Fashion icon Iris Apfel, who had a Barbie doll made in her image, dies aged 102
Fashion legend and interior designer Iris Apfel has died aged 102.
A spokesman for her estate confirmed the news of her passing but did not identify a specific cause.
Iris was known as the self-proclaimed " geriatric starlet ", and first became a style icon in the 1980s. She was a style trailblazer and was known for pushing the boundaries of fashion with her eclectic style, which consisted of bright colours and bold prints.
Some of her signature fashion items included oversized glasses and feather boas. She was a staple of the New York Times' style pages.
She later broke into the modelling world, appearing in campaigns for brands such as Kate Spade and H&M. Iris was also photographed for Vogue.
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Iris Apfel was a fashion legend (H&M)Born in 1921, Apfel got her first taste of fashion when she landed a job as a copywriter at Women's Wear Daily, while asking working as an interior designer.
Iris married her husband Carl in 1948 and the married couple launched a textile firm, Old World Weavers, two years later.
They continued to run the business until 1992, when they both retired.
When they were running their business, Iris and Carl would often travel to Europe to source fabrics, specialising in fabric reproductions from the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries.
Throughout her impressive career, Apfel took on a number of home restoration projects, at one point taking on a contract which saw her work under nine presidents - including, Harry S. Truman, John F. Kennedy, Richard Nixon, Jimmy Carter, and Bill Clinton.
Iris had her own Barbie (Iris had her own Barbie)In 2014, documentary Iris was released, which featured interviews with the New York fashionista, and looked back at her life.
In 2018, when Iris was 96, the fashion icon had a Barbie made in her image, making her the oldest person to ever be turned into a Barbie doll.
The figurine bore an uncanny resemblance to Iris, featuring her signature oversized spectacles.
Iris Apfel worked under nine presidents (ITV)In a statement at the time, Mattel said: "Iris Apfel is a fashion role model for Barbie with her singular style vision, entrepreneurial spirit and independence. Her long-spanning career makes her the perfect subject of a one-of-a-kind doll, the highest honor Barbie bestows."
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To honour her 100th birthday, Iris teamed up with H&M for a special collection, which was available to eager shoppers from April 14, 2022.
Several of Iris's fabulous designs, which ranged in price from $30-$400, sold out in minutes.
Iris was proceeded in death by her husband Carl, who passed away in 2015, after turning 100 years' old.
The couple didn't have any children on account of their busy schedules and Iris was firm in not wanting to hire a nanny.
Speaking to The Guardian in 2015, she shared: "I don’t believe in a child having a nanny, so it wasn’t what we were going to do, but also having children is like protocol.
"You’re expected to. And I don’t like to be pigeonholed."
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