An important American fashion designer and businesswoman, her career began in 1937 when she was awarded a scholarship to attend the Traphagen School of Fashion. This was one of the US earliest fashion schools and played a role in the development of American fashion by educating over 28,000 students in 68 years of operation. Her experience at the Traphagen School of Fashion led to her first job as a sketcher for dress firms. In 1948, together with her first husband, she launched her first clothing line for younger women with smaller figures. It was in 1968 that together with her second husband, they founded the Anne Klein & Company.
In 1973, she was the only female designer invited to participate in the Battle of Versailles, a (rather competitive) fashion show consisting of five American designers and five French designers, intended to raise money for renovations at Versailles. It was also the first time the fashion world’s gaze was fixated on American design. The next year (1974), Anne Klein died of breast cancer at the age of 51, in New York, NY.
Bag details: 12.5″ high, 14″ across at widest, 5″ depth.