Customer Reviews

The Lucky Guide to Mastering Any Style: How to Wear Iconic Looks and Make Them Your Own

5 star:		(18)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I have many of the more recent fashion "how to" type books (US Secrets of Celebrity Style, The Pocket Stylist, Victoria Beckham's That Extra Half Inch, Glamour's Big Book of Do's and Don'ts, Harper's Bazaar Great Style, etc.). What makes this book different is that instead of telling you how to pick a hot designer bag (ugh) or how to dress according to your age, this book explains clothing according to overall iconic styles; ie, American Classic, Euro Chic, bohemian, etc. Each chapter has the "must have" pieces for a particular look, outfits, and people who are interviewed as being representative of that type of style. The whole look and feel of the book is so beautiful and inspiring, I could barely put it down the day after I bought it.

(Rating: 4.5)

A veritable adult picture book for fashion lovers, "The Lucky Guide to Mastering Any Style" is filled with glossy colorful photos of clothing, accessories and fashion icons. Written by the notable editors of Lucky shopping magazine, this book is the highly anticipated follow up to "The Lucky Shopping Manual" which was released in 2003. The new book takes style to the next level by focusing on ten unique iconic looks and teaching readers how to achieve them. You don't have to be a trendy fashionista to appreciate this book's style advice and helpful hints. Rather, it is a guide that will help you identify which styles you like best as well as aid in achieving the appropriate balance between the different looks. Each section showcases a different `iconic look' along with essential clothing pieces and accessories, Lucky Girl profiles of women who embody the particular look and suggested stores to visit. There is also a mix and match section (modeled by Lucky magazine's staff members - `lucky' them!) that shows you how to combine the looks while remaining true to your own style. In the spirit of the Lucky magazine tradition, the book also offers exclusive discounts and giveaways for its readers in the last few pages.

My only complaint about the book is that it does not provide specific brand information for the clothes and accessories it includes, making it a challenge to find a particular item that one might want to purchase. Granted this book is a style guide and not a catalogue and thus the intentions are not necessarily to sell its contents, I would have still liked for product information to have been included nonetheless. Although I would assume that most of the designer items would be too expensive for the average consumer, myself included, I still think the inclusion of the specific labels would have been beneficial.

This book makes for a really fun addition to anyone's library, even those who consider themselves fashion-challenged (or perhaps, especially those who consider themselves fashion-challenged). It is a great resource that can be pulled out at any time and practically incorporated into one's daily style choices.

The following are the 10 iconic looks featured in the book:

1. Euro Chic (think Catherine Deneuve and silk blouses)
2. California Casual (think Farah Fawcett and denim cutoffs)
3. Rock and Roll (think Debbie Harry and leather jackets)
4. Posh Eclectic (think Helena Christensen and pink ruffled skirts)
5. Mod (think Twiggy and A-line mini dresses)
6. American Classic (think Jackie O and the little black dress)
7. Bombshell (think Marilyn Monroe and fitted pencil skirts)
8. Arty Slick (think Bjork and asymmetrical tops)
9. Bohemian (think Stevie Nicks and peasant tops)
10. Gamine (think Audrey Hepburn and trench coats)

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I don't usually read style-guides but this book is so good. It is clear, visually and textually and I actually stayed up last night thinking about what I already own that I can put together in new ways. It's a really nice, encouraging book that has the same supportive tone of the magazine and the same wealth of ideas. I love this book and am definitely giving it as gifts this X-mas.

Anyone who is thinking of buying this book, would do better to purchase a copy of Lucky Magazine. In fact, you can get a yearly subscription for less than the cost of this book.

This book is basically a extended version of a Lucky mag feature. The thing I found most objectionable about this book was the fact that the "essential pieces" were very trendy. So what are we to do when bubble skirts and booties with cut-outs are no longer in style? Buy another Lucky Guide to Style of course! I was also disgusted that so many of the essential pieces for bombshell style were lingerie. As pretty as silk tap pants are, I bought this book, so that I could figure out what to put OVER my silk tap pants.

There was no real guidance in terms of creating a 'look.' The old adage about teaching a man to fish can be directly applied to this book. Lucky gave us a fish, but after reading this book, I still don't know how to bait my hook.

Nevertheless, I gave this book two stars because at least it tries to address the issue of personal style, instead of insisting that everyone should dress like Audrey Hepburn or Grace Kelly, like so many other personal style books seem to do.

If Lucky takes another crack at this concept, I think they should focus on the types of shapes and accessories (at various price points) that will create various moods. For example, they could take white shirts and show that type of white shirt a bombshell would wear vs. the white shirt that an eclectic would wear and explain why. I also think having the featured girls for each style was pretty pointless. Why do I care what some random New York shopkeeper or bag maker wears? More useful would have been features adapting each style for the office, for play, for a night out, etc.

Long story short, don't waste you're money. I plan to return this book.

