Karl Lagerfeld, one of the most popular fashion icons, has passed away at the age of 85.

Karl Otto Lagerfeld was born on 10 September 1933 in Germany.
He was the creative director of Chanel. This position he held from 1983 until his death while also being the creative director for Fendi from 1967.

At barely 21, Lagerfeld won his first prize in the coat category at the International Wool Secretariat’s design competition, now known as the Woolmark Prize, in Paris. He shared this iconic stage with Yves Saint Laurent, a man who would become his rival in fashion, who won in best dress design.

This recognition gave Lagerfeld a job with the couturier Pierre Balmain, where he designed for films and dressed stars including Sophia Loren and many more.  In 1963, he began freelancing for Gaby Aghion at Chloé.

In 1967, he was hired by Fendi to modernize their fur line. Karl Lagerfeld created their famous “Double F” logo, also signifying “Fun Fur”, in reference to fake fur. Lagerfeld remained with Fendi until his death.

In 1983, Alain Wertheimer, the co-owner of Chanel, asked Lagerfeld to breathe new life into the iconic French house which was considered a "near-dead brand" since the death of Coco Chanel in 1971.  Lagerfeld brought life back into the company, making it a huge success by revamping it’s ready to wear fashion line. Lagerfeld even integrated the interlocked "CC" monograph of COCO CHANEL into a style pattern for the House of Chanel.

In 1984, a year after his start at Chanel, Lagerfeld began his own brand “Karl Lagerfeld”, which is famous for its whimsey design and cartoonish prints.

So what happens now? Karl Lagerfeld had been designing for Chanel up until his last breath. Chanel has announced that Virginie Viard, who took his place in the January Couture show after Karl was too sick to come out at the end, will take up the creative work.

As for Fendi, the show must go on. The brand had its current fashion show shortly after the passing of Lagerfeld and emotions were running high. Currently they haven't announced a successor yet.

RIP Karl Lagerfeld, a legend in so many ways of the fashion world.

Lagerfeld’s ICONIC pieces

Tweed

This fabric was his trademark, incorporating it into the Chanel handbag, shoes, suit, and hat designs, all in various colors and different designs.

The bag: BOY

One of the most iconic Chanel bags. The Boy Bag was inspired by Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel’s tendency to play with masculine accent in her style. She got it from Boy Capel, the greatest love of her life, which, incidentally, explains why the new bag is called the Boy Chanel.

Purseblog

The little black jacket

Lagerfeld has redesigned the jacket, transforming it into a modern, adaptable garment to be worn by both sexes of all ages.

Fendi’s FF logo

“Double F” logomania, stands for “Fun Fur”, in reference to fake fur

The logo was created by Karl Lagerfeld when he joined Fendi in 1965 to accentuate the brand's creativity and innovation in its usage of fur.

Gallerie Andorre