What Not to Wear

Rating:
Summary: Fabulous!
Review: Think of this book as a tool. You use it to first filter out what's bad in your closet. Then you use it to figure out the right clothes for you.

The best part of the book is that it's honest, but with a sense of humor, and it's about aspects you like and don't like - allowing you to learn to live with what you don't like and love the parts of your body that you do like. In the end, you look and feel great.

Rating:
Summary: Not about how to get dress, but about what not to wear
Review: I'm a fan of What Not to Wear and just love the show. I watch both American and British versions and find both of them interesting. I get this book just to have it as a "collection".

The book is fun and entertaining. The authors model it themselves and that makes me glad that they are not shy at all to show that everyone has their own flaws. We just have to know how to disguise it, make the rest looks good and draw attention to those areas. However, for those that really looks for the principle like what kind of prints you should wear or how the diagonal pattern will affect the look of your body etc..., please go look somewhere else. This is not the book about how to get dress. It's about what you should avoid in order to look good. For the rest, use your imagination and try it on yourself.

Rating:
Summary: You'll get far better advice elsewhere
Review: ... from Leah Feldon, for instance ("Does this make me look fat?" which is NOT just about "fatness" per se). Trinny and her pal play up the cutesy offensiveness that was a hallmark of their (creepy, I thought) show, and downplay any real substantial guidance -- which is what any of us who watch/read them are really looking for, isn't it?

For sure, clothes shopping when you don't have an 'easy' body type isn't much fun -- it's hard work and the results you are aiming for can't always be achieved -- but don't add to your troubles "arming" yourself with such a weak guide. Again, buy Leah Feldon who doesn't play around and offers solid, timeless guidance.

I gave this two starts nonetheless because, if you have money to burn, it won't kill you to add it to your shelves. It's not without any substance ... it's just weak in comparison to what's out there.

Rating:
Summary: Finally! Real Advice for Real Bodies
Review: Outstanding book! No professional models - just Susannah and Trinny themselves representing the fashion faux pas and secrets for differing body, ahem, "challenges". Every woman friend with whom I've shared this book has taken the advice to heart, and viola! What transformations! Thanks to BBC's What Not To Wear gals, REAL women can look REALLY gorgeous.

A California fan (where lookin' good is essential)

Rating:
Summary: Total Turnoff!
Review: The word "vulgar" isn't often used about books these days, but it certainly applies to this one! The authors start with a negative viewpoint ("What NOT to Wear"), proceed to describe every possible body flaw, using the most disgusting terms possible, and then tell how women should disguise it. If you didn't hate your looks before, you surely will after you read through this book. Their models struggle to look fat and flabby at the appropriate points and succeed only in looking ridiculous. Rather than going through the agony of stuffing yourself into some clothing disguise, better to stand up straight, eat right and exercise! A turnoff from page one.

Rating:
Summary: What not to wear if you're skinny with a nearly perfect body
Review: I flipped through this book because I saw on the back cover the body areas that are covered. I'm sorry, but if you're really a woman troubled by having big ..., big arms, a big butt, a flabby tummy, saddlebags and/or thick legs, then I would NOT advise you to buy, or even to read, this book. The women who model the clothes that you should or should not wear for these body flaws have nearly "perfect" bodies. Let's see them write this book again and use real women, who really do struggle with trying to find the right types of clothes for they body types. Maybe women who wear over a size 10 pant and over a size medium top.

Rating:
Summary: Good tips and great pictures
Review: This is a fun book.
If you are a fan of the show and even if you have never seen it.
I have written down the notes for my body type and as I lose weight I am changing what I should and should not wear.

This is a great resource for those of us who shop by ourselves and just don't know "What Not to Wear."

Rating:
Summary: Enjoyable
Review: I have the American version of the book (the shop listings are all American) and found it enjoyable. From the reaction of other people that have seen the book, I think that it is most appreciated when you have seen the program (which is on BBC America.)

The book does appear to be self-contradictory but actually isn't. Rather than use different models to represent different figure problems, the authors are in all photos. Instead of identifying with Trinny or Sussanah you should identify with the figure problem being addressed.

Rating:
Summary: This book is only part of the story
Review: I saw this book in a store at the Atlanta airport and thought wow this sounds great.

Boy, was I glad I took a good look at it before I purchased it. I quickly saw that it wouldn't help me much, I have a big butt and saddlebags - one problem needs an A-line skirt and the other a pencil skirt. What do I do, wear both? Seems to me that many people who have saddle bags also have a larger butt. I concluded that I would be better off to take a friend to a store, and try on many styles to see what looks good, rather than spend $15 for this book.

All the clothing was solid colors, no information was included about the effect of prints, design interest, etc. I am sure there are more useful books.

Rating:
Summary: LACK OF USEFUL INFORMATION
Review: I bought this book because I thought it would be a perennially useful guide to clothes that will help me look my best....instead, I get a glossy, full of pictures magazine, with a (very) few pieces of useful information. Like a magazine, this book is to look at once and then throw out or leaving it to moulder forgotten on a shelf.
The suggestions for different kinds of clothes for different problem areas are not comprehensive at all, and you don't get enough illustrations for each type of suggestion to get an idea how it will look - and where are the ideas for types of fabric? the types of print? which colours are best?
I am left with a feeling I've wasted my money (even at the reduced price!!!) There are better books of this type out there.