The Fashion Library · Designer and house monographs
How to choose designer and house monographs by purpose
A considered guide to designer and house monographs, with 10 choices selected around purpose.
See the selections ↓
The criterion
Choose by purpose.
Start with the role designer and house monographs must play in real life. The strongest choice is not the option with the longest feature list; it is the one whose form and details make the intended use feel natural.
What to look for
- A clear match between the object’s design and the task you need it to perform.
- Useful details you will rely on repeatedly, not features that merely sound impressive.
- A form that can move easily between the situations in which you will use it.
Questions worth asking
- What must this do on an ordinary day?
- Which compromise would become irritating fastest?
- Are you choosing for your actual habits or an imagined version of them?
10 considered choices
The considered list
Each selection has a clear role. Use “Best for” to find your match, then confirm the practical details that matter to you at the maker or retailer.
Claire Wilcox · V&A Publishing
Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty
- Best for
- A reader ready for a deep designer-specific volume.
- Why this one
- The essays and archive material make design process visible beyond runway spectacle.
- Check before buying
- Large, expensive and house-specific; not an introductory survey.
W.W. NORTON/THAMES & HUDSON
Women Textile Designers
$50
- Best for
- Readers comparing designer and house monographs with everyday usefulness in mind.
- Why this one
- This earns its place in the designer and house monographs edit by offering a useful balance of function, material, scale, and total cost.
- Check before buying
- Confirm dimensions, material or fibre content, care, returns, delivery cost, and current availability on the linked page.
Thames and Hudson Ltd
Women Textile Designers (V&A)
$48
- Best for
- Readers comparing designer and house monographs with a distinctive alternative in mind.
- Why this one
- This earns its place in the designer and house monographs edit by offering a useful balance of function, material, scale, and total cost.
- Check before buying
- Confirm dimensions, material or fibre content, care, returns, delivery cost, and current availability on the linked page.
Thames and Hudson Ltd
Karl Lagerfeld: A Life in Fashion – A Financial Times Book of the Year
$34
- Best for
- Readers comparing designer and house monographs with a lower-priced entry in mind.
- Why this one
- This earns its place in the designer and house monographs edit by offering a useful balance of function, material, scale, and total cost.
- Check before buying
- Confirm dimensions, material or fibre content, care, returns, delivery cost, and current availability on the linked page.
Idea
ALAIA The Superbook
$600
- Best for
- Readers comparing designer and house monographs with ease of care and support in mind.
- Why this one
- This earns its place in the designer and house monographs edit by offering a useful balance of function, material, scale, and total cost.
- Check before buying
- Confirm dimensions, material or fibre content, care, returns, delivery cost, and current availability on the linked page.
Phaidon Press
The Jewelry Book
$79.95
- Best for
- Readers comparing designer and house monographs with a strong starting point in mind.
- Why this one
- This earns its place in the designer and house monographs edit by offering a useful balance of function, material, scale, and total cost.
- Check before buying
- Confirm dimensions, material or fibre content, care, returns, delivery cost, and current availability on the linked page.
IDEA
Gucci Spring/Summer 1999 Mario Testino
$145
- Best for
- Readers comparing designer and house monographs with everyday usefulness in mind.
- Why this one
- This earns its place in the designer and house monographs edit by offering a useful balance of function, material, scale, and total cost.
- Check before buying
- Confirm dimensions, material or fibre content, care, returns, delivery cost, and current availability on the linked page.
Phaidon Press
Yves Saint Laurent and Photography
$69.95
- Best for
- Readers comparing designer and house monographs with a distinctive alternative in mind.
- Why this one
- This earns its place in the designer and house monographs edit by offering a useful balance of function, material, scale, and total cost.
- Check before buying
- Confirm dimensions, material or fibre content, care, returns, delivery cost, and current availability on the linked page.
IDEA
Nan Goldin Biesenthal Saint Laurent
$120
- Best for
- Readers comparing designer and house monographs with a lower-priced entry in mind.
- Why this one
- This earns its place in the designer and house monographs edit by offering a useful balance of function, material, scale, and total cost.
- Check before buying
- Confirm dimensions, material or fibre content, care, returns, delivery cost, and current availability on the linked page.
Idea
Prada A Milano
$350
- Best for
- Readers comparing designer and house monographs with ease of care and support in mind.
- Why this one
- This earns its place in the designer and house monographs edit by offering a useful balance of function, material, scale, and total cost.
- Check before buying
- Confirm dimensions, material or fibre content, care, returns, delivery cost, and current availability on the linked page.