Iris Apfel was a popular interior designer, fashion icon, and businesswoman. She attended New York University as well as the University of Wisconsin and worked for Women’s Wear Daily.
Let’s learn more about her life.
Iris Apfel Net Worth
Iris Apfel has a net worth of $25 million. She’s most famous for her lavish lifestyle.
She founded a textile mill, Old World Weavers, together with her husband. Apfel has also completed many restoration projects for popular places in the US. Therefore, her passion for fashion design wasn’t only what made her rich. She’s also known for decorating the interior of many important government buildings.
Now, let’s learn more about her personal and professional life.
Personal Life
Iris Apfel was the only child of Sayde and Samuel Barrel. She was born on August 29, 1921, in New York. Her father’s family owned a glass and mirror business. Iris’s mother was born in Russia, and she owned a fashion boutique. Both her parents were Jewish.
Although she spent her childhood on a farm with her parents and grandparents, she often visited many places, mostly Manhattan, where she fell in love with Greenwich Village.
She has also loved antique shops since she was a child, which later led her to create a stunning collection of jewelry. Apfel visited New York University, where she studied art history. She also visited art school at the University of Wisconsin.
Professional Career
Iris Apfel kicked off her career by working in Women’s Wear Daily. She operated under illustrator Robert Goodman and interior designer Elinor Johnson.
As mentioned earlier, together with her husband, she started Old World Weavers, a textile company. In 1992, they announced their retirement. Iris also worked on different White House Renovation Projects.
She worked for 9 different presidents, including Kennedy, Truman, Nixon, Eisenhower, Ford, Reagan, Carter, and Clinton. Iris and her husband started traveling around the world and started buying artisanal as well as non-western clothes. And they wore these clothes at very popular high-society events.
The popular businesswoman and interior designer visited the University of Texas back in 2011 as visiting professor. She was also the face of Blue Illusion and signed a contract with a technology startup known as WiseWear. Apfel released a book titled “Apfel: Accidental Icon.” She even signed a modeling contract with IMG, a global agency, at the age of 97.
The museum of Lifestyle & Fashion History made a building that displays Apfel’s clothes, furnishing, and accessories to honor her. Last but certainly not least, Mattel, the well-known dolls manufacturing brand, has created a Barbie Doll of Iris Apfel.
Iris Apfel Dating History
Iris Apfel married Carl Apfen in 1948. He was a textile merchant who passed away in 2015 at the age of 100. There isn’t any information about Iris’s dating history available online.
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