The saying goes that if you’ve worn a fashion trend once, you’re too old to wear it by the time it comes around again.
But the rules don’t apply when you’re talking about Diane von Furstenberg, a designer who has been a style setter for nearly four decades. From her much-copied 1970s jersey wrap dresses and bold use of patterns to her globe-trotting lifestyle and celebrity marriages, she’s among a handful of female designers who have survived in a notoriously fickle industry that discards talent as quickly as it finds it.
Through the years, she’s been in and out of business, designing clothing, accessories, furnishings, luggage and even hospital gowns. While her spring dresses can run a customer a little over $300, compared with the four-figure prices charged by top American and European designers, her clothes are still in the reachable range for her customers, often the successful career woman.
DVF, as she’s known in this abbreviation-mad era, is coming to Denver Jan. 21 for a benefit fashion show presented by Max Martinez,who owns MAX stores in Denver, Aspen and Boulder. It’s MAX’s 25th anniversary, and he’s carried von Furstenberg’s line for much of that time.
Martinez says it’s an honor for the designer to make a personal appearance, and he and partner Scott Seale worked for a year to make it happen. The efforts are paying off. Ticket sales have already totaled $240,000 to benefit the Children’s Hospital Heart Institute and Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders. The event is nearly sold-out, Martinez said.
“She is in constant demand and doesn’t have time to travel to all the places people have requested, but we have a long-term relationship with her and her company, so we’re honored she’s coming,” the retailer said. (Indeed, the “Diane’s Diary” section on has entries from her visits to the Galapagos Islands, Dubai, Istanbul and Tahiti in the past four months to open stores and while on vacation.)
Martinez said the designer’s clothing has wide appeal. “One of the best things about Diane is that she is for women of all ages — the mothers, the daughters, the grandmothers,” Martinez says. The designer’s secret, he says, is that her clothes fit women in a variety of shapes and sizes and that she continues to be able to tap into the “now” — what women want to wear at any given time.
Born in Belgium, the 64-year-old designer has built her business into a global luxury lifestyle brand, selling in 71 countries in independent boutiques, her own 40 retail stores and such prestige specialty stores as Neiman Marcus. She also heads the Council of Fashion Designers of America, a not-for- profit trade association of more than 350 top designers that nurtures creative talent through professional development and scholarships, hosts awards and has a foundation that raises money for charitable causes.
The designer was married to German Prince Egon von Furstenberg from 1969 to 1972 and had two children with him. She’s been married to media mogul Barry Diller since 2001 and became a U.S. citizen in 2002.
In advance of her visit, von Furstenberg answered a few questions via e-mail, which we’ve edited for length and clarity.
Q: We’re seeing a revival of 1970s fashion trends, from you, as well as other designers. Why do you think the bold prints, the colors and silhouettes of that era are relevant again?
A: The ’70s were a wonderful decade to be young in! We thought we had invented freedom, and our clothes reflected it!
Somehow, young people today look at it and embrace it.
It is an era of optimism, creativity, freedom. Most important, it feels totally relevant . . . it is free, bold, eclectic and feminine.
Q: You also opened your fashion design business in the ’70s, a decade in which you were on the cover of Newsweek and were among the most influential businesswomen of the era. Compare what it was like to be a woman then and in 2011.
A: When I first started my career, it was the time of women’s liberation . . . all was ahead of us! But women are women, and somehow not much has changed.
Q: You talk about how the older you get, the younger your customers are. To what do you attribute the enduring appeal of your label?
A: The DVF look is very individual. I believe in taking my clothes and making them your own. The woman who wears my clothes does just that — she is a working girl who wears a wrap dress with heels or a young girl who wears the dress with combat boots.
Q: So what is the essence of your style?
A: Confidence! When a woman feels good, she looks good.
DVF+MAX
Diane von Furstenberg will present her spring collection at a benefit fashion show for The Children’s Hospital sponsored by MAX on Jan. 21 at the Exdo Event Center, 1399 35th St.
For those buying sponsor-level tickets at $1,000, the evening kicks off at 7 p.m. with a VIP party. Doors open for general-admission ticket holders paying $75 to $300 at 7:30, and the show begins at 8:30.(No general admission tickets remain.) Admission for guests 21 years and older. Go to or .
