To celebrate twenty years in the business, French fashion designer Christian Lacroix has curated an exhibition at the Fashion and Textile Museum in Paris. He was given access to the 500-year old costume archive, which is also the largest in the world.  This is the catalogue of the exhibition, and leafing through its glossy pages is nearly as exhilirating as visiting the vibrant show itself. Like the exhibition, the book is arranged by theme - 'Checks, Plaids & Tartans', and 'Art of the Unusual' being two of the more unusual ones (the latter chapter begins with the words 'My longstanding love of bad taste. This is what sends me with an unquenchable gusto into kitsch boutiques...or the seashell salt cellars of my youth.') This is both an education in fashion history and an awesome appreciation of it, as seen through the eyes of one of the 21st century's true fashion design geniuses. Published by Thames & Hudson. Available on Amazon. Read Danielle Radojcin's blog review of the Lacroix show