The man behind Chanel and Fendi. The face of modern fashion. An icon, a veteran, a larger-than-life persona – we’re celebrating Karl Lagerfeld’s birthday with a classic StyleCracker-style salute.
One never knows what to expect out Karl Lagerfeld’s shows for Chanel. In the past he has done a faux supermarket, a feminist rally, a fully functional brasserie and an art gallery as sets for the past seasons. This time at Couture Week he constructed a casino inside the Grand Palais wherein his celebrity friends – Julianne Moore, Rita Ora, Lily Collins – opened the show by walking in and trying their hands at the Chanel branded casino tables.
He is known for his monochromatic style and his signature ponytail that he spoed since 1996. He states his glasses are his ‘Burka’ and believes that taking them off would make him look like a ‘cute little dog.’
Last year he made a film ‘Reincarnation’ featuring Pharell Wiiliams and Cara Delevigne for Chanel. The film accompanies the brand’s annual Métiers d’Art show and is based on reality. It details the birth of the iconic Chanel jacket. Coco Chanel was apparently on holiday in Austria when she was inspired by the uniform of an elevator operator.
He is an ace photographer and although, he takes society portraits and portraits for his royalty friends against strange backdrops, he also believes in employing spontaneity in his photoshoots.
He uses Shu Uemera’s pigmented eyeshadows for his sketches and has been doing so for the past 20 years. He has now teamed up with the brand to photograph the campaign also to design the product packaging for the new collection.
He has come up with his own line of emojis called EmotiKarl. The app contains the emoticons of the Kaiser himself, his cult kitty, Choupette and the Karl Lagerfeld fragrance, which the app is now promoting.
The designer is all for women empowerment. At Paris Fashion Week finale, last year the Chanel models walked down the ramps with palacards demanding women’s rights. Women empowerment then entered the realm of high fashion.
The Karlito doll, which was designed by him and named after him made its appearance on the Fendi A/W 2014/15 runway. Priced at $1,685 dollars, the waitlist for the doll is approximately at 600.
His love for fur knows no bounds. Even though he was involved in many controversies, he still stands by his words and states that in this meat-eating world, fur shouldn’t be made a big deal.
Kaiser’s most inspiring quote on fashion “Never use the word “cheap”. Today everybody can look chic in inexpensive clothes (the rich buy them too). There is good clothing design on every level today. You can be the chicest thing in the world in a T-shirt and jeans — it’s up to you.”
