Diana Vreeland: An Illustrated Biography Is Like Fashion Porn

In case you didn’t know—and God knows we hope you do!—Diana Vreeland is the most legendary/imaginative fashion magazine editor that ever was. Always the rule-breaker/dream-maker/and bad-style-taker, she revolutionized Vogue in the ‘60s. Before that, she created the legendary “Why Don’t You?” column in Harper’s Bazaar, where she was a top-editor. She made ginormous necklaces and brilliant double-cuffs the ultimate in over-the-top daytime accessorizing. And at an age when most people were busying themselves on the golf course, she took over the Met’s Costume Institute and masterminded its earliest blockbuster exhibitions. The recent re-issue of the definitive Vreeland biography by Eleanor Dwight, DIANA VREELAND: An Illustrated Biography by Eleanor Dwight (Harper Design, 2011) has a new preface by that other outspoken fashion guy, André Leon Talley, who happened to know Vreeland very well, indeed. The bright-red tome (Vreeland's signature color), is filled with stories and pictures of the 20th Century’s most inspiring and influential fashion stars, from Coco Chanel and Cecil Beaton to Jackie Onassis, Yves Saint-Laurent, and David Bailey, as well as iconic images from the Vogue shoots she orchestrated. Definitely add this one to your summer reading list...trust us, it's like candy for the fashion-obsessed.