandwiches washed down with Chateau Margaux), discover the seduction secrets of the greats (from Kim Novak to Goldie Hawn to Warren Beatty), take in a little husband-hunting advice, and even learn legendary model Dorian Leigh’s recipe for gigot d’agneau sept heures.

Vicky Tiel will teach you to dress like a sex symbol , cook like the owner of a French country inn, and seize what you want from the world like an American ingénue.


Frequently Bought Together

It's All About the Dress: What I Learned in Forty Years About Men, Women, Sex, and Fashion + Searching for Beauty: The Life of Millicent Rogers
Price for both: $39.10

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Editorial Reviews

Review

"A naughty girl when that was the best a girl could be, inventor of the mini, Paris couturier at 18, Vicky Tiel tells spicy tales from dressing Kim, Ursula and Miles Davis, teasing Woody Allen, staying up late with Princess Grace and more intimate tales than you thought you'd want to know from her years in the entourage of Liz and Dick.  Comes complete with tricks you need: bedroom advice, supermodels' diet guide, how to get men to give jewelry and the recipe for a perfect pink tunafish sandwich."
--Gael Greene, author of Insatiable: Tales from a Life of Delicious Excess.
 
"A delicious romp...her memoir reads like all of the juiciest bits of your favorite gossip magazine, pushing back the curtains of an over-the-top life among the who's who of the '60s-'80s."
--Kirkus Review

About the Author

VICKY TIEL began designing clothes forty years ago in Paris and still owns a boutique there. Her custom couture dresses are sold in Bergdorf Goodman and Neiman Marcus.  Her line of cocktail dresses and special occasion wear is sold through department stores nationwide. She lives in northern Florida near Alabama, and in Paris, France.


Product Details

  • Hardcover: 336 pages
  • Publisher: St. Martin's Press; First Edition edition (August 16, 2011)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0312659091
  • ISBN-13: 978-0312659097
  • Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.8 x 1.2 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (22 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #649,782 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

