Let’s be completely honest, it’s an unstated fact that you’re not a legit designer unless you have muse to call your own. How rude of me…for those who have no clue what I’m talking about let’s take a little fashion trip to era of togas and flowing Grecian gowns. The role of the muse originated from a sisterhood of nine Greek goddesses who were said to greatly inspire and increase the creative process, from literature to art these women got the juices flowing.
The OG of all muses if you ask me is Edie Sedgwick for Andy Warhol. In the swinging sixties they were inseparable breaking boundaries in fashion and art. Edie was notorious for her “Factory Girl” look black leotards, barely there mini-dress and the largest earrings she could find. These days muses come in all shapes and sizes, from Agyness Deyn to Henry Holland, Lady Amanda Harlech to Karl Lagerfeld, and Carine Roitfeld to Tom Ford.
Fashion muses aren’t necessarily the most beautiful girls but are often the leaders of the style pack that serve as the real inspiration. A feminine ideal so to speak is what a muse is for a designer. The perfect example of this is Marc Jacobs’ muse Sofia Coppola. Let’s get it straight, by no means am I saying that Sofia is U-G-L-Y, but she does she not have the drop dead gorgeous look of a model. In true muse style, Sofia looks immensely stylish at all times, “she is young and sweet and beautiful,” Marc Jacobs has said, “the epitome of this girl I fantasize of.”
One of the most stylish females, in our opinion, Isabella Blow, broke necks and raised brows, but most importantly served as muse to both hat designer Philip Treacy and Alexander McQueen. If you know your history you might just say she discovered both designers. She bought McQueen’s entire Degree collection for £5,000 and even took Treacy into her home.
Betty Catroux former Chanel model known for her long luscious white-blond hair, string bean body and androgynous appearance, is also the muse to Yves Saint Laurent. Catroux and Saint Lauren were so close in fact, he bestowed upon her the title of his twin sister and his female incarnation.
