The ELLEments of Personal Style: 25 Modern Fashion Icons on How to Dress, Shop, and Live

by Joe Zee, Maggie Bullock, Roberta Meyers (Foreword)

America's hottest fashion magazine blends expert advice with in-depth studies of twenty-five unique style icons, from Diane Von Furstenberg to Dita Von Teese to Alicia Keys, for personal style inspiration.

Celebrating its twenty-fifth anniversary in 2010, ELLE magazine has a readership of more than five million.

In the same teaching through example style that has made ELLE the ultimate fashion resource for scores of loyal fans and the #1 fashion magazine, The ELLEments of Personal Style gives readers exclusive access to today's most glamorous personalities, along with hundreds of practical tips and inspiring photographs. The result is a sumptuous, comprehensive guide for creating an authentic, alluring personal style.

Featuring twenty-five case studies of style icons that represent a wide range of tastes and backgrounds, The ELLEments of Personal Style brims with behind-the-scenes interviews, along with commentary on why each icon's wardrobe works. Describing a red cocktail dress that always makes her feel flawless or the jacket bought on a special trip to Paris, each woman provides a personal collage of memorable objets d'art that serve as an inspiration list. Some of the women who gave ELLE unprecedented access to their homes, closets, and inspirations Fergie, Estelle, Padma Lakshmi, Candace Bushnell, Christina Hendricks, Tracee Ellis Ross, and others.

Genres: Fashion, Nonfiction, Coffee Table Books, Design

255 pages, Hardcover

First published October 14, 2010

About the author

JOE ZEE is the Editor in Chief of Yahoo Style, co-host of the new ABC lifestyle talk show "The FAB Life", and the designer of Styled by Joe Zee for QVC. Previously, he was the Creative Director of ELLE, where he wrote a monthly column. Zee has worked with celebrities including Gwyneth Paltrow, Sarah Jessica Parker, and Johnny Depp.

Reviews

[Iris · Rating 3 out of 5]

During the heat wave this summer, I can't bear to funnel my few existential woes into my favorite kind of consumerism. The creation and consumption of, say, caramelized crusty roast pork shoulder, rosemary fingerling potatoes and the custard base of a malted-milk ice cream: all this demands appetite-killing effort.

The more maligned kind of consumerism is a better fit for listless evenings: I borrowed this book from the library and caught a glimpse of the aspirational self-realization that ladymags equate with clothes. The famous dames of "The Ellements of Style" fill their voids with fashion. The more thoughtful women featured here are quite inspiring: Charlotte Rampling's minimalism and her resistance to any shoe but a brogue. Dita Von Teese's scholarly composure of her image and her life. Tops: Yvonne Force Villareal, an artist's benefactor, wears long black spandex leotards (ordered in bulk from a dancer supply store) and drapes them with tunics and scarves.

[Lucy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Elle magazine celebrates 25 years by featuring 25 "icons" of fashion, only about 10 of whom I had heard of before. Of course this was published in 2010 so it's probably out of date now in 2020, but it's interesting to see what people find worthy of wearing. Lots of strapless dresses; lots of sky-high stiletto heels; lots of mini-skirts to show off legs. Included is a burlesque performer, lots of actresses, models and designers.
Not a book I'd care to own.

[Bethany · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lots of pictures, as expected in a book on fashion. Not a lot of content. Circa 2010, kind of all similar looking women or women connected to one another. I didn’t hate it, but I didn’t love it. These “icon” women never really have great advice and insight, they just happen to own everything which can make getting dressed super easy and super hard at the same time.

[Anuja · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beautiful book taking you through the personal styles of a number of women, ranging from businesswomen to entertainers to writers. Great inspiration for us to understand our tastes in fashion, accessories, and living spaces - and how they relate.

[Trish · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is more about celebrities and what they like.

[Kimberly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun, quick, and enjoyable flip through read.

[Ellie Malcolm · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a fun, diverse book about various successful women in the public eye and their takes, ideas and preferences around fashion. Fun, simple read featuring how WHBM started.

[Rhianna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Okay, honestly this is not my usual taste in books, but given the opportunity to see the closets of icons like Dita Von Teese, Olivia Wilde, and Diane von Furstenberg, you can bet I'm getting all over that. This isn't one of those cookie cutter "Here's how to dress like you've stepped off the runway in Milan and right into your desk job where your outfit is wildly inappropriate!" This book actually says "Dress your personality" which is a HUGE breath of fresh air. There's a good variety in the subjects and their respective styles with decent tips on how to really put a wardrobe together that screams "you" without conforming to whatever the magazines say.

