The Accessory Handbook: A Costume Designer's Secrets for Buying, Wearing, and Caring for Accessories

Great book great information 💕

After my super stylish aunt passed away, I inherited some scarves from her vast collection. Awesome! Except I don't know how to properly tie a scarf beyond folding it half and putting the ends through the loop. The Accessory Handbook has a whole chapter dedicated to scarves so I am no longer at a loss as how to tie my scarves. Alison Freer is an experienced costume designer and has tons of practical tips for taking care of your accessories--I now know that I am storing my scarves all wrong and will remedy that! The most important takeaway from this book is Alison's encouragement to experiment with accessories of all kinds to find what works best for you and your personal style. Fashion is fun, and this book helps make it more fun.

I was excited when I learned Alison would be writing a book about accessories since I enjoyed her first book, How to Get Dressed, so much, and she does not disappoint. Sometimes I feel carefree and confident about my accessory game, but I've become pretty conservative over the years and would like to mix things up a bit more; this book gives me the confidence to take some chances I wouldn't ordinarily take on how I put things together. For example, how long should a necklace be that suits me and the outfit both? There is more that goes into this decision than I realized. I mean, I have stood in front of the mirror trying and discarding necklaces, feeling it's "not right" but not being able to figure out why...reading the chapter on jewelry and the section on necklaces really helped clarify those feelings--why something feels wrong or right. I'd love to develop the insouciance to just toss on a scarf and be sure that it adds some style instead of either engulfing me or overwhelming me, and I'd love to mix and match prints and colors...maybe one reason I've dressed so conservatively lately is because I can't tell if something is working or not with any confidence. Alison's straightforward and sunny style of writing (and very funny anecdotes about her experiences as a costume designer) gives me a jolt of confidence and a willingness to go beyond what I might normally choose. Showing me how much goes into the decision of how to dress actors in a scene to establish mood and character makes me understand I'm not being fussy--the right choices (and there are lots of right choices, not just one way of doing anything) make a difference. Love this book and I'll be gifting it to my sisters and friends who struggle with some of the same issues because I know it will help them as much as it does me!

Quick fun book. Her other book describes helpful details on alterations. I would have elaborated more on the glasses.

Loved her first book and her tips are always worth their weight in gold, but this seemed like it could have went as two chapters in the previous book, or maybe this time pictures? It was good but on the thin side.

This book will make you think differently about the way you dress, it makes dressing a very exciting event and it can transform the way you look and the best part is that you might already own everything you need to be stylish. It is a great read and guide on how to dress, accessorize and take care of your accessories, highly recommend it for everyone from minimalists, classic dressers to edgie over the top fasshionistas

Great little book about adding a little more fun to your daily garb! Who knew I was already a master of color? Great tips on layering necklaces and how to choose the better look for your build. Ways to put a little more pep into your look -- without a lot more effort. Fun little book!

I'm like a kid in a candy store when it comes to accessories, but not so much with how to wear them best. This book is like a lifesaver if you love fashion but are not an expert (and don't want that fact to interfere with your ability to rock the best looks). There is so much practical advice (just like her first book) which helps you not feel like you are drowning in choices but rather able to as she says in one chapter "be your own jeweler" and afford "champagne jewels on a beer budget." Also, this may sound super dumb, but I think I probably saved a few hundred dollars just in the purse chapter alone in helping me figure out what went wrong with past purchases so I can avoid them in the future. I'm buying a copy for other accessory lovers to give them the same accessory makeover that this book helped give me.

If you have any interest in fashion you know this stuff already.

As a normal person, I wanted to upgrade my lookbook and accessories but there is nothing useful that I can get from this book. Just wasted my time and money. I bought another book of same author also but both wasted my money and time I would never recommend these books to anyone