When you think of fashion and leopard print, many people think of Roberto Cavalli. The Italian designer, who died in April this year, was famous for his big cat fashion. There was hardly a dress that didn’t have a brown and black rosette pattern on a yellow background somewhere. “If there is anyone I should thank for my career, it is God, the creator of animal print – and thus the greatest of all designers,” Cavalli once said.
But he was not alone in his love of animal prints. The pattern has always fascinated people, and today many stars wear it when they want to stand out on the red carpet. Rulers and princesses are said to have adorned themselves with it as early as 2500 BC, but the fur did not become fashionable until 1962: when Jackie Kennedy wore a coat made of real leopard skin to an appointment as First Lady in 1962, demand for the material exploded. Women all over the world wanted to dress like her.
Leo patterns are still trendy
Fortunately, no one wears real fur anymore. The trade in it has long been banned. Christian Dior was one of the inventors of the leopard print. In 1947, in his first year as a couturier, he developed dresses printed with the predatory animal pattern. “To wear it, you need a special kind of femininity, and a sophisticated one at that,” said Christian Dior. He added a piece of advice that still applies today: “If you’re smooth and sweet, you shouldn’t wear it.”
Source: Stern
I am an author and journalist who has worked in the entertainment industry for over a decade. I currently work as a news editor at a major news website, and my focus is on covering the latest trends in entertainment. I also write occasional pieces for other outlets, and have authored two books about the entertainment industry.
