Violet Velvet Mittens with Everything: The Fabulous Life of Diana Vreeland

by Deborah Blumenthal (Author) Rachel Katstaller (Illustrator)

Violet Velvet Mittens with Everything: The Fabulous Life of Diana Vreeland
Reading Level: 2nd − 3rd Grade

This wonderful true story of iconic fashion editor Diana Vreeland teaches young readers that individuality is to be celebrated, and that even extraordinary dreams can come true.

Violet Velvet Mittens with Everything captures the dramatic, spectacular world of fashion icon Diana Vreeland, whose legacy at Harper's Bazaar, Vogue, and the Costume Institute of the Metropolitan Museum of Art continues to influence the fashion world today.

As a little girl in Paris, Vreeland loved to read and dance, and most of all dress up. Her love of originality persisted through her career in fashion, where her work was colorful, zany, and never, ever boring. Violet Velvet Mittens with Everything captures Vreeland's larger-than-life personality with an infectiously extravagant tone and style, showing young readers that above dazzling and daring, being yourself makes the most lasting impact of all.

(Although Violet Velvet Mittens with Everything is a tribute to the life of Diana Vreeland, the book is not authorized by her Estate)

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Hardcover
$18.95

Publishers Weekly

The intimidatingly fabulous Diana Vreeland (1903-1989), 20th-century tastemaker and editor of Harper's Bazaar and Vogue, breezily narrates this picture book tribute to her aesthetic achievements: "I turned fashion on its head, dreaming up stories of glamorous worlds." Blumenthal's Vreeland airily skims by biographical detail--the telling jumps from the figure's youthful love of dance to becoming "the Empress of Fashion" in a single spread. Instead, the figure's merrily madcap worldview dominates, building to a series of dazzling quotes from her legendary column, "Why Don't You?" ("Have every room done up in every color green?") Katstaller's trendy, clean-lined illustrations decorously tidy Vreeland's opulent world, taming the visionary wildness of her famous red room. Still, it's a winsome, if partial, introduction to a style icon who chose to "never, ever boring." Ages 4-8. (Oct.)

Copyright 2021 Publishers Weekly, LLC Used with permission.

School Library Journal

Gr 2-5--Readers get a glimpse into the life of fashion icon Diana Vreeland in this picture book biography. Born in Paris in 1903, Vreeland grew up surrounded by art, music, and design. She had a love of bright colors and bold makeup that led her to a career in fashion and writing a column for Harper's Bazaar called, "Why Don't You?" The column was filled with quirky fashion advice such as, "Why don't you wear violet velvet mittens with everything?" Using quotations from the column and Vreeland's autobiography, this book is written as if Vreeland is speaking directly to readers. With only a few sentences on each page, the biographical information is sparse. Instead, this reads like a conversation with Vreeland as she tells readers highlights from her life. An author's note fills in more details. Also included is a resource page for those wanting to know more about the fashionista. The mixed media artwork is the star of the book. The bold colors pop and the stylistic design make a nice counterpoint to the text. The palette of purples and reds reflect Vreeland's love of red lipstick and her suggestion to wear violet mittens. Included in the illustrations are cut-out collages of what appear to be newspapers or magazines. VERDICT Purchase to fill gaps in artsy picture book biography shelves.--V. Lynn Christiansen, Wiley International Studies Magnet Elem. Sch., Raleigh, NC

Copyright 2021 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Review quotes

"This book is a joy to read and to look at with each page illustrated with the most delightful and clever sketches. Have fun and enjoy this book. You deserve it!"
- Fern Mallis, Creator of New York Fashion Week,
Deborah Blumenthal
Deborah Blumenthal is an award-winning journalist and nutritionist who now divides her time between writing children's books and adult novels. She has been a regular contributor to the New York Times (including four years as the Sunday New York Times magazine beauty columnist), and a home design columnist for Long Island Newsday. Her feature stories have appeared in many other newspapers and national magazines, including New York's Daily News, the Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times, Harper's Bazaar, Cosmopolitan, Woman's Day, Family Circle, Self, and Vogue. She is the author of Fancy Party Gowns: The Story of Fashion Designer Ann Cole Lowe and Polka Dot Parade: The Story of Bill Cunningham. Blumenthal lives in New York City. You can visit her online at deborahblumenthal.com.

Masha D'yans is an award-winning artist, author, and illustrator who wears many hats, mostly of her own design. She has a line of watercolor greeting cards inspired by the marvels of nature, fairy tales, anything that blows her socks off, and her refusal to grow up. Bursting with colorful washes and delicate details, Masha's distinctive work rapidly gained a following, leading to debuts in Barneys New York, Louis Boston, and Neiman Marcus.
Today, her cards can be found in shops the world over. She also styles and designs clothing, as well as a range of products, including MoMA's renowned pop-up cards and calendars for Rizzoli. Her work has been featured in numerous movies and TV shows, such as Funny People and The Kids Are Alright. Masha's literary portfolio includes book covers like All We Have Left by Wendy Mills, picture books such as Polka Dot Parade: The Story of Bill Cunningham, A Poem as Big as New York City, and Razzle-Dazzle Ruby (which she illustrated, wrote, and paper-engineered), and the coloring book Color Me Enchanted. Originally from Europe, she holds a BFA from Cooper Union. Masha now lives in Los Angeles, California. You can visit her online at masha.com.
Classification
Non-fiction
ISBN-13
9781648960635
Lexile Measure
-
Guided Reading Level
-
Publisher
Princeton Architectural Press
Publication date
November 20, 2021
Series
-
BISAC categories
JNF007010 - Juvenile Nonfiction | Biography & Autobiography | Art
JNF007120 - Juvenile Nonfiction | Biography & Autobiography | Women
JNF006030 - Juvenile Nonfiction | Art | Fashion
Library of Congress categories
France
Biographies
Picture books
Fashion designers
Illustrated works
Vreeland, Diana
Fashion editors

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