Faded Glamour By The Sea, Pearl Lowe, Cico Books, €30, published on April 12

As well as being a founding member of the infamous Primrose Hill set, which included Kate Moss, Meg Matthews, Sienna Miller and Patsy Kensit,  former singer Pearl Lowe is known for her love of vintage interiors and fashion (she launched her own range of curtains, cushions and wallpaper). She recently fulfilled a dream of finding a house by the sea with her husband, musician Danny Goffey, and their new home in East Sussex forms the starting point of her latest book.  Built in the 1940s, for an artist whose shell sculptures are still dotted round the garden, the house and adjacent cabins have been restored by Lowe, thanks to the inspiration from many friends who live in the area and also further afield. Lowe takes us on a tour of their seaside homes; a pair of antique dealers whose love of all things French inspired them to set up their own brocante in Kent; an artist with a love of beach huts; an author who swapped London life for a clifftop house with his own writer’s hut. Add to this the Malibu beachfront home of stylist Rachel Ashwell, the hippy-chic style of supermodel Helena Christensen’s waterside retreat and the “punk noir Victorian” vibe of the hotel created by friends from rock band The Libertines and it adds up to absorbing, if covetous, read.  

Karl No Regrets, Patrick Hourcade, Flammarion, €36

 “Two friends, 25 years of complicity, 20 years of divorce … In Paris, we each had our own homes, but I visited him every day in his studio to show him my discoveries and to watch him work, and in the evening I usually went to dine with him… We had a strange relationship, bizarre to others, not brotherly, not loverly, and especially not businesslike: we were accomplices.” This is how artist Patrick Hourcade describes his friendship with the late Karl Lagerfeld, whom he met in 1976, sparking a friendship that would last more than 20 years, strengthened by their shared passion for 18th-century art. He assisted Lagerfeld with each of his lavish acquisitions from mansions to furniture and works of art, and the duo built a magnificent and at times extravagant universe together, notably at the château de Grand-Champ in Brittany, l’Hotel Pozzo di Borgo in Paris or at La Vigie, a villa on the French Riviera. If you’ve read Alicia Drake’s The Beautiful Fall then this will appeal and introduces a further slant on a colourful cast of characters including Anna Piaggi, Liliane de Rothschild, Pierre Bergé, Yves Saint Laurent, Gilles Defour, Vincent Darré, Guy Bourdin, Andrée Putnam, and, most importantly, the two great loves of Lagerfeld’s life: his mother Elisabeth and Jacques de Bascher.

Captivate! Fashion photography from the ‘90s curated by Claudia Schiffer, Prestel, €60

How did supermodel Claudia Schiffer spend lockdown? Going through her archives to create this book – a personal photographic journey through the 1990s, bringing to life an era which is being channelled this season in many fashion houses. Featuring over 150 images, Captivate! brings together fashion photographers including Arthur Elgort, Corinne Day, Ellen von Unwerth, Herb Ritts, and Richard Avedon. Schiffer also shares some fascinating snippets of life during the Supermodel era, recalling when photographer Richard Avedon shot a now-iconic advertisement: “On set for the Versace campaigns, Avedon would bring in a choreographer who would teach us how to move. His practice was also to shoot alongside a mirror turned towards you, so that you could see yourself as he did. In that way, you could truly collaborate in the creation of the shot, by getting a good idea of what was working, what wasn’t, and what you could change to make it better.”

