Freakin' Fabulous: How to Dress, Speak, Behave, Eat, Drink, Entertain, Decorate, and Generally Be Better than Everyone Else

I've never seen What Not to Wear, but based on this book, I may look for it. Clinton Kelly is a talented writer -- informative and funny at the same time. Seven chapters cover how to dress, speak, behave, eat, drink, entertain and decorate, and the principles are cleverly discussed and humorously shown, though the language may be offensive to some. In the Dress chapter, Kelly uses effective photographs to illustrate his points. I was pleasantly surprised at some of the content -- basic instructions on grammar (such as the difference between 'who' and 'whom'), manners (what to do with your napkin when you leave the table), decorating and throwing a party, from what to do with guests who arrive early to getting guests to leave. The examples and illustrations are funny and irreverent, but also quite effective. All the while, Kelly is funny and charming. In addition there are quite a few hors d'oeuvres recipes, a few essential recipes (such as roast chicken), and drink mix information (as well as several pages devoted to wine).This is, of course, a fabulous book. But it would have been improved with an index at the back.

I love the show "What Not to Wear," and am especially a fan of Clinton's, since I am a fellow Northwestern alum. I loved this book for many reasons, including that we get to know Clinton quite a bit better than we do on the show. His personality, humor, and writing style were superb, combining clear explanations with witty comments. The humor does taper off a little toward the ending sections, but I guess you can't really dole out snappy comments about a roast chicken recipe! The book also has a great layout with drawings, colorful photos, and nice snippets of text.Above all, of course, is that the book definitely fulfills its purpose of making the reader fabulous! Clinton's main theme is that, to be fabulous, you need to be appropriate and stylish in every situation, something which I believe most people struggle with in today's society. The book is divided into seven sections: Dress, Speak, Behave, Eat, Drink, Entertain, and Decorate. He covers a lot of ground in the book, everything from whether you are wearing the right thing to a funeral to age-appropriate clothing to using that vs. which to thank you notes to using your silverware correctly to cooking a French omelet to getting rid of clutter. Also, I should say that this book is not just for women. Clinton covers plenty of material, including clothing and dressing for your body type, that applies to men. I loaned my copy of the book to my mom to read, and my 63-year-old CPA father ended up picking it up and reading, almost cover to cover! (What I'm saying here is that other reviewers have mentioned that this book is just for women; it's not.) They liked it so much that they ordered a copy for themselves. Unlike "What Not to Wear," this will not just revamp your clothing and your body image, it will revamp your life if you embrace it.That may be quite daunting for some people, but I think there are plenty of bits and pieces that anyone can incorporate into his or her life to add just a little bit of fabulousness! I definitely recommend this book for people who are fans of "What Not to Wear," people who like Clinton Kelly, and people who want to inject some fabulousness into their lives. I am even buying a copy of the book as a Christmas gift for a friend!

I read other reviews of this book prior to getting from the library first and found them to be mixed. After I had a chance to read it, I enjoyed Clinton's biting humor and the tips, but what really sold me were the recipes. I tried several before buying and finally decided that I needed to own this book. There aren't a lot of recipes (it isn't a cookbook, after all) but the ones he included are excellent! The other ideas, combined with the beautiful photography and funny comments make this an enjoyable purchase.

Clinton Kelly is hilarious and makes fabulousness accessible to everyone. Broken into 7 sections representing 7 areas of life, Clinton writes like he's in your living room chatting over his favorite gin and tonic. My favorite section is "How to Dress." Major body types of both women and men are given advice on how to dress to flatter your figure. "How to Speak" is wildly entertaining. If I could only teach my English classes like this, my students would learn proper grammar so much easier! He gives these hilarious situations and addresses the most important grammar rules and/or biggest grammar slips so that any one can sound classy and educated. The 3rd section, "How to Behave" is also helpful. It's like a miniature Emily Post book for modern day life. Useful.Sections 4-6 are how to eat, drink, and entertain. They kind of all go together and will help the average Joe or Jill be a stylish and hospitable hostess.The last section, section 7 is about decorating. I probably paid the least attention to this section as I already own tons of decorating books and magazines. However, Clinton does have helpful information and pretty visuals to look at in this section.Overall, fabulous! Fun to read- even my husband picked it up a few times (busted!).

I had the great fortune of winning a personal makeover from Clinton Kelly through Macy's Makeover America. Before I went, I wanted to read his book, Freakin' Fabulous. I couldn't put the book down. It is full of very useful information. Many of the things Clinton Kelly talks about in his book are things my grandmothers taught me such as the rules of proper grammar and social etiquette. While the book confirms to me that both my grandmothers were fabulous women, it also confirms that niether one was as outrageously funny as Clinton Kelly. His rules for fabulousness are very clear. His humor is just flatout fun. This will make a great Christmas gift for all my not quite, but almost fabulous friends. And, btw, Clinton Kelly is every bit as charming and gracious in person as he is in his book.

Gave as gift, she loved it

I just love this book and know it by hard by now. Clinton is a new friend of mine. Very entertaining, those remarks on Xanax! I am looking forward to a knew book by him. The recipes are good as well.