French Female Fashion Designers

Coco Chanel was a French fashion designer and founder of the Chanel brand. She is credited with replacing the corseted silhouette as the feminine standard of style with a sporty, casual chic. Her work as a designer redefined the fashionable woman in the era post World War I. She also played a vital role in revolutionizing jewelry, handbags, and fragrance.

Fashion and jewelry designer Paloma Picasso is best known as the daughter of legendary artists Pablo Picasso and Françoise Gilot. She began her career designing costume jewelry for Yves Saint-Laurent and later designed for Tiffany & Co. Known for her signature red lipstick, she also has her own range of perfumes.

Jeanne Lanvin was a French fashion designer who is credited with founding the multinational high fashion house, Lanvin. She is also credited with founding the perfume and beauty company Lanvin Parfums. In the 1920s, she opened shops devoted to menswear, lingerie, and home décor. In 1938, she was presented with the Officier Legion of Honour.

Sonia Rykiel was a French writer and fashion designer. She is credited with creating the Poor Boy Sweater—a pullover with high armholes—which was showcased on the cover page of French Elle. Dubbed the Queen of Knits, Sonia Rykiel helped redefine the idea of knitwear in fashion. She is also credited with founding the Sonia Rykiel label in 1968.

Madeleine Vionnet was a French fashion designer who established her own fashion house in 1912. From 1919 to 1939, Vionnet was one of the most prominent designers in Paris. Dubbed the Queen of the bias cut, Vionnet is best remembered for popularizing the bias cut. Regarded as one of the 20th century's most influential designers, Vionnet inspired many fashion designers.

Inès de La Fressange is a French model, fashion designer, and style icon. In the 1980s, she became the first model to achieve popularity in mainstream media and the first model to sign an exclusive contract with a fashion house. A symbol of the 1980s, La Fressange was inducted into the International Best Dressed List Hall of Fame in 1998.

Julia Restoin Roitfeld is a French designer and creative director. Julia has worked with some of the most prestigious brands, such as Miu Miu and Jean-Paul Gaultier. She has also modeled for international brands like Tom Ford, Lancôme, and Givenchy. Julia Restoin Roitfeld has also graced the cover pages of international publications like Elle, Vogue, Madame Figaro, and Harper's Bazaar.

Uffie is an American-French rapper, singer, songwriter, DJ, and fashion designer. She is best known for her debut studio album Sex Dreams and Denim Jeans which peaked at number 18 in the UK Dance Albums Chart. Uffie's life and career inspired a documentary that was showcased at the 2019 FIPA film festival.

Known for her elegant, unstructured designs, fashion designer Nicole Farhi began her career as a freelancer in Paris before moving to London. Eventually she joined French Connection as the head of its design studio in Bow, very soon launching her own label under the company’s umbrella. She gradualy expandied it to include shoes, accessories, home décor, opening shops and even restaurants.

Apart from launching the fashion brand Chloé, Gaby Aghion had apparently also coined the term prêt-à-porter. Born Gabrielle Hanoka, Gaby went to Paris at 18 and got married at 19. She later built an empire out of her feminine clothes made of soft fabric. She was also awarded the Légion d'Honneur.

Born in Brazil, to a French aristocrat father and a Brazilian mother, Princess Georgina Maria, better known as Georgina Brandolini d'Adda, started her career as a Dior intern. She then worked for Valentino and Balmain. She has also designed jackets for Blazé Milano and worked for the São Paulo-based Iguatemi.