Top 10 Things You Didn't Know About Karl Lagerfeld

So we’re guessing you know that Karl Lagerfeld was the designer at Chanel until the time of his death in February of 2019. But did you realize that he had held the position since 1983? In the early ‘80s, the great fashion house of Chanel was at risk of falling out of fashion, and then-trendy designer Lagerfeld was brought in to revive the brand. He said of the brand at the time that it was “a sleeping beauty. Not even a beautiful one. She snored. I was to revive a dead woman.” He was clearly successful, brining Chanel back to the world stage to be the epitome of high fashion.

Karl Lagerfeld was once asked to look after a friend’s cat, and he grew so attached to her that he never gave her back. He then turned her into an internet sensation, posting about her world travels and cuddly exploits on her Instagram page, which at the time of writing had over 160 thousand followers. Choupette lives the high life, and allegedly has two maids to help care for her as well as a bodyguard and a personal chef. Lagerfeld loved Choupette so much that he actually said in 2013 that he would marry her if he could.

For many years, no one really knew how old Karl Lagerfeld was, because he was intentionally mysterious when it came to his age, and for that matter a number of things about his past. It has been proven that he has lied about both his age and his family history at various points, making himself appear to be younger than he really is. Some sleuthing revealed that he was born in 1933, making him 85 at the time of his death, though in 2008 he celebrated his 70th birthday...despite the fact that he was turning 75. You do you, Karl!

Sometimes it’s easy to forget how closely tied fashion is to the fine arts, but when you watch Karl Lagerfeld sketch one of his designs, you know that he was truly an artist at heart. Before he actually made it in fashion though, he said he wanted to be a cartoon artist. He decided, ultimately, that fashion would be more lucrative as a career though. And in his case, we can safely say he was right! At the time that he entered the industry however, being in the clothing industry was far from trendy. He said that his mother told him then, “it shows that you are not a snob because otherwise you would never do a job like this.”

After working in the fashion industry for nearly a decade, Karl Lagerfeld began to do freelance work for the brand Chloé, which is known today as one of the most chic “cool girl” labels out there. He became the creative head of the brand in 1974 and then again in 1992. At the time, the company’s image was decidedly different, and Lagerfeld helped to build it into what it would one day become. He helped usher in bold prints and a youthful aesthetic that we can still see in the lines they’re coming out with today. His work with Chloé put him on the map and helped him end up at Chanel.

Lagerfeld got his start by winning a design competition that led him to work for the legendary Pierre Balmain as an assistant. Soon enough though, he was working at Jean Patou and designing his own collections. At this time, he was working under the name Roland Karl and his first full collection was a complete disaster. Reporters in the audience reportedly even booed as his designs went down the runway! The garments he sent out were controversial, with one report saying that “A couple of short black cocktail dresses were cut so wide open at the front that even some of the women reporters gasped.” It just goes to show that even if you fail, you should always keep trying.

Karl Lagerfeld has often made controversial statements, both on the runway and off. But in 1993, he managed to offend queen of fashion Anna Wintour herself, causing her to actually leave one of his fashion shows. At the time, he was designing for Fendi and he decided on an unconventional move for showing their spring collection. Rather than having traditional models walk the runway, he hired porn star Moana Pozzi and a group of strippers to show the clothes instead. A bold move to be sure, but it certainly doesn’t seem worth walking out over!

Though he may have been a hugely influential part of the modern fashion world, Karl Lagerfeld wasn’t without his faults. He was known for his outspoken attitude and often irreverent tone, and while many of his comments were witty and clever, others landed him in hot water for good reason. In 2012, he referred to Adele as being "a little too fat," which caused ire across all platforms. He made a scathing comment about Pippa Middleton that same year when he said that he didn’t like her face and that “she should only show her back”. Ouch!

While not all of his public comments have gone over well, some will inevitably be remembered for generations to come. He was always full of witticisms, delivering memorable gems without ever missing a beat. He called vanity “the healthiest thing in life” but derided selfies, referring to them as "electronic masturbation”. He memorably referred to himself as “very much down to earth. Just not this earth." In the book “The World According to Karl”, he said, “sweatpants are a sign of defeat. You lost control of your life so you bought some sweatpants.” He’s not exactly wrong...

Despite his negative comments about Adele’s weight, Karl Lagerfeld has actually had some body image issues of his own, and has tackled his own weight loss journey. In 2001, Lagerfeld lost a staggering 90 plus pounds in just over a year for a very specific reason. He wanted to wear the Dior Homme suits designed by Hedi Slimane! He said, “These fashions, modeled by very, very slim boys—and not men my age—required me to lose at least 40 kg”. If you want to try to lose weight like he did, check out the book “The Karl Lagerfeld Diet”, which was written about the method he used.