Carine Roitfeld: Business Woman, Fashion Icon and Mother #ARWOMAN
Atterley Road recently contacted me to ask me if I would join their #ARWOMAN campaign and talk to you all about women who have inspired me. I decided to focus on the woman who I’ve become very interested in lately, who I have always viewed as a fashion icon and successful business woman, but after watching the documentary ‘Mademoiselle C’ I became really quite inspired by this certain woman’s ability to successfully combine her personal and professional life in a way that seems to bring her so much fun and joy in living.
The woman in question, the Mademoiselle C, is Carine Roitfeld, former Editor-in-Chief of French Vogue. Now in position as Global Fashion Director of Harpers Bazaar, Roitfeld, born in Paris to her Russian father and French mother, began her career as a model before taking on a stylist role, working with many great names in fashion such as Mario Testino and Tom Ford, to whom she was somewhat of a muse.
Following her departure from French Vogue she founded CR Fashion Book before being offered the director position at Harpers Bazaar. As Mme C shows beautifully, Roitfeld’s role as wife and mother (also grandmother!) to Julia and Vladimir Restoin-Roitfeld melts seamlessly into her professional work – Roitfeld’s first issue of CR Fashion Book took its theme as ‘re-birth’, inspired by her daughter’s pregnancy:
“This issue takes rebirth as its theme and is filled with both images and ideas about birth, pregnancy, and family. The promise of youth. The force of age, and the rush of all things news. It’s an escape, a fashion fairy tale. It’s a dream of a better life—because fashion is meant to make us dream. CR is a place for these fantasies of fashion—the most irresistible clothes on the most beautiful girls captured by some of the most visionary photographers.” – Carine Roitfeld
Carine on Fashion:
“Ultimately fashion is about expressing character. Each piece we add to our wardrobes is another tool in realizing a given look: warrior woman, sexy secretary, boudoir mistress, free spirit, glam rocker, leftwing intellectual, ice queen.“
“Only buy clothes that you plan to keep forever. It’s important to see trends for what they are: a game.“
“I love the combination of a masculine piece with a feminine piece. It’s very French, it’s very sexy. It’s my culture. It’s the way I was raised.”
Carine on Family:
“Grandmother doesn’t mean that you have gray hair and you retire and stay home cooking cakes for your grandchildren.”
“I was never conscious that I was becoming an icon or I’m not an icon, because my family, my kids, my husband keep me down-to-earth.”
Carine on Work:
“I’m still like a butterfly going from one job to another job. But it’s quite lovely – I hope to keep this freedom, to have fun.”
Carine on Life:
“As you get older, you see life is very short, so you have to appreciate more and more and to enjoy it.”
“My private life is a lot more ladylike and less sultry than the fashion photos I imagine.”
For more inspiring women do check out the #ARWOMAN hashtag on Instagram (I’ll be sharing mine there too – why not join in and share your own?) Women need to celebrate women. So, let’s celebrate brilliant, empowering women together. Who in your life inspires you the most?