The first Lucky book, their shopping manual, was very good. It was good enough that I bought this book sight unseen. I wish I hadn't wasted my money on it because this one confuses me more than it helps. The lists of "essential pieces" for each look are long and very specific. I'm left wondering if I need a two-button beige blazer to achieve a certain look. Could I get a three-button brown blazer? Or would that ruin my plan? This guide also seems geared towards the very thin and wealthy, much more so than the manual. I do not recommend this book. At the very least, look at it in a bookstore before purchasing it.

As I grow older I have become so preoccupied with my responsibilities that I do not keep up with the fashions as I used to in my younger years. But I still enjoy this aspect of femininity which makes Lucky magazine and the book compilations so fun. With their famous no frills photography and forthright store and price information captioned below each item, even the busiest woman can take a few moments to glance through and get a sense of the current fashionable offerings.

When Lucky's latest style guide arrived at the library I was quick to check it out. Intrigued by the title "The Lucky Guide to Mastering Any Style" I was curious - what are the names of the current styles and how are they achieved? I flipped through in an evening and though I especially enjoyed the various beautiful blouses and tops pictured, I have to conclude that the book does not live up to its title.

There is little copy, which is to be expected from Lucky, but with a title calling itself a guide to various styles, I expected a checklist or bullet points of have-to-have items for each type. Instead the authors highlight a few key pieces of each style and then rely primarily on sparsely captioned photos to relay the sense of personality in each mode. If you are already well-versed in current fashions or are a visual person, then you will find this sufficient, but I would have liked a bit more copy. If you are trying to recreate a certain look from scratch you may find yourself still a bit confused as to what is required.

Short articles supposedly giving a well-dressed woman's take on fashion actually came across as thinly veiled promotionals for these young women and their retail or design businesses. All of the featured women were young (so young one wondered how they can afford such expensive clothes so early in their careers,) very slender and were part of the arts and fashion industry. Aren't bankers, lawyers and doctors also fashionable? Or, gasp, maybe even the working class professions such as customer service reps and nurse's aides may sport a few examples of beauty and taste.

The magazine is so fun, as was the previous volume "The Lucky Guide to Style" and this one certainly has terrific photos and provides a pictorial overview of the current looks for you to decide which is your cup of tea. I am still coveting many of the artsy vintage looking blouses and wondering where I can buy them for the right price in my hometown. Lucky broke new ground in their magazine format and with their inclusion of Target, a mass market retailer as one of the stores whose products they sometimes highlight. I hope they continue that tradition by creating more style watch compilations, but this time with a more egalitarian focus such as "Create The Iconic Styles with Items Under $100" or in an area much overlooked by Lucky itself, "Plus Size Fashion That Flatters." Do give this volume a look-see but don't expect to use it as a guide to revamping your wardrobe.

I am a Lucky fan and the first book was great but this one is boring!!
All girls are not made like you guys, there is diversity in this world!.
You generally dress one type of body and style for that body only. Skinny, no curves, no big busts !!. Embrace diversity girls!!
( and please do not say you have 1 page in the magazine that features different body types, 1, 1, 1 page only).

This is not so much of a review as a brief rant: I love Lucky Magazine and "The Lucky Guide to Mastering Any Style..." is an excellent book. However, not everyone in the world is 25 and size 0. Please, please, please throw the rest of us a bone. Why are most of the fashion icons -- who are aging every day just like the rest of us (unless they have already died) -- shown only in the halcyon days of their youth? I can understand showing a photo that shows a clearly defined moment in style, but must all of these moments have occurred under the age of thirty? If I cannot appeal to the fashionistas sense of fair play, I will appeal to their sense of finance. I looked adorable in hopsack at the age of 25, and it was a good thing because I didn't have the finances to purchase much of anything else. I can afford something better now and just where the heck is it?

I loved the first Style Guide, couldn't believe how often I picked it up and loved on both the collections and individuals they highlighted. The idea of a follow-up with iconic style was inspired.

From the beginning though when I received the second Style Guide I felt disappointment, rarely looked at the book and it took me awhile to figure out why. Here's the deal:

It suffers from same problem Lucky Magazine has now, the fashion voice has become monochromatic. Love fringe, tanks, ragamuffin layers, long sleek legs with balloony tops, sculptural jewelry, a bit of death glam or hippy or an over the top quality, even for the office outfits? No matter what the look, every style or 'style icon' including American Classic, has Andrea Linnett's funky, quirky quality shining through. This wasn't true in the first book. She does that style very well but it's taken over their work and has limits.

Where is Kim's more elegant, classic voice in all of this?

Even with all the high drama in the iconic clothes, this book is weirdly easy to glance through once or twice and put aside.

I love those two ladies, they're a great team and have accomplished a lot together but I think some of the creative tension has been lost.

Those who loved the first Lucky Style manual, with its advice on how to put together flattering looks for a variety of occasions, will find this book a disappointment. With the possible exception of the American Classic, these "Iconic Looks" just seem silly for anyone over 30 or bigger than a size 2. They seem like costumes, something that young people experiment with as they are exploring their individual and social identities. The rest of us have already tried emulating our favorite stars, and now we want to look like more stylish and confident versions of ourselves. This book really is for very young, very thin women, with plenty of money to burn.