Diane von Furstenberg: Biography of the Master Dress Designer

This book is part of Hyperink's best little books series. This best little book is 4,200+ words of fast, entertaining information on a highly demanded topic. Based on reader feedback (including yours!), we may expand this book in the future. If we do so, we'll send a free copy to all previous buyers.

ABOUT THE BOOK

Diane von Furstenberg is a one of the best-known fashion designers in the world and is the woman behind the iconic wrap dress. The Belgian-born designer was a jet-setting princess for a short time thanks to her marriage to Austro-Italian prince Egon von Furstenberg, though she became a household name due to her famous wrap dress among the many other creations to come from her house of design. It is she, not the prince, who is credited with making the Furstenberg name known to the world. In addition to her fashion empire, Furstenberg has written books, was a well-known ‘70s socialite, works tirelessly as a philanthropist, remains a proud mother of her two children, and is frequently sought after as a fashion and entrepreneurial expert.

Furstenberg’s first husband Prince Egon was the heir to the Fiat automobile fortune and son of Prince Tassilo von Furstenberg (1903-1989) and first wife Clara Agnelli (born 1920). Agnelli is the sister of Italian industrialist and former head of Fiat, Gianni Agnelli (1921-2003). Furstenberg and the prince had two children together, a son and a daughter.

MEET THE AUTHOR

Kent Page McGroarty is a freelance writer. She is a frequent lifestyle contributor to online magazine EDGE Publications and Demand Media sites LIVESTRONG.com, eHow Home and Garden and Local.com. She has a B.A. in English from Saint Joseph's University.

EXCERPT FROM THE BOOK

Furstenberg initially caught the public’s eye thanks to her marriage to Prince Egon, but her fame grew exponentially due to her best-selling wrap dress, which was synonymous with the tag line “Feel like a woman. Wear a dress.” Furstenberg’s many accomplishments and awards include five million of her jersey wrap dresses sold in 1976, which landed her on the cover of The Wall Street Journal and Newsweek. The latter magazine celebrated her as the most “marketable designer since Coco Chanel” and named her the newest icon of the female liberation movement. Though trousers were popular with women in the 1970s as a way of empowering women, Furstenberg’s dresses and approach to feminism blended the beauty of femininity with the ambition and drive to compete in a man’s world.

Furstenberg took a break from fashion in 1985 and moved to Paris, though she re-emerged in 1991 with Silk Assets, a collection available only through a home-shopping network. Furstenberg has been called a “pioneer” in the world of home shopping, with her first collection selling out in less than two hours. She re-launched her line in 1997, causing a whole new generation of women to fall in love with her wrap dress. Furstenberg went on to create her own fashion empire, though her original fashion boutique can still be found in New York’s trendy meatpacking district...

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