In the modern fashion world there are many designers who revolutionized clothing or became famous for their shocking ideas, but there are also those who create things that are suitable for ordinary people and everyday life. Among such designers there are also creators of things-icons, mast-hell clothes for any fashionista. Among such fashion designers, Diana von Furstenberg and her wrap dress certainly stand out.
Family and childhood
Diana, who had the surname Halfin before marriage, was born in Brussels in 1946. Her mother and aunt went through Auschwitz, and the story of their acquaintance is worthy of special mention. In the 30th year, after the persecution of Jews began, Sima Weisman and her cousin Leon left their home in Chisinau. In 42, Sima was arrested and sent to Auschwitz, where she met a girl named Lily. Friendship is struck up between them, despite which Lily did not tell her new friend that a few days before the arrest, she married her lover. Soon, Lily is transferred to another camp and the girls do not even think that they will ever meet. Surprisingly, both were able to survive, and when Sima came to her brother Leon after the end of the war, she met Lily there. It was for the brother that her friend in the concentration camp married just a few days before her arrest.
Sima and Lily, of course, recognized each other, but did not say a word about their common past at Auschwitz. Only after years, Sima will describe this story in her memoirs. And Lily, who returned from the camp exhausted to an extreme degree, was diagnosed with infertility. Despite this, Lily and Leon were able to become parents, and in 46 they had a daughter, Diana.
After the war, Diana’s father was able to start a business selling electrical goods in Brussels, on which he managed to make a good fortune. When her daughter was 13, Leon and Lily divorced, and Diana went to a boarding school. All her teenage years, she moved from one European school to another, until, finally, she remained in Switzerland with her mother, where she received an economic education.
Acquaintance with the future husband
At the age of 18, in one of the fashion clubs, Diana meets a young guy with whom she begins an affair. This guy was Edward von Furstenberg, none other than the son of an Austrian prince. Edward and Diana travel a lot together, but a year later the girl leaves her lover and leaves for Paris. There, thanks to work in a photo studio, she gets acquainted with the world of haute couture and decides to move to America. In addition, Edward studied in the States, and mixed feelings remained for him. Diana was both jealous and bored. Their chance meeting in St. Moritz and the invitation of Edward to him in New York make the girl live in two cities.
At this time, Diana becomes even closer to the fashion world - she already works in the textile factory Angelo Feretti and begins to make the first sketches of future dresses. She already then understands that her calling is clothing. Diane von Furstenberg soon learns that she is in position and is going to terminate the pregnancy. I must say that in 69 this was done as quickly and simply as in our time. But Diana's mother persuaded her to start telling the child's father. From Furstenberg, she received a telegram with the words "July 15 wedding date." They say she still keeps this message.
Marriage and birth of children
Pregnant first-born, Diana is torn to pieces - on the one hand, her dream comes true to move to New York, on the other, she is sorry to leave her teacher Angelo Feretti.
The wedding of Diana and Edward took place near Paris. The bride wore a white dress from Dior and a wide-brimmed hat. So Diana Halfin becomes a princess and an aristocrat. In the 70th year, her son Alexander is born, and after 3 months she is again pregnant with her daughter Tatyana. Children did not affect the bohemian lifestyle of the spouses. They still attend parties, receptions, and dinner parties. Diana is spinning in the fashion world and is friends with Andy Warhol, Valentino, editors of fashion magazines.
Three years after the wedding, the couple divorced. Despite the obvious problems in marriage - its work and popularity, its betrayals and revelry - they get divorced easily and smoothly. Diana does not ask for alimony, leaves his name and, moreover, the ex-husband and wife will be able to maintain friendship.
Years later, Diana got married again to billionaire Barry Diller. In the 70s they had an affair, then they broke up, and in 2001 they met again and got married. The couple are still together. According to Diana herself, in the 70s they were too young, and now Barry is an ideal husband.
Carier start
The first steps in the world of fashion Diana began even before her marriage to Edward, when she worked at Feretti. He allowed her to use fabrics from his manufactory, from which the girl sewed outfits. Before leaving for America, pregnant Diana came to the factory at night and sewed from what was. She took some ready-made outfits to the States, where she showed the editor-in-chief of Vogue magazine. They liked the models and she actually launched the fashion brand “Diana von Furstenberg.” Dresses created by a novice designer got the right to enter the world of big fashion. With an initial capital of 30 thousand dollars (and Diana never wanted to depend on a rich husband), She founded her clothing brand in 1970.
