"If I can call myself a self-made success, there were two clear driving forces: poverty and Paris. Poverty forced me to work. Paris made poverty bearable. And Paris gave me courage."
by Elsa Schiaparelli (Elsa Schiaparelli / Palmer White, Schiaparelli, PARCO Publishing)
Chanel antagonized Elsa Schiaparelli, calling her "that Italian woman who makes clothes." Elsa reportedly responded by calling her "that boring petit-bourgeois."
Schiaparelli, the legendary fashion house that has produced such designers as Pierre Cardin and Hubert Givenchy, is now under the umbrella of the Tod's Group, and in July, during the 2013-14 Autumn/Winter haute couture collection, it presented a homage to Elsa Schiaparelli in Paris. The designer appointed was Christian Lacroix. Coincidentally, the salon in the Musée Decoratif where the event was held was also the same venue where Lacroix presented its final couture collection in 2009.

Schiaparelli is known for her collaborations with various artists such as Salvatore Dalí and Jean Cocteau, but this collaboration with Lacroix appears to be a one-off collection, and a new creative director is scheduled to be announced for the 14 Spring/Summer collection in January next year.