Customer Reviews

Three Black Skirts : All You Need To Survive

5 star:		(37)
4 star:		(23)
3 star:		(10)
2 star:		(10)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

Let's face it, girls: no amount of book-reading is going to magically transform the person that you naturally are into a cool and collected bombshell who looks like a million dollars in classy heels at all times and says the right thing in every situation, whether she's volunteering at a soup kitchen, breaking up with her partner, or whipping up something truly magnificent for dessert.

That said, it's easy enough to make simple changes to help yourself become more organized, take control of your life, feel more beautiful, improve your skills, and find joy in the simple things.

Anna Johnson's smart and sassy little pink guide is perfect for helping women everywhere do just that. She covers finances, entertaining, spirituality, happiness, tools, wardrobe, friendships, dating, jobs, careers, homes, depression, body image, love, and the responsibility to give back to our world. She's funny, her retro drawings are irresistably cute, and her savvy advice pulls no punches. Read it, think about how it works with who YOU are, and see how much fun you can have.

I was given "Three Black Skirts" as a Christmas prez at the end of 1998 - I'm amazed that it's taking this long to get to the American public as, from what I've read of this print, it is the same book. I loved it. Fantastic and realistic, I read this book three times in a row across several less-than-fab evenings when my other mid-week single person options were either the ironing or ( ) telly. I then didn't sight it for the next 4 or so months as it made it's way steadily through a bunch of similarly impressed friends. This book didn't patronise me, it made me laugh. It also gave me my favourite bruschetta recipe as well as practical info about money, relaxing, clothes, compliments and sex. It made my 21-year old self feel good about my body and have a little more of an idea about reasonably scary adult stuff like money management. I know exactly where it is in my bookcase. A great buy.

This is a book designed for those of us who don't usually read self-help books. Anna Johnson has compiled lots of good, sound advice for getting your life in shape. Among other things, she covers finances, makeup, clothes, home decor, love life, physical health in this one engaging book. For me, the best part of the book was her introduction. Her philosophy is a good one - you're never going to have it all together in all parts of your life so don't feel like a failure every time your house isn't cleaned, you have a junkfood attack or run your hose. Try to do a little better where you can, but don't think you can do it all. This isn't anything new, but Johnson gives it to us with a fresh and modern perspective.

Johnson has relied upon experts for many of the specific topics with generally good results. Each topic is pared down to its bare essentials. Sometimes it's easy to forget that these are just tips, not a must-do list. Don't consider all of her advice to be dogma; many of them are just a reflection of her personal taste and lifestyle. For example, she pooh-poohs waterproof mascara, but for those of us who were contacts and put in a lot of eyedrops, it's essential. Similarly, ignore the rules on clothes and decor if they don't work for you. Everyone has a different figure and no one style of dressing or article of clothing works for everyone. Nevertheless, Johnson's taste is simple and classic, and you can generally feel safe following Johnson's advice to the letter.

This is a gem of a book, chock full of helpful information, great basics and sane advice. Just the fact it doesn't encourage women to be always-perfect superwomen is refreshing! (That third black skirt is for slobbing out.) It addresses everything from fixing faucets and handling finances to maintaining friendships, decorating your space and dating. This book is perfect for a college grad or any young woman just starting out, and for that readership, I highly recommend it.

That said, however, I don't think this book has a lot to tell anyone over thirty or who is married with kids. In fact, the section on juggling work and family (the author freely admits she has no children and so consulted several friends on the topic) is lame at best.

It's a fun read, her insights are good, and her writing is sharp and witty. As a starting out book, it's great. For the rest of us (I'm 35), there may be a gem or two, but I wouldn't look for any new wisdom here.

I purchased this book when I read a review about it in the Australian Who Weekly. It originally came out in Australia in 1998. I am glad it is finally available to the rest of the world. It is basically a guide to organising your life efficiently. I have read it and re-read it and each time I continue to learn something new. I want all my friends to read this book as I feel it will help them organise their lives too. It sure has helped me organise mine. Anna Johnson talks about everything from organising your wardrobe to contraception to time management. I particularly enjoy her excerpt on cleaning. It is fuss free and simple and an invaluable source for every female out there and males would definitely enjoy it too.

This book is the epitome of the perfect "Life Guide".

I turn 30 in two weeks, just broke up with my live-in boyfriend, can't buy a couch, but on the upside I've lost 25 lbs (not due to the break-up) get to shop for a wardrobe that fits slightly better than the potato sacks currently in my closet and now I have a fabulous apartment to girl-ify.

