Fashion in detail

This sumptuously illustrated book showcases the richness and variety of historical dress of the 17th and 18th centuries. Drawn from the Victoria and Albert Museum's world-famous collection, these garments can be seen in close-up for the first time. Perfection is in the detail: Jacobean blackwork, neoclassical tambour work, decorative seams, exquisite stitching, knife-sharp pleats, and voluptuous drapery are pictured here, alongside more unusual techniques such as stamping, pinking, and slashing. This volume offers the opportunity to see rare, historic clothes in greater detail than is normally possible. Many of these pieces are too fragile to be on permanent display, while significant garments such as the wedding suit of James II, with its intricate silver embroidery, cannot be exposed to bright light. This gallery of exquisite photographs, with line-drawings showing the construction of the complete garment, and a text that sets each in the context of its time, is a visual feast for all fashion lovers, and an essential resource for curators, collectors, students, and designers.