Author Information

Rachael Martin is a British writer who has lived just north of Milan for over twenty years. She writes about travel, culture, the arts, and food in Italy for online and print publications. She has a special interest in the city of Milan and its fashion history, and in the stories of the women involved.

Book Description

Milan is the European fashion capital with one of the world’s most unique luxury fashion districts where the leaders of some of the most exclusive fashion houses are still living and working today. It’s the Italian city whose skyline has changed more than any, and whose fashion industry has extended to encompass the worlds of design, restaurants, bars, exhibition spaces, hotels and more. Whether you’re looking for designer labels within the city’s luxury fashion district, prefer to browse the city’s boutiques or pick up some quality vintage at the city’s vintage shops and markets, this is the guide that will tell you where to go.

Split into geographical sections along with relevant maps, cultural highlights and suggestions for where to eat and drink, it places Milan as the city of fashion within the context of Italian fashion history and a city, and brings the stories of its people to life. Why did Milan become Italy’s fashion capital? And what does it offer the fashion lover as a city today? 

Review

Thank you to Casemate Publisher for the copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Just from reading the introduction of this book, it made me want to read more and also go on my own trip to Milan. I loved how the author eases you into the book and how you get a glimpse of how important writing this book is to her.

Something that I like about this book is that it isn’t just giving you current Milan fashion, it goes through the history of fashion in Milan. I also really like how within each section of this book, it has even pieces included to tie the chapter together. I also really like how this gives different places to shop depending on the style of clothing that you are looking for. This book also includes different places in which you are able to get different meals which was great to read about.

Something else that I like about this book is that you can jump around while reading it. There is no need to go from one section to the next, you can read the portions that you are interested in and save some for later. I skipped around a bit while reading this and glimpsed over the historical pieces but still found the book just as great as when I went back and read the pieces I skipped or skimmed.

While I am not a person who is big into fashion, I did find this book easy to follow along, and found different brands to look into and places in Milan that would be cool to visit. I think this book is great for fashion lovers as well as those of us who might not be too familiar with the fashion world. I highly recommend this book to those of you who might want to explore Milan’s fashion along with their food. I also think this is a great way to explore another country right now during this pandemic where travel might not be possible for all of us.