Dior III by Marc Bohan

The photography in this volume is stunning — the close-up shots of the embroidery and beading let you actually see the craftsmanship. It's a hefty book, but the paper quality and binding feel worth it for a couture reference you'll flip through for years.

The Marc Bohan volume finally shows how the 60s couture silhouettes actually moved, and the full-page plates are big enough to study the seam lines. I've gone back to the A-line section three times already.

I didn't expect a coffee-table book to teach me so much about construction, but the close-up shots of the tailoring are genuinely stunning. As the third volume in the designer series, it holds up on its own and the print quality is gorgeous.