Wise, witty, stylish, tireless, disciplined, intuitive, cool under pressure — Carolina Herrera still reigns supreme in the kingdom of fashion. In honor of the designer’s 86th birthday, WWD combed through the archives to chronicle her style and caught up with a few of her friends to try to distill her magic.
Herrera first appeared in the pages of WWD in a photo that was taken at the 21 Club in 1975, following the “Lucky Lady” premiere at the Ziegfeld Theater, wearing a one-shoulder semi-sheer gown that looks strikingly current today. Two years later, she was featured in an elaborate multi-tiered ballgown with a lace overlay on her shoulders and a statement black bow in her chignon, while dancing with Harry Platt at the Embassy Ball in Atlanta. Herrera appeared to repeat the look a few months later for the opening of “Vanity Fair” at the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute.
Carolina Herrera dancing with Harry Platt at the Embassy Ball in Atlanta in 1977.
Photo by WWD
In December 1977, Herrera landed on WWD’s cover wearing an off-the-shoulder Bill Blass Infanta gown of black lace and chiffon with a cloud-like white taffeta skirt. Herrera joined C.Z. Guest, Count Vega del Ren and Lee Copley Thaw for a gathering for Her Highness, the Rajmata of Jaipur and His Highness, Maharajah of Jaipur. In that “Sitting Pretty” article, she explained, “I think you have to make an effort even if you’ve been invited to a dinner in a public restaurant.” The designer has certainly lived up to that year after year.
Carolina Herrera attends a private dinner for the Maharajah of Jaipur and his wife at Raja restaurant on Dec. 6, 1977, in New York.
Darleen Rubin
Longtime friend and Air Mail founder Graydon Carter said Wednesday, “I’ve never seen…