The One Hundred: An A-to-Z Guide to the 100 Items Every Stylish Woman Must Own

As the Fashion Director at "Elle" magazine, Nina has learned an indispensable fact - women love lists. They love making them, reading about them, following them, crossing each item off, etc. "The One Hundred" will be a thoroughly researched take on these attainable items, featuring Ruben Toledo's stand-out, signature illustrations. She will explore a short history of many of the items, with beautifully designed side-bars that include fun-to-know-facts, and will also summon the advice from the many expert friends she has throughout the fashion industry. EXCERPT (Copyright © by Nina Garcia): A-line Dress A true a-line is narrower on the top and flares out gently toward the bottom, resembling the letter A, thus the name. Here's the deal with the A-line dress: It will work for you on your best day. It will work for you on your worst day. It will work when you don't know what to wear, for all occasions, and in all kinds of weather. And no matter what, it will flatter your figure. That is really a lot for a fashion item to give you. Yet, it demands so little in return, just a few bold accessories, a great pair of shoes, and maybe a pair of tights, depending on the time of year. But that's it. It is a no-fuss dress and perhaps that is why it was the must-have dress of the '60s, when fun and free-spiritedness was favored over the formality and structure of the prior decade. Every '60s "It" girl had an arsenal of these dresses in her closet-Twiggy, Penelope Tree, Edie Sedgwick, Mary Quant, Jean Shrimpton. These were the Kate Mosses of the day. If you do a Google image search of these women, a picture of them in an A-line will always come up on the first page. They are often wearing a bold print or a bright-colored A-line with boots or flats. Their accessories are always amazing. This became the unofficial uniform of the 1960s, and the reason this dress should still be in every girl's closet today is because it is so damn flattering. Eat, ladies, for we always have the A-line. With a good A-line, the fabric flows over perceived flaws or imperfections. No matter the day, the season, or the year, the A-line dress will always makeyou look and feel fashionable, fabulous, and perfectly capable of keeping up with Twiggy and her crew.  Get In Line It is advisable to always have a black A-line in your repertoire as a "just in case" dress. As in: just in case you are invited to a dinner party or out on an impromptu date and only have five minutes to get ready. The dress is perfect to wear in the summer with Sandals (#75) or in the winter with Knee Boots (#45). A dress for all seasons, indeed. For a great contrast, wear a white A-line with your Black Opaque Tights (see #10). The look is always youthful and playful. If you want to really be daring, wear a bright-colored A-line with a bright-colored tight, like a true '60s mod girl. Reviews "The joy of Garcia's approach is that she is not urging you to rush out and shop, but instead to look carefully at what you own and how it works, and to think about how you can add classic, timeless pieces."--fashion journalist Susan Wagner quoted in the Daily Mail "The One Hundred: A guide to the Stylish Pieces Every Woman Must Own, contains the Holy Grail: an exhaustive list of the essential must-have pillars of the fashion world, culled from the notebook of one of the industry's most stylish women." --The Observer Author Biography Fashion Director of Elle magazine, Nina Garcia is best known for her appearance as the unerring, formidable fashion judge on Bravo's hit show Project Runway. Responsible for covering the designer fashion markets of New York, Milan and Paris, she is an elite authority in the industry.