This book is about being exactly who you are and want to be. It's about knowing that you will make it on your own, and if you're not there now, you can get there. From money, to leaky sinks, to sex, to understanding that love may not be what we've been taught all of our lives-perhaps this mating for life thing is for geese only...and if it is, that's OK. Why??? Because...your boyfriend is lovely and he makes a nice addition to your life, but without him you can still pay your student loan and by that Coach bag you've had your eye on. Dig? And even if you've been lucky enough to mate for life and have a charming family, let's not forget that you exist, too, shall we?

(I completely disagree that it rules out the eccentric-that reviewer clearly didn't finish the book, or read all it had to say.) The fashion advice is perfect for the young urban women trying to figure just what is and isn't appropriate. I absolutely do not care that "business casual" is the dress code...the truth is a polo and khakis (or black lace skirts and combat boots) will not get you as far as a well-tailored black skirt and well cut blouse or sweater set. That's the way it is, I've learned to accept it. I have an overly fun sense of style-I'm the girl they always say, "I wish I could wear stuff like that." But there is a time and a place. Johnson does say, "Thank God Ava Gardner and Brigitte Bardot were not chic." She also contends that chic need not be all Hamptons and tweed...thank heavens for that.

So...feel like you can't cope? Feel like can't go up from here? Feel like you'd just for once like to know what in heck's sake you should do next in your life?

Give this a read...it's all about figuring out where you are now, what you want, and how to get there from here. And it's all from someone who's been through it.

i had such very very high hopes for this book. it seemed like it would be funny, chatty, and full of indispensible
little bits of trivia that it would seemingly turn me into the enviable Girl Who Has Everything, even if on the inside
i would still be a messy person who puts all her mail in a mixing bowl on the kitchen counter.

it wasn't a BAD book; and it's not altogether without merit, but really, it told me a lot of things i already know. and
a lot of things i disagree with. i expect you might find the same if you are in your late 20s and have been living on
your own for sometime; if you are much younger or have been living at home or otherwise "supervised" you may
find it more interesting.

for instance, the fashion advice is a bit wonky. while it purports to be simple and easy to follow, the book actually
introduces a host of complicated rules and rule-lets that are fairly unnecessary for anyone who has neither the
a) time or b) money to follow them. (as many of us know, "bargain" means different things to different people.)

moreover, the discussions about body size and body image and loving your body are a little deceptive when
compared to the accompanying illustrations. yes, they're pen-and-inkish drawings; not really meant to depict an
actual person. however, they're a bit rich when juxtaposed right next to a discussion of how you should love
every last bump and ripple present on your person. at first, i didn't notice, but after a while, the drawings of limpid-
eyed sex kittens dressed in french tart regalia, sitting chin-in-hand at vanity tables stocked with Chanel products,
really got to me.

More than a self-help book or guide to better self-esteem, Anna Johnson's "Three Black Skirts" is a hip style book for all ages. About the only topics missing from this "survival guide" are marriage and weddings. Besides the clever and cute line-drawn illustrations, my favorite part of this hot pink-covered book is the section on "chic." Johnson gleans the best of that Vogue-ish "je ne sais quoi" and presents "the maxims of chic." One of my favorites is: "You don't have to be a WASP to be chic, you just have to iron like one."

Far from being preachy in tone, "Three Black Skirts" combines practical advice, often in the form of maxims and handy tables, with matter-of-fact girlfriend-to-girlfriend tips and anecdotes. Not much seems to be taboo. After I read Ms. Johnson's confession that even she doesn't have three black skirts, I knew I would like this book.

This is a great book with great illustrations done by the author. I really enjoyed reading it, it gives a woman a lot of different advice with out being too preachy. I have always really enjoyed Anna Johnson's writing. It is not serious, nor is it uppity or snobby. The book offers realistic, doable advice for women of all ages. It covers topics such as fashion, food, entertaining, and beauty. She has some great advice especially when it comes to dressing chicly, decorating your home on a budget. It also has some nice sections on being spiritual and giving back to your community, which I think is rare in books like this. It also encourages women to be modern women. It's not a book that expects you know know to to cook, or even to look good all of the time, just to have fun and take life with a grain of salt.

Anna Johnson has written a smart and beautiful book full of honest advice for all aspects of a woman's life. Ditch your subscriptions to all the fashion magazines that want to sell you something, and pick up "Three Black Skirts", which will help you cut through nonsense in no time and live a more fulfilling life. From what to keep in your closet to how to repair your faucet to investment to friendships to snapping out of a blue spell, her advice is flawless. Johnson's own drawings, full of charm and character, enliven almost every page. Amazing - this one beats out "The Go-Girl Guide", "The Bad Girl's Guide", and just about any other book you can think of that tries to tell young women how to live. This one doesn't tell you, but it will help and inspire and support you. Amazing. I'd give it five hundred stars if I could.