Carolina Herrera - biography and dresses

Carolina Herrera (Maria Carolina Josefina Pakanins and Niño) was born on January 8, 1939 in Caracas (Venezuela). Carolina's mother was the daughter of wealthy Venezuelan landowners, her father was first an air force officer and then the governor of Caracas. She, along with her three sisters, was brought up in austerity, surrounded by governesses and teachers. Every day was scheduled from morning dressing to evening dress, a certain order reigned in everything.

The mother was seriously involved in raising children, so attention was paid not only to education, but also to outfits. As a child, Carolina paid little attention to fashion - she wore what her mother wore. In the family, all the women were dressed in luxurious toilets, grandmother and mother ordered dresses from Lanvin and Balenciaga. When Caroline was 13 years old, her grandmother took her with her to Paris to see Cristobal Balenciaga.

In her youth, she wondered what to devote her work to, it turned out that the choice was not so easy, but still it was made. Thanks to serious educational training, Carolina entered the Faculty of Biochemistry. Perhaps this was not a deeply meaningful desire, but despite this, the habit of submitting herself to certain rules dictating her own conditions made her complete studies and even work in his specialty for several years.

In 1957, Carolina got married, but seven years later the marriage broke up, and she returned to her parents' house with two small children. Four years later, she regained her personal happiness, she married TV presenter Rinaldo Herrera Guevara. Two more girls appeared in the family. And Carolina, just like her mother once, devoted herself entirely to children. But thanks to her husband's large circle of acquaintances, she more than once had to spend time among creative people, where she met Andy Warhol, Diana Vreeland and many other interesting people.

In the 70s, Carolina Herrera was often noticed in various ratings of the most stylish people. She was familiar with many creative celebrities, she was repeatedly recognized as a style icon, and Andy Warhol painted her portrait.

For Carolina, her family and children have always come first. Perhaps that is why she was only 40 years old was able to realize her abilities as a designer. In 1981, Carolina Herrera, with the help of Diana Vreeland, with whom they became good friends, demonstrated her first collection at the Metropolitan club. The collection received rave reviews and became a source of pride for Carolina herself. She often recalls her and believes that from that moment she became a designer.

Her luxurious, elegant outfits quickly disappeared from the shops. Soon she and her husband moved to New York, where Carolina founds her own company. Carolina Herrera Limited... The company initially had no more than 10 people, and now it is a huge brand, very significant in the global fashion industry.

In 1987, Carolina released her first wedding collection, in which graceful silhouettes, simple lines were combined with romanticism, mystery and femininity. In this collection, everyone saw the depth of the designer's talent.

Carolina Herrera loves to work, so happy smiles and grateful glances from clients are the biggest reward for her, especially she likes working with wedding dresses. Each collection of the designer is not like the previous one, although only one thing remains unchanged - the love for the classics, which manifests the innate aristocracy and refined elegance of Carolina Herrera herself.

Carolina Herrera convinces women to be attentive to their appearance, an example would be her own. The most favorite piece of her personal wardrobe is a white shirt. Everyone has long noticed that the designer's exit at the end of the show is a white shirt and a black skirt or black tight trousers.

White shirt is present in all of her collections, because this is a simple but very seductive thing, so the designer assumes that it should be in every woman's wardrobe. “I've been wearing a white shirt all my life. She always helped me out, because this thing can be combined with anything…. ". Her crisp white shirts, rustling and seeming to smell fresh, are made for real women. Yes, this is a classic, but created in a modern format.

On the contrary, she has a completely different opinion about leggings, considers them the most dangerous piece of wardrobe. However, as everyone knows, unlike a white shirt, leggings fit well only on units, but they quickly won their place in every woman's wardrobe, they are pulled on by everyone, and go anywhere in them. "Don't you have a mirror at home?" - so thinks Carolina, looking at those who do not see themselves in the mirror. The position of many - "I want it so much and it is so convenient for me" is often at odds with the concept - beauty.

The designer's collections are always dominated by simplicity and conciseness, elegance and sophistication, there is no place for bulky accessories, an abundance of makeup, and complex hairstyles. Carolina is one of those who create originality and individuality in fashion.

And how does Caroline manage to look so youthful at the age of a mature woman? Everything is very simple. This is not only cosmetics, which are certainly available to her, but above all, it is the fulfillment of the usual rules available to everyone, or, in other words, a healthy lifestyle. She does not smoke, protects her skin from the sun, tries to drink a lot of water, and is often outdoors (she loves New York parks).

She used to go in for tennis and ballet, and she loved horse riding. Now he believes that such loads should be limited, and something should be abandoned altogether. There are so many interesting and accessible things in life at any age that when parting with one favorite pastime, you immediately find another - no less interesting.

He considers Patricia Wexler and Nivea (for the body) to be the best cosmetics. In 1988, she launched a perfume line, the first fragrance being the women's floral perfume Carolina Herrera. This fragrance has become her favorite, a beautiful melody of tuberose and jasmine sounds in it. The designer does not directly participate in the creation of fragrances, but each of the fragrances is released only with her consent.

Carolina Herrera opened her first mono-brand boutique in New York in 2000, and in the same year she created a cosmetic line. In 2001, a line of accessories was launched. Since 2003, the Carolina Herrera brand has started producing collections for men and children. Many celebrities choose Carolina Herrera dresses, because elegant and romantic outfits offered by Carolina Herrera remain timeless classics.

As one of the top designers, Carolina Herrera has the 2004 Best Womenswear Designer of the Year, the 2008 Geoffrey Beene Lifetime Achievement Award, and the 2012 Fashion Group International Superstar Award.

In 2014, Carolina Herrera was in the list of the 100 most stylish women of 2014, she took the 9th line of this rating. The images created by the designer are always feminine and elegant.

For many years, the Carolina Herrera brand has been a reference point for many women in a unique style, femininity and elegance, this is the philosophy of the brand. Despite the fact that in the fashion industry it is not at all easy to be yourself, and yet, all these years, Carolina Herrera has not changed her philosophy.

“Elegance and style have nothing to do with money or fame. Rather, it is a mental attitude, something coming from within, ”says designer Carolina Herrera.

Carolina Herrera - dresses from collections of different seasons