Are style books the secret to better shopping?
What I found when I bought a 2008 guide to mastering any style
Dear Reader,
Where have all the style books gone?
Not newsletters, not TikTok series, but image-rich, expert-created, and published by a Big Five house style books.
The answer might be obvious. In a time where any expert or influencer can speak to an audience of millions from the comfort of their own phone, putting resources (both the expert’s and the publisher’s) into a piece of prescriptive literature doesn’t deliver the highest ROI.
Style books have gone the way of print magazines. Of editors as influencers. Of a quality over quantity approach to information.
So when I picked up The Lucky Guide to Mastering Style on a trip to Pickle Books this winter, I felt like I had discovered a rare and ancient relic.
Published in 2008, the book breaks down 10 distinct styles across 307 pages of advice and insights from the editors at Lucky magazine. Each section—from “posh eclectic” to “arty slick”— delivers on the book’s promise with essential wardrobe items, interviews with women who embody the style, styling and shopping tips for key pieces, and even a spread of must-visit boutiques.
The book isn’t optimized for SEO, short attention spans, or affiliate links. The tips are expert level but totally actionable. The pieces are trendy but the outfits are timeless. When I flip through its pages, I’m filled with the same type of awe I have anytime I encounter something created with love and care.
Could a book like this be the answer to a culture of micro-trends and fast-paced consumption?
Let’s take a look.
Trends forgotten by time (and style)
While the Lucky Guide is influenced by timeless style, it’s not entirely trendless.
The stilettos are high. The soles are cork. The purses are slouchy. The dresses come in silhouettes I forgot existed. If you want to know what early 2000s style really was, this was it: bubble skirts and low-rise jeans and style experts recommending you look for a tank top that falls “at the hips”.
The suggested outfits are honestly shocking. After a decade or two, you blackout the fact that people used to wear a lot of color, texture, patterns, and baubles all at once. Things CLASHED. There were no matching sets, and fewer clean lines. Monochrome who?
Advice from the experts
The Lucky Guide taps into a certain type of fashion writing that feels less prevalent in the world of advertorials and shopping hauls: strong opinions (presented as facts) and real expertise.
This isn’t, “Pair an oversized button down with a pair of jean shorts for a cool, California vibe.” Instead, it’s, “Here's the exact fit and style of leather pants you should look for—oh, and remember to pull them up when you sit down to prevent sagging at the knees.”
These editors don’t just have taste; they understand garments and fashion history, including fabric composition, fit, and the make-or-break difference in shades of white if you want to dress like a mod icon. The advice is less about what to buy, but rather about what to look for when you buy — my favorite.
Is it prescriptive? Sure. Would it lead to “bean soup” style arguments in today’s discourse? Of course. But the specificity of their advice makes me trust them. I feel cared for, not sold to. Bring it back!
Finding your personal style
Flipping through 300 pages of outfits and items that aren’t popular right now is a great way to determine the difference between your taste and the dominating culture’s.
Does a bubble skirt make your heart sing with whimsy? Does a slouchy boyfriend cardigan sound lush and cozy?
When you expand your definition of what you like to wear beyond what’s on the market, you create opportunities to get creative while shopping—at stores or in your current closet.
The section that sold me on this book—posh eclectic—remains my favorite 6 months later. I can already tell it’s going to be massively influential as I think about my fall wardrobe. (Too soon, I know.)
I’m head over heels for the short-sleeved velvet day jacket, the tiered lace camisole, and the vintage polka dot dress. I won’t buy those exact pieces or silhouettes, but I’ll look for items with the same flavor: romantic, texture driven, and feminine.
Trends to leave behind
Even without the cork platforms and statement necklaces, the Lucky Guide to Mastering Any Style is a a relic of its time, a representation of the status quo that dominated fashion for decades.
Since you don’t have the book in front of you, I’ll spell out what I mean:
The styles codified in the pages are derived from white, Western culture.
The women used as inspiration images for each style are white.
The featured Lucky Girls are somewhat racially diverse but all straight-sized.
And it’s not hard to notice that among the editors and employees featured in the book’s final pages, not a single one is Black.
I don’t know what the culture of Lucky Magazine was in 2008. But I do remember the culture of the United States—the images and world I saw reflected on television shows, in movies, and in the pages of fashion magazines. At 15 years old, I had the privelege not to notice how much space white voices and perspectives took up. Today, it’s hard not to.
The future of style books
With that in mind, what could a style book look like in 2025?
I’ve heard great things about Tibi’s The Creative Pragmatist. As a fan of the eponymous newsletter, I’d be excited to read Amy’s advice in print. But at $85 ($145 for edition one), the book feels more like an art object than something akin to what Lucky published in 2008.
Here’s what I’m imagining instead:
A box set of tiny volumes detailing the closets of contemporary fashion icons and their approach to shopping and getting dressed each day. You could purchase the set as a whole or one at a time. Think a printed version of The Coveteur’s closet tour or Into The Gloss’s Top Shelf but less product driven and more creator-led.
A 500 page glossy style book that collects the wardrobes and shopping habits of real Americans from across the country at various incomes and ages. The book would treat each person as a serious style expert, whether they shop at Goodwill or Ganni or Gucci. You could pick and choose which advice you want to follow or who you take inspiration from. The guide would act as both as a practical shopping manual and a time capsule of consumption habits in America.
A guide to secondhand shopping, both for vintage newbies and expert thrifters. It would feature expert tips for buying and selling secondhand items: where to shop, how to identify what’s “worth it”, how to look outside trends to find your style, and giant full page threads of the best vintage and thrift stores in the country. (I might already be working on something like this…👀)
Reader, what do you think? Are there any style books out there you reference and love? Any style books you’d want to see?
And if you want to check out the Lucky Guide to Mastering Any Style you can borrow it for free on the Internet Archive or buy it secondhand at ThriftBooks.