From the very beginning, she headed for a women's suit that will make absolutely anyone attractive. This is the philosophy of the brand - to create things that adorn any figure. By the way, Diana from the very beginning abandoned thoughts about men's clothing and so far the brand is aimed only at clothes for women. True, over time, accessories, shoes and bags appeared in it.
Diana von Furstenberg - the first success of a fashion brand
Already the first collections of the fashion house became incredibly successful, and all thanks to the wrap dress. This is the idea of Diana herself, who wanted to create the perfect dress not for the goddess of the podium or the red carpet, but for an ordinary woman who goes to work, walks with her children, goes to the store. At the same time, she wanted to make this woman attractive. Looking at the covers of fashion magazines with shapeless, asexual outfits of the 70s and hippie-style hoodies, the novice designer got into her head that she needed a feminine and sexy dress, and that was the dress with the smell of Diana von Furstenberg.
The designer herself called his style “a piece of fabric with sleeves”. In fact, this is a dress with ties without zippers and buttons, tailored like a bathrobe. But everyone liked it - it is easy to put on, does not wrinkle, is suitable for any occasion, and most importantly - the silhouette of an hourglass, pulled at the waist with a thin belt, adorns any figure. 1975 was declared the year of the Vogue light-smelling dress. This style in English is called a wrap dress and one of them from Diane Von Furstenberg is stored in the costume museum at the Metropolitan.
By the way, during this period, Diana von Furstenberg herself acts as the main model and face of her brand. Photos in magazines, on billboards show the designer himself in his own creations, which went to her incredibly.
Disappointment in fashion and a new take-off
Despite the crazy success of the brand and huge dividends from the sale of a patent for a dress with a smell, in the second half of the 80s the brand’s popularity fell. Diana, experiencing a creative crisis, decides to go out of fashion. A financial crisis is also imposing - clothes are not for sale, shops are forced to reduce prices to a minimum. At one of the parties, she meets the writer Alain Elkann and moves with him to Paris, where she works in the publishing business. It took her 5 years to understand that Alain was cheating on her and miss her beloved business. But in New York in 1990, few people already remember who Diana von Furstenberg is.
A new idea helps her to return to the cage of famous designers - Silk Assets, a silk hoodie. It instantly becomes popular and revives the love of a wraparound dress, which is now being bought at flea markets and vintage stores. She did not stop her from climbing the fashionable Olympus and the cancer of the tongue, which Diana successfully overcame.
Brand today
In the 2000s, the brand not only creates a new collection for each season. Diana von Furstenberg produces jewelry, launches a line of shoes. More than 30 single-brand boutiques are open all over the world, and in general her outfits can be bought in 70 countries of the world. Many famous ladies are devoted fans of the brand. This is Michelle Obama, and Fergie, and Jennifer Lopez, and many others.
As von Fürstenberg herself says, she, of course, was beautiful and rich, and even was a princess, which opened her many doors and helped to become successful. But there were many equally rich and beautiful around, but not every one of them was able to achieve similar results. In addition, the brand is a great example of how a legend from the past can become the main trend of our time.
Love for Russia
With Russia, Diana is linked by a life-long love. Her father was born in Chisinau and when Diana was little, he spoke Russian to her, read classics to her and instilled a love of Russian art. In an interview, the fashion designer always says that her father loved her very much and therefore she speaks Russian with love.
She called her children with Russian names: Tatyana in honor of Tatyana Yakovleva, girlfriend of Mayakovsky, and Alexander - in honor of her husband Yakovleva. Diana was familiar with them and was friends in her youth.
The work also embodies the love of Russia, which Diana von Furstenberg carried through her whole life. The Winter Palace collection, dedicated to War and Peace and Doctor Zhivago, is an example of inspiration from Russian history and literature. Exhibitions of the costume of Diana von Furstenberg were held more than once in Moscow, and she herself even gave a lecture to students of Moscow State University, where she talked about the formation of her brand.
Interesting Facts
- In 1976, the designer falls into the Guinness Book of Records as a fashion designer who sold more than 5 million of her dresses in one year alone.
- The Diane Von Furstenberg brand creates not only feminine dresses, for example, in 2003 a sports line for the Reebok brand was released.
- And in 2012, the designer came up with limited bottles for Coca-Cola.
- Diana von Furstenberg in her youth became a model for one of Andy Warhol's works.
- Once, Diana donated half her considerable fortune as a donation.