"Cecil Beaton's Diaries 1922-1939 the Wandering Years" 1961 Beaton, Cecil

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BEATON, Cecil

[385] pp.

Weidenfeld and Nicolson

1961

Second Printing

8 3/4" x 6"

Custom morocco leatherbound and inscribed to … Read more BEATON, Cecil

[385] pp.

Weidenfeld and Nicolson

1961

Second Printing

8 3/4" x 6"

Custom morocco leatherbound and inscribed to Alan Winstanley Best Wishes from Cecil Beaton

One of England's finest bookbinders. Alan Winstanley studied at the Central School of Arts and Crafts at Holborn, then studied bookbinding and creative art at Luton and St. Albans. He worked for Sydney Cockerell in Letchworth before moving to Salisbury in 1959 at the invitation of Harry Bailey to take on his craft bookbinding business. Salisbury Bookbinders flourished for forty-one years until Winstanley's retirement in 2000. His work was commissioned for wedding presents to Prince Charles and the late Princess of Wales, and he executed the prestigious job of creating and binding the donor record volume for Lord Mountbatten's memorial at Broadlands. Examples of his conservation work and design can be seen in major collections around the world.

A characteristically witty family memoir from Beaton. The "Bolivian Aunt" of the title was Beaton's Aunt Jessie, a beauty who married "a rich, moustachioed Bolivian" and lived a life of drama in South America. Jessie's style, fashion, flair and theatricality captivated Beaton. His own family paled against her colourful, exotic personality. Jessie crops up frequently in his autobiographical writings and a chapter is dedicated to her in The Glass of Fashion. Her style also inspired many of his Edwardian-era costume and set designs, including those for My Fair Lady See less