My collection of Woman’s Own magazines is quickly becoming one of my most prized possessions. I adore flicking through them, admiring the adverts, drooling over the fashion and wishing I could draw like Aubrey Rix, Joe de Mers or Coby Whitmore. One of the things I love about them is that they are mainly for the working class to lower middle class woman; they are aimed at the every day women of the era and really give an insight into the mindset of the time.

A Vogue magazine is something different. Just like the magazine today, it is more aspirational, a dream and definitely not mundane. Although prices for the vintage Vogue magazines of the ’50s and ’60s can be anything up to fifty pounds, I would adore to have one – just one – to admire the high fashion, photography and illustration.

Of all of these, my favourites are:

The model on the cover of the March 1962 edition looks stunning: like something Louis Shabner or J.H. Lynch would paint. And I love the design of the 1954 cover, especially the jewelled detail.

What’s at the top of your Christmas wish list?

For more reading:

• Vogue.co.uk – where all of these pictures came from. There’s an archive here of back issues with details of the features and articles in each one.
• MyVintageVogue – Blog showcasing a vintage fashion archive from 1920-1960s