YSL Lexicon: An ABC of the Fashion, Life and Inspirations of Yves Saint Laurent, Rizzoli, €58

At the moment Yves Saint Laurent is celebrating the 60th anniversary of its first show by commandeering six of Paris’s mightiest institutions, until May 15, to celebrate the designer’s life and work. Exhibitions at the Louvre, Musee d’Orsay, Pompidou Centre, Museum of Modern Art, Picasso Museum and Yves Saint Museum, each have a different theme. The Louvre will highlight his love of gold, the Pompidou his modernity, the Picasso Museum will look at Picasso’s influence, while the Musée d’Orsay will examine the influence of writer Marcel Proust. The Museum of Modern Art’s exhibition will focus on the use of colour; the Yves Saint Laurent Museum goes all-out with its vast collection, drawing largely on Saint Laurent’s personal archives. The general event is called “Yves Saint Laurent Aux Musées”, entry costs vary by museum (from free to €17). As an essential background guide before any visit, do read this book on YSL’s inspirations from costumes (especially for ballets) to tuxedo dressing and his bohemian retreats in Marrakech and Rive Gauche, Paris. Contributing editors include Hamish Bowles, Amy Fine Collins and Claude Arnaud.

Louis Vuitton Manufactures, Assouline, €85

“Fundamentally, it’s not about luggage, it’s about innovation,” says Michael Burke, Louis Vuitton Chairman and CEO, about the fashion brand. Featuring photographs commissioned exclusively for this book, the volume showcases the locations and buildings of Louis Vuitton’s ateliers, (from Geneva to Fiesso d’Artico, Italy and even Texas) and the equally extraordinary artisans who express their talent through Louis Vuitton’s creations (trunks, bags, fragrances, watches, shoes, high jewellery and ready-to-wear), while carrying the founder’s techniques and savoir-faire. It is to these ateliers and the inspiring people who work there that this book is dedicated.

The Fendi Set: From Bloomsbury to Borghese, Photographs by Nikolai Von Bismarck, Text by Kim Jones creative director of Fendi, €122

Designer Kim Jones is creative director of Dior Men and, in September 2020, was named head of Fendi’s couture and womenswear, which marked a new era for the Italian brand. This book examines Jones’s relationship to the so-called Bloomsbury set: the early 20th-century community of British writers, intellectuals and artists, including Virginia Woolf, Duncan Grant, and Vanessa Bell, who have inspired his creative process. Central to the book’s appeal is the ethereal photography by Nikolai von Bismarck (Kate Moss’s fiancé) which includes important landmarks of the Bloomsbury Set and Fendi from Charleston House, Knole House, and Sissinghurst Castle in England, to Rome’s Villa Medici and Villa Borghese. As for fashion muses  – models Christy Turlington (pictured), Gwendoline Christie, Kate Moss, and Naomi Campbell as well as actress Demi Moore conjure the poetry of the present. With letters, diary entries, and excerpts from Bloomsbury members, this exquisite book will appeal to aficionados of literature, and photography as well as fashion.

Dior By John Galliano, Text by Andrew Bolton, photography by Laziz Hamani, Assouline, €195

“Fashion is above all an art of change,” believes John Galliano, who joined Dior in 1996 as Artistic Director of the women’s collections, where he distinguished himself with his extravagant shows that combined eclectic historical and cultural inspirations. During his time as a student at London’s Central Saint Martins, he worked as a dresser at the National Theatre where he learned the art of costume and power of illusion. This book highlights the silhouettes Galliano created for Dior from 1996 to 2011, as photographed by Laziz Hamani, alongside shots by Steven Meisel, Annie Leibovitz, Irving Penn, Paolo Roversi and many more.

Smiley: 50 Years of Good News, Assouline, €60

“Use your smile to change the world, but don’t let the world change your smile.”  

What started as a happiness promotion by Franklin Loufrani in France Soir newspaper to draw attention to positive news stories, has blossomed into a not-for-profit movement. Smiley has partnered with some of the world’s leading brands to bring their message to life through clothing, gifts, campaigns, and emoticons. In celebration of this milestone, Smiley: 50 Years of Good News, features a compendium of their most collaborations, and a look back at moments in history that gave us a reason to smile … something that couldn’t be more timely. By the way, the latest collaboration is that with make-up brand, Ciaté London, which has issued a new collector’s eyeshadow palette (featuring six colours) with the universal smiley image created by artist André Saraiva on a tie-dye graffiti effect palette, on sale at Urban Outfitters and Galeries Lafayette.