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Famed French designer Pierre Cardin dies at 98

Holly B. Martin

Pierre Cardin, the French fashion designer famed for 1960s-era avant-garde and Space Age looks, who pioneered fashion ready-to-wear and the fashion licensing system that made him rich but diminished his brand’s reputation, has died. He was 98.

His death was announced by French Academy of Fine Arts on Tuesday. The academy did not give a cause of death or say where or when he died.

Born Pietro Cardin in 1922 to French parents in their vacation home in San Biagio di Callalta near Venice, Cardin’s family left Italy two years later to escape fascism and moved back to Sainte-Etienne in central France, where Pierre grew up.

From an early age, he was interested in dressmaking, starting work at age 14 as an apprentice even though his father wanted him to become an architect. He moved to Paris in 1945, where he studied architecture and worked with the fashion

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Obituary: Pierre Cardin

Holly B. Martin

Fashion designer Pierre Cardin was a supreme innovator – for 70 years, he ripped up convention and captured the zeitgeist. His thirst for the new and surprising was never satisfied.

He will be remembered for his futuristic designs – some were inspired by the space age, some were even impossible to wear.

He carved his own way through the fashion industry. Parisian haute couture had always been exclusive – its high priests believed it should be high-end, individually tailored and eye-wateringly expensive.

Cardin broke the mould. He launched “ready-to-wear” collections, bringing high fashion to the middle classes. His designer peers were aghast, and threw him out of their club.

In the 1950s, men wore traditional suits which made the young look like their fathers. Cardin threw out the boxy jackets and stiff white shirts, creating a revolutionary look for a new, progressive generation.

Gone were the bulky details; collars, lapels,

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What Actually Happens To Your Online Returns?

Holly B. Martin

The stores are full of promises of comfort and joy — a pair of fancy sweatpants, some box fresh sneakers, a shiny new kitchen gadget, a cozy new blanket. In a year of economic and social turmoil, brands are banking on the holiday to make up lost profits, and shoppers are hoping they can buy themselves some winter cheer to light up an otherwise dark year. Most of this wishful buying and selling is happening online. 

“My mom and I would always go out on Black Friday. This was the first year that we didn’t so I have purchased every Christmas gift online,” said Anne Cnockaert, in Ypsilanti, Michigan. Like millions of other people, the 38-year-old tech employee said social distancing during the global pandemic transformed her shopping habits. “It has been a little strange doing it all online, but it’s kind of fun to get the packages,” she said.

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Stella Tennant dies ‘suddenly’ at age of 50

Holly B. Martin
Stella Tennant attends the launching Party of Chanel's new perfume "Gabrielle" as part of Paris Fashion Week on July 4, 2017 in Paris, France
Stella Tennant attends the launching Party of Chanel’s new perfume “Gabrielle” as part of Paris Fashion Week on July 4, 2017 in Paris, France

Stella Tennant, one of the most respected models of her generation, has died suddenly five days after her 50th birthday.

Scottish-born Tennant, who came from aristocratic roots to forge a much admired career as a runway model for designers such as Gianni Versace and Alexander McQueen, was found dead at her home on Tuesday.

The granddaughter of the 11th Duke of Devonshire, Andrew Cavendish, and Deborah Mitford, she rose to fame in the 1990s, and was among the models picked to represent the British fashion industry during the closing ceremony at the Olympic Stadium, on the final day of the London 2012 Olympics.

In August it was revealed that Tennant had separated from her husband David Lasnet after 21 years of marriage. 

Police said there were

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