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Customer Reviews

If you were in your late teens/early 20's in the 60/70's - a MUST read!!!!! Beatrice  |  1 reviewer made a similar statement
It all just seems too too much to be true. Scott James  |  1 reviewer made a similar statement
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
32 of 32 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars My mouth was hanging open during much of this book. August 18, 2011
By dpm
Format:Hardcover
Buy it, just buy it. This book is indescribable, but I will try. This is an amazing woman, who at a very young age, went to fashion school in NY (with equivocal marks, which did not deter her one bit), then off to Paris to turn the fashion world upside down all at the age of 20. The people she met along the way, and the casual yet detailed way she describes their amazing successes, made me realize my mouth was literally hanging open with shock while I read, which I never remember happening before. Read it in two days, couldn't put it down. It is truly a guilty pleasure, yet there is something deeper here as well. To read about an individual so confident, not only in her own ability but in the joy she takes in other people's success, and her complete indifference to convention, was so refreshing and also inspiring. Possibly one of the best books of the year.
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12 of 12 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars it's all about the dress August 23, 2011
Format:Hardcover
I loved the book! Not normally a celebrity stalker, I couldn't stop reading this unbridled unabashed UNINHIBITED account of Vicky's remarkable life and circumstances! She shares the most intimate revealing stories of her relationships with remarkable men and women in a fun and refreshingly sweet style.I was sorry when I got to the last page!
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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful reading September 4, 2011
By Bonnie
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
Vicky goes into detail about her life and the fashions in the sixties; anyone interested in this time frame would enjoy reading her book. It keeps the reader mesmerized.
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
1.0 out of 5 stars It's All About the Boobs December 1, 2012
Format:Kindle Edition
"Lesson: Learn what men like and be good at it." Paying lip service to female empowerment, Vicky Tiel proceeds to girltalk about her life as a perpetual third-string mistress and fawning celebrity camp-follower. Proper female pride is a foreign concept to this woman. Exhibit A: Her first married lover takes her to his room which is dominated by a large portrait of his nude wife over the bed. Underneath is a chart of women's names with strings of multi-colored stick-on stars. His conquests are rated in categories of oral sex, show of enthusiasm, classic sex, kissing, and beauty: "Red stars were tops. I was determined to have five red stars in every category." He's surprised that she's not offended: "No," I told him. "I want to know what men want." Exhibit B: Tiel consents to a "Vicky Contest"-dating rivals Woody Allen and Clive Donner must compete to see who can give Tiel the most creative gift. The winner gets to sleep with her. She's careful to point out that she was sure both were truly interested in a long-term relationship, not just a one-night-stand (neither won, by the way. She was busy hooking up with married man #2). This book is full of such idiocies. Her adventures with the Beautiful People seem as outwardly glitzy and inwardly impoverished as an episode of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, and her diva complaints became tiresome. When an air hostess bumped her from first-class to coach because of her ratty jeans, she predictably throws a fit: "Didn't the hostess realize the antitravel look was for those who really travel?... Read more ›
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Life in the fast lane! September 25, 2011
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
Love the honesty, humor and intelligence of this book. What a life! We girls of that generation always wanted to know more. More than the gossip columnists told us and more than we could imagine. Vicky has given us a real picture of life with the rich and famous.
Loved, loved, loved the little tidbits of advice that hold so much depth and the recipes that I am sure I will use in the not too distant future! Don't know if I want to put it with my best cookbooks or leave it around my bedside for future reference!
Couldn't put it down! Enjoy!
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Vicky Tiel is as Original as Her Creations September 11, 2011
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
Vicky Tiel is as much a creation as her clothes and her perfumes. She's an original, a unique, determined, talented woman who has now created a memoir reflective of her style and "telling all" about her extraordinary life. Don't miss this gossipy, spicy, spirited romp about Hollywood royalty and this unpretentious woman who manages to navigate that world with a delightful mix of sophistication and earthiness.
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5 of 6 people found the following review helpful
3.0 out of 5 stars Delusional, yet entertaining January 25, 2012
Format:Hardcover
I give this book 5 stars for the celebrity gossip, and one star for the completely self centered ramblings of the author. I went along with her "Forrest Gump" tendency to place herself at the center of whatever important event was occurring during the 1960s (suprised she didnt take credit for Woodstock), but she lost my interest when she became a "mother". I have never seen anyone less self aware and caring as a parent. And her reveal of what Richard Burton's last letter to Elizabeth Taylor said (something Taylor herself had said she wished to keep private) was the final straw. I love celeb gossip as much as the next person, but this was really low and disloyal. A fame whore on par with a Kardashian.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Brings Back Memories October 20, 2011
Format:Hardcover
Picked this up at the library and am now sending a copy to my niece in NYC who is in fashion design. I loved it - as Vicky Tiel is just 10 years older than I am, I was totally able to relate to her life in the 60's -70's & 80's! Wow - I actually wore those clothes, danced at these clubs and although was NEVER part of the rich & famous, sure had a great time in my hot pants & platforms! Loved reading about WHERE my fashion sense trickled down from without me even knowing! If you were in your late teens/early 20's in the 60/70's - a MUST read!!!!!
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars Entertaining biography
I am interested in fashion design and hve watched her on Tv so was curious to learn more about her. I am old enough to have worn the mini dresses and the wrap dresses during the... Read more
Published 1 month ago by Love to read
5.0 out of 5 stars Great book
I was with Vicky & The Burton's for much of what she writes & it is all true. She writes in an amusing, informative page turning style. Everyone should read it.
Published 5 months ago by K. Green
3.0 out of 5 stars Paris
It's good, but nothing that really captivates in the end. The ending just happened and didn't feel noteworthy. I'd have enjoyed it more as a blog.
Published 5 months ago by Pen Name
5.0 out of 5 stars A how-to guide to living life like the rich and famous
Elizabeth Taylor's typical diet was plain crazy - mimosa for breakfast with scrambled eggs and English muffins. Chateau Margeux 1945 with PBJ for lunch. Read more
Published 13 months ago by Justbooking
5.0 out of 5 stars Juicy, fun trip to the past
I have never heard of Vicky Tiel before, but a couple pages in to the free preview I had to have the rest of this book! Read more
Published 17 months ago by ILoveBoots
5.0 out of 5 stars A very entertaining romp
It's All About the Dress is just a kick in the pants. Tiel has a very engaging, upbeat personality. She's always up for an adventure and happened to graduate from fashion school... Read more
Published 18 months ago by Claire Hatch
5.0 out of 5 stars A great read
This is a really fun and entertaining read. Vicky is a great writer who tells great stories from her amazing life and career. Read more
Published 18 months ago by Georgina B
2.0 out of 5 stars Seriously?
First, let me say, while I enjoyed the "gossipy" angle of Vicky's stories and her chutzpah - like the guests at a certain dinner party - I'm having a hard time believing most of... Read more
Published 18 months ago by Scott James
5.0 out of 5 stars Wow--take me back to great times, fun, love & sex 60's style
I heard a small clip from the author on a local TV station and knew just from her voice
and short comment I was in for a good, page tuner read and boy was I right. Read more
Published 18 months ago by carol gorske
3.0 out of 5 stars Fun read but shallow
I did enjoy this book. I just wonder if it is 100 percent truthful or if Ms. Tiel took a queue from Diana Vreeland's "autobiography" which is pretty much fiction. Read more
Published 20 months ago by MK
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