Iris Apfel, the fashion icon with more spirit than a high school cheerleading squad, has officially turned 100-years-old.
This “geriatric starlet” – as she calls herself, is adored amongst many in the fashion industry for her unique style, appreciation for fashion and quick wit. No one wears colour as confidently as she does or piles on jewellery the way she can (or even have the ability to, in all honesty.) She is the queen of shopping high and low, wherever and whenever, creating the most unique and stylish looks.
Now for those of you who may not know her, the one thing you do need to know is she is a larger-than-life kind of gal living in New York City. Apfel is known for layering jewellery, feather stoles and, of course, her signature round black-rimmed glasses. Iris’s moment in the spotlight really began when the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York chose to exhibit a selection of her personal fashion collection. Following the event, the book Rare Bird of Fashion was released, and as they say, the rest is history.
But asides from all of the glitz and glam, the one thing that genuinely shines brightly than her wardrobe are her quick-witted and notoriously candid quotes from her famous, “Life is grey and dull; you might as well have a little fun when you dress”, to “I don’t have any rules, because I’d only be breaking them.” And one of our favourites is “Fashion you can buy, but style you possess. The key to style is learning who you are, which takes years. There’s no how-to road map to style. It’s about self-expression and, above all, attitude.”
Yesterday marked the style icons birthday, and in honour of the occasion, we wanted to look back on some of her most memorable fashion moments to date.
