Alexandra Shulman – Clothes… And Other Things That Matter

‘Clothes…and Other Things That Matter’ is Alexandra Shulman’s memoir. She delves into her own life to look at the emotions, ambitions, expectations and meanings behind the way we dress.

From the bra to the bikini, the trench coat to trainers, the slip dress to the suit, she explores their meaning in women’s lives and how our wardrobes intersect with the larger world – the career ladder, motherhood, romance, sexual identity, ambition, failure, body image and celebrity.

By turns funny, refreshingly self-deprecating and often very moving, this startlingly honest memoir from the ex-editor of British Vogue will encourage women of all ages to consider what their own clothes mean to them, the life they live in them and the stories they tell.

A book that is not one I would necessarily normally chose, but this one piqued my interest so I decided to join the tour. I surprised myself that I found the book even more interesting than I presumed it would be.

Alexandra looks back over the years and the different items of clothing she has worn at particular times and explains how much these memories mean and how just one item can raise so many memories. We have a peek at her career and the responsibility she had to make a statement with the clothes she wore then. Her tales of the famous people she has met and worked with over the years I found intriguing. She even lets us know that even she can find clothes shopping not as uplifting as we would think.

A book that allows us into a world of clothes and fashion from a woman who once ran a publication that every fashion-conscious woman will ensure they have a copy of. For the fashion-conscious this is a must-read, for the rest of us, it is still a book that gives us a view of clothes we have never thought of before.

Thanks to Random Things Tours and Octopus Books for my place on the tour and my gifted copy of the book.