It is all too easy to look back at the past with an air of sneering superiority especially where advertising is concerned. Old advertisements are often considered to be naïve and unsophisticated by modern standards. However, this book, 70s Fashion: Vintage Fashion and Beauty Ads, proves that is not necessarily the case and that advertising as we now know it really began in the 1970s.

Admittedly, with the benefit of hindsight, an endorsement of Dingo Leather boots by OJ Simpson with the line “Like OJ, we always mean what we say” will raise a wry smile or two, but there is plenty more to this book. Advertisements for long-forgotten brands like Hubba Hubba dresses and Pachouli Cologne, can be found alongside classic Adidas, Converse and Levi. The Levi models wearing high-waisted, wide-legged jeans actually wouldn’t look out of place in this season’s fashion spreads.

Besides the hundred plus glossy pictures, the book also has an excellent introduction (in English, German and French!), which places the fashions and advertisements in context in relation to music, film and the wider culture.

You can buy this book new from Amazon for £4.49 or even cheaper from their marketplace sellers.