Designer death
Stars farewell fashionista Karl Lagerfeld
With his powdered white ponytail, high starched collars, dark glasses and fingerless gloves, there was no mistaking Karl Lagerfeld.
The German designer, who died last week of pancreatic cancer at 85, was fêted for saving legendary French fashion house Chanel as it teetered on the brink of disaster. But he was also known for everything from his outlandish runway shows to his endless array of adoring muses – such as Kate Moss to Cara Delevingne – and, not least, his wickedly acid tongue.
Karl once called pop icon Adele fat, announced he didn’t like Pippa Middleton’s face and slammed sweatpants as a “sign of defeat”.
The news of the fashion legend’s death followed concerns about his health after the self-confessed workaholic missed a catwalk show in Paris last month. Chanel explained his absence was due to the octogenarian “feeling tired”, but those in the industry had noticed he was looking increasingly frail.
If there was one rule Karl lived by it was, the show must go on! Born in Hamburg in 1933, just as Adolf Hitler was coming to power, the ambitious youngster won a post-war design competition that landed him his first job, with French luxury fashion house Balmain.
Becoming a high-flyer of haute couture earned him the nickname “Kaiser Karl” and with fame came fortune. He owned multiple homes, once had 300 separate iPods – each programmed with different music – and at last count possessed 2400 shirts, most of which were white.
He preferred a snug fit. In 2000, the once-portly fashionista lost 40kg because he “wanted to become a good clothes horse” and his book The Karl Lagerfeld
Diet became an international bestseller.
End of an era
The designer’s most significant partner was Jacques de Bascher, who died of Aids in 1989. Karl slept next to Jacques’ hospital bed in his final days, but even though they’d been together for 18 years, they never had sex.
“I don’t like sleeping with people I really love,” Karl once explained. “I don’t want to sleep with them because sex cannot last, but affection can last for ever.” Instead, he preferred to sleep with high-class escorts.
In recent years, the designer’s only companion was his cat, a fluffy white Burmese called Choupette. The pampered feline has round-the-clock care from two maids and is set to inherit a large portion of the Kaiser’s $190 million estate.