Karl Lagerfeld
Karl Lagerfeld is a Hamburg born fashion designer who was born in 1938 and immigrated to Paris when he was aged 14. He later went on to become a celebrated fashion designer, and this article offers more information about him and his life in the world of fashion.
When Karl Lagerfeld was only 17 years old in 1955, he was offered a position at Pierre Balmain as a result of winning a fashion competition sponsored by the International Wool Secretariat. In order to win this competition, Lagerfeld had designed a coat, which was later produced by Balmain. Just three years later, however, Lagerfeld took up a job with Jean Patou. Here he learned many things about fashion and couture, but he was not happy in this role. He left after only one year, and became a freelance fashion designer, working for fashion houses such as Krizia, Charles Joudan and Valentino. In 1964 Lagerfeld decided to leave the world of haute couture to study art in Italy. Just three years later, he returned back to fashion.
In 1967, Lagerfeld joined Fendi, working as a design consultant. In the 1970s, he became closely related with the Chloe fashion house, producing feminine collections. He then moved on to design for Chanel in 1983. Whilst working for Chanel, Lagerfeld took the opportunity to launch his own fashion label. The features of his fashion label include strong tailoring, easy to wear cardigan jackets and bright colours teamed with softly shaped knitwear. He continued to design for Chanel, and a notable moment in his career was when he teamed a traditional box jacket with a denim mini skirt in 1991.
Even though Karl Lagerfeld has moved frequently between different design labels, he has managed to keep a sense of what his own fashion style is all about. He does not ever seem to be afraid to try something new with his designs. He has produced a shower dress, a car dress and a large number of very eccentric hats.
