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Quant, Mary

(Encyclopedia)Quant, Mary, 1934–, British fashion designer. After opening her boutique in London to sell clothes, she began to design them as well. She was one of the originators of the “mod” or “Chelsea”...

Lagerfeld, Karl

(Encyclopedia)Lagerfeld, Karl, 1938–2019, German fashion designer, b. Hamburg as Karl Otto Lagerfeldt, immigrated with his family to Paris in 1952. He won a fashion award at 16, designed for couturiers Pierre Bal...

wig

(Encyclopedia)wig, arrangement of artificial or human hair worn to conceal baldness, as a disguise, or as part of a costume, either theatrical, ceremonial, or fashionable. In ancient Egypt the wig was worn to prote...

McQueen, Alexander

(Encyclopedia)McQueen, Alexander (Lee Alexander McQueen), 1969–2010, British fashion designer. He learned tailoring on Savile Row in London and worked with several theatrical costumers, which led to his designing...

Versace, Gianni

(Encyclopedia)Versace, Gianni (Giovanni Maria Versace), 1946–97, Italian fashion designer, b. Reggio Calabria. A dressmaker's son, Versace worked for several Italian designers before opening (1978) his own Milan ...

Mainbocher

(Encyclopedia)Mainbocher mĕnˌbōshāˈ [key] (Main Rousseau Bocher), 1891–1976, American fashion designer, b. Chicago. He was known for his expensive, elegant evening clothes; cardigan sweaters with jeweled but...

Blass, Bill

(Encyclopedia)Blass, Bill (William Ralph Blass), 1922–2002, American fashion designer, b. Fort Wayne, Ind. Active for three decades, he was most noted for high-quality, high-priced, and quintessentially American ...

von Furstenberg, Diane

(Encyclopedia)von Furstenberg, Diane, 1946–, Belgian-American fashion designer, b. Brussels as Diane Simone Michelle Halfin. She began designing before moving to New York in 1969, and created simple, functional c...

Schiaparelli, Elsa

(Encyclopedia)Schiaparelli, Elsa skyäpärĕlˈlē [key], 1890–1973, French fashion designer, b. Rome. She established a house of couture in Paris that existed from the late 1920s until 1954, and opened a New Yor...

Worth, Charles Frederick

(Encyclopedia)Worth, Charles Frederick, 1825–95, French and British fashion designer. He was the founder of the Maison Worth in Paris and London, the longest running fashion dynasty, and the arbiter of women's fa...