Books For the Vintage Lover

I know I said that I would be reviewing David Sedaris's book next, but I did want to get these two gift giving recommendations out first.
If you are looking for a gift for the vintage clothing lover in your life (or yourself) here are 2 of my favorite books.

First off is The Seductive Shoe by the wonderful Jonathan Walford of Kickshaw Productions.
The book has all the shoe eyecandy one could ever ask for while exploring the effect of historical and societal changes on footwear . Organized chronologically, it includes an illustrated appendix of designers and shoemakers. Really, the pictures in this are just some of the best I have ever seen, clear and crisp.

The next one is Fashion, The Collection of the Kyoto Costume Institute: A History From the 18th to 29th Century. This is, of course, just a lovely book with beautiful garments and a nice heft that makes it also good for self-protection since one could wack an intruder with it. While the scrumptious photographs take center stage the small amount of text is rich with details. This has been re-issued a few times, the last being 2006 when the book was split into 2 volumes.
Loses the protection aspect, but may make it easier to handle.

If you are going to buy from Amazon, please use this link that helps support the Vintage Fashion Guild. Better yet, forget about Amazon and support you local bookstore.