Felice Shapiro
93 year old Iris Apfel is the new face of Kate Spade’s Spring fashion line. And you know her –trust me – you’ve definitely seen that gray haired broad in her signature bug-eyed gigunda glasses.
But really – who is this woman and why should you care? Well – at 93 she is raising the age bar in fashion and that is pretty remarkable.
How does a woman in her 90’s still manage to bring home the bucks using her looks? Sounds outrageous n’est ce pas?
Nope. Not for this old gal. If you want the back story on Iris – this old fashion plate has quite a yarn to spin – but it’s in multi-colored threads and jewels and it’s worth watching. ( Albert Maysles and his late brother David directed it –they brought us Grey Gardens and Gimme Shelter).
From the get go she was pegged by Frieda Loehmann (yup one of BA50’s favorites — R.I.P. “Loehmann’s “) Friend told Iris, “You’re Not Pretty you will never be pretty but you have something much better – You have style.” And unless you are a runway model, that is something most of us can relate to.
At 93 years old she is still kooky, a show stopper of a fashion plate who still knows how to put together her accumulated accessories and look “smashing.”
Here’s a few reasons to put this film on your must see list:
- You have a fascination for fashion icons.
- Ninety-something years old – well, it’s not too old to be hip and relevant. It makes BA50’s feel like the kids again.
- If you need a push to take the fashion plunge into uncharted territory – this may be just the fix you need.
- Your old stuff will never look the same to you again. In your spring-cleaning frenzy – you may see your “collection” as a treasure chest versus a junk pile.
- You love watching movies about what’s possible even at 90. (Has there ever been another film about that?)
Iris Apfel is funny, irreverent and upbeat and her amazing spirit is captured all over this film. See it and let us know what you think.