This isn't a deep psychological profile of modern society, so don't look to delve into that side of it. But all in all, this is a fun read.

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed reading this book. I have been thinking a lot about my own personal style lately, and doing a lot of random reading on the subject. When I saw this book, it seemed to fit perfectly with that. It was fun to read, and I loved the layout. The book wasn't so much a "what to wear" kind of book, but more how to identify what you love about your style and go with that. It's really about confidence. Of course when you're a model or actress, that sort of confidence may be easier to come by . . . Still an entertaining read.

[Ricky German · Rating 5 out of 5]

I got this as a gift and, to tell you the truth, I probably wouldn't have picked it up for myself. I was a fan of Elle magazine, even after Nina Garcia left, but I never liked it as much a Vogue or W or Interview. What I love about this book is that it's geared towards real women. Now, granted, these people are mostly all New York or Hollywood professionals, but it's not a read carpet style book. For an avid lover of fashion and a professionals alike, it's a neat in depth fashion character study into the personal closets of some of our favorite public personalities.

[Mary · Rating 2 out of 5]

Mostly this is biographical profiles of 25 women with a focus on their fashion choices over the years. Some were interesting, some less so. Diane Von Furstenburg (sp?) looks amazing in her 6th decade. This book might have been called the ellements of style for women with WAY too much money. Only a couple even suggest that they might not spend heaps of money on every item in their closets. Even those women however have tons of designer shoes.

[Kristen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Was hoping for more of a "how did you develop your style" type of line of questioning, but it was a lot of just profiling the women. There is an element where for each person they pull out a signature piece and tell the reader how to wear it. But generally the book is for skimming. I was drawn to a couple people and read more in-depth, but just not everyone is captivating. I wouldn't buy the book, but it's fun to page through.

[Am Y · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautifully presented coffee table book offering a fascinating glimpse into the opulent lives of numerous female celebrities and successful women. We see bits of their homes, their wardrobes, and get a sense of their style. Each celebrity is interviewed so we also get a sense of their personality to some extent and how it relates to their style. I loved Dita von Teese's feature, but of course, I'm a fan. :)

[Jodi · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was really hoping that this book would showcase women who had a distinctive sense of style. While some of those included certainly did, many just seemed to be actresses who were clothes horses with bulging closets (Oliva Wilde, Becki Newton, Fergie) who I'm sure are lovely women, but don't really fit in the category of "icon." Disappointing.

[Susie · Rating 3 out of 5]

What I really liked about this book is that it is not just about a person's clothing style. Each section is like a scrapbook showing photos that highlighted style elements from the persons home and life. The people covered are a mix of classic style icons and new celebrities and sometimes I wondered why they chose that person.

[Amy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn't think all the women featured in the book were necessarily people of style. Some just had a lot of disposable income, and had far too many possessions. I would be overwhelmed owning so much stuff. The saving grace was Charlotte Gainsbourg, daughter of the late, great Serge Gainsbourg; and Tracee Ross, daughter of American music royalty, Diana Ross, had good editing eye.

[Amanda Dugay Forrester · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is so beautiful. The choice of subjects is interesting-- they opted away from some obvious fashion icon choices like Kate Moss and instead picked some overlooked yet amazing people like Angelica Huston and Charlotte Rampling. Love.

[Jazz Age Darling · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful! Loved the pictures, and how, instead of looking at only big-time stars, they chose to interview more indie celebrities, like costume designer janie Bryant and model/actress Myla Jovovich etc.

[Twila Bennett · Rating 5 out of 5]

Came to this one late from a bargain bin, but spent a lovely summer afternoon devouring it. So it was publishing in 2010--who cares? Classic style and personal creativity are never out-of-fashion. Loved it.

[Cooper · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quick read and enjoyed the stories and photos of the individuals highlighted. Not one of the best fashion books I've read, but did take away a couple of style ideas to incorporate into my own personal style.

[Anda · Rating 3 out of 5]

your standard coffee table book about fashion :)

[Mckinley · Rating 1 out of 5]

Talked and showed style of 25 women - not anything of much interest to me.

[Lesa Parnham · Rating 2 out of 5]

Maybe if I were rich and beautiful I might have liked this book...

[Shannon Vogel Lien · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was okay. Liked that they had a wide range of ages and styles.