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Dec 14, 2009
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Elsa Schiaparelli

fashion designer
Born: 9/10/1890
Birthplace: Rome

Proof that studying philosophy rarely leads to regular employment, Schiaparelli worked as a script writer in the US before moving to Paris in the late 1920s to open a boutique. Her designs were characterized by their bold use of color, particularly shocking pink and ice blue, which both became sensations when she introduced them. One of her most memorable designs was a tall hat in the shape of a shoe. Her dresses and suits of the 1930s with squared, padded shoulders changed the female figure. She originated the idea of separates for sports clothes. She was the first designer to use zippers and man-made fabrics for her fashions. She expanded her line of clothing to include hats, perfume, jewelry, cosmetics lingerie and swimwear. A New York store opened in 1949, specializing in mass-producing her suit designs.

Died: 11/13/1973

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Shock value: there was more to designer Elsa Schiaparelli than her wild whimsy, as a new exhibition shows.(Fashion Flash) (W)

FIT REMEMBERS PARIS PIONEERS.(Elsa Schiaparelli) (WWD)

Shockingly Schiaparelli.(Connoisseurs's World)(Philadelphia Museum of Art features styles by Elsa Schiaparelli)(Brief Article) (Town & Country)

Wicked in pink: an exhibition on one of the greatest of all couturiers, Elsa Schiaparelli, helps to answer the old question about fashion--art or craft?(Exhibitions) (Apollo)

ELSA SCHIAPARELLI; THE ROMAN WHO WAS THE SENSATION OF PARIS THROUGH THE THIRTIES LOOKS FORWARD.(Brief Article)(Interview) (WWD)

FASHION SCOOPS: SCHIAP REDUX?...BERTELLI VENTS...BIRKIN BEAUTY.(Tod's SpA deal to produce a ready-to-wear collection from Elsa Schiaparelli)(Patrizio Bertelli proposes a new solution)(Jane Birkin in contract with Lyn Harris) (WWD)

THE ECLECTIC COMPANY; AS EVER, LONDON DESIGNERS TRAVELED THEIR OWN PATHS THIS SEASON...GILES DEACON WAS INSPIRED BY ELSA SCHIAPARELLI...JULIEN MADONALD SEEMED TO BE CHANNELING HUBERT DE GIVENCHY...AT ELEY KISHIMOTO, THE INSPIRATION WAS THE CITY'S HOT BRIXTON NEIGHBORHOOD...AND, AT PRINGLE, TWINSETS ARE FOREVER. (WWD)

Schiaparelli the shocking truth: the legendary designer's legendary granddaughter Marisa Berenson opens up about seeing life through a pink lens. (Harper's Bazaar)

Inventive designs on display in Schiaparelli retrospective.(Philadelphia)(Brief Article) (Art Business News)

EUROPE WATCH: HOLIDAY BLUES... SURF'S UP... ANYTHING ELSA? (WWD)

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