Elsa Schiaparelli

Born in Rome in 1890, she was thought of as unfashionably thin in her youth while her older sister was thought to be a beauty. At the age of 19 Schiaparelli went to the University of Rome to study Philosophy, however her uncle acknowledged Elsa’s curiosity as they spent time looking through his telescope. Two years after Elsa started University, published a novel of pomes about sorrow, love, sensuality and mysticism as Schiaparelli had a spiritual way of thinking about the world. However her father wasn’t very pleased with the content and he sent her to a convent, which she was then removed from after going on a hunger strike.

At the age of 22 Schiaparelli accepted an offer to travel to England and work as a nanny. On her way to London Elsa went to a ball in Paris as she had no ball gowns, Elsa bought some dark blue fabric, wrapped it around her body and pinned it in place. When Elsa arrived to London she spent here time visiting museums and attending lectures. Schiaparelli moved with her husband to New York, where she worked as a scriptwriter, although Elsa enjoyed and appreciated to the modernity of the city, her husband abandoned his family as he distanced himself from the city and by the time he left Gogo Schiaparelli, Elsa’s first child was born.

Schiaparelli was introduced to Gaby Picabia the ex-wife of born artist Francis Picabia, Marcel Duchamp and Man Ray, therefore when Man Ray and Gaby left for Paris, Elsa joined with them. When Schiaparelli arrived in Paris, she began making clothes and one of her dresses was seen by Paul Poiret, who asked Gaby to “compliment the designer” and encouraged by his comment Elsa opened her own business only to be closed in 1926 regardless of the flattering reviews. Schiaparelli’s knitwear sweaters collection was launched in early 1927 using double layered stitches in order to hold the sweaters shape as well as the geometric design decoration; this led to featuring the sweaters in Vogue the next month.

In spring of 1927 Schiaparelli started expanding her collections, including skirts, wool cardigans and accessories. In summer of 1927 Elsa launched a sweater with the illusion of a white bow knitted into a black background, which also featured in Vogue with the heading “artistic masterpiece.” Elsa then included bathing suits, beach pyjamas, tweed sport suits, two-piece linen dresses, coats, and ski costumes to her collection.

In 1930 and 1931, Schiaparelli continued to make progression in practical sportswear, introducing a patented invisible brassiere backless bathing suit and a daring divided skirt for a tennis costume, which was worn by Lili de Alvare. Strengthened by her accomplishment in sportswear, Elsa introduced her reversible black and white evening dresses in1931 that included draping trains that clipped up under the waist for dancing. In 1933 Schiaparelli returned to New York and was shocked by reporters that surrounded her as she was unaware of her designs’ popularity in the United States.

In 1940 Schiaparelli’s collection was based on a military theme relating her ideas to the war as she included a brown and disguise print taffetas. In July of that year begun a lecture’s tour called “Clothes and the Woman”, when her tour ended Elsa then returned to New York in 1941 to live there until the war ended. During the war Elsa volunteered at a variety of war-relief associations.

 However after the war ended in 1945 Schiaparelli found that women were interested in the “New Look”, recalling the gloves, petticoats and the corsets from 30 years before. Christian Dior was known as the master of the New Look, on the other hand Schiaparelli continued to present collections expressed her understanding of fashion since she rejected the new fashion movement. However by 1854 Elsa Schiaparelli was forced to close the house of Schiaparelli as she was financial troubled. Nevertheless Schiaparelli continued working for celebrities until her death in 1973.  

Although Schiaparelli’s career faded in the 1954, she is still an influence in fashion today as many designers constantly imitate and adjust her ideas and designs.