Tucking into this glossy confection, one can't help thinking that when Diana Vreeland issued her characteristically imperious fashion dictat, "Too much good taste can be boring", she hadn't bargained for Gwen Stefani. A century of celebrity fashion is going to take in a range of sartorial options, but does an adult woman clad in a bra, lace bib and velvet Alice band really deserve the title of style icon?

Elsewhere, though, Fashionista bulges with delights, from Vivienne Westwood in a woolly sweater and grubby brogues to a glowering Grace Jones, half-smothered by what appears to be a panther lolling around her neck. Jones is categorised alongside Björk as an "eccentric"; for more wearable concoctions, the reader might wish to turn to the "classic" (Jackie Kennedy and Audrey Hepburn), the "diva" (Marlene Dietrich, looking appealingly undiva-ish in slouchy pants and an unknotted tie) and the "it-girl". Though they don't have their own category, royals are also well represented, among them Princess Diana and Gloria, Princess of Thurn und Taxis, with whom I had not previously been acquainted.

One of the real pleasures here is to encounter the lesser-known icons of ages past, particularly the jet-set duo Slim Keith and Babe Paley, two glamorous socialites immortalised in Truman Capote's last novel. And if this formidable display of elegance unnerves the reader, it is worth remembering Capote's catty take on the latter: "Babe Paley had only one flaw: she was perfect. Other than that, she was perfect." Quite right. True style, like Westwood's shoes, should never be too polished.