Fashion Designers | A Small Press Life: Books. Art. Writing. Life. Tea.

Title: Bare Blass
Author: Bill Blass
Year Published: 2002 (HarperCollinsPublishers)
Year Purchased: 2010
Source: My lovely momma
About: The loosely structured autobiography of the great American fashion designer is a fun, quick and riveting read. His perspective on national and international society of the mid-to-late 20th-century is considerably more interesting that what I expected. His retelling of his journey from the Indiana boy he never quite left behind to sophisticated man-of-the-world is complex, humorous and compelling, with detours that I never suspected. Yet, his writing voice is exactly what you would expect: barbed, candid, and smooth. By story’s end, it is obvious why he was welcomed with open arms by high society. Bonus: The book includes his apparently famous recipe for meatloaf.
Motivation: It was $1.00. My mom knew that I would find it interesting, as I am a fashion history hobbyist. Well played, Momma. Well played.
Times Read: 1
Random Excerpt/Page 72: “Actually, what I was shooting for was swagger-a cross between Damon Runyan and the Duke of Windsor, or what fashion editor Sally Kirkland, after seeing my first show, called “the Scarsdale Mafia look.” I loved the expressive masculine style of the thirties. I didn’t give a damn about tastefulness.”
Happiness Scale: 8

A Small Press Life: Books. Art. Writing. Life. Tea.