Carven
| Madame Carven | |
|---|---|
| Born |
Carmen de Tommaso 31 August 1909 Châtellerault, France |
| Died | 8 June 2015 (aged 105) |
| Nationality | French |
| Occupation | Fashion designer |
| Spouse(s) |
|
| Awards |
Ordre des Arts et des Lettres (1978) Legion of Honour (2009) |
| Labels | Carven |
Marie-Louise Carven (31 August 1909 – 8 June 2015) was a French fashion designer who founded the house of Carven in 1945. She was noted for her designs for petite women, her use of lightweight fabrics such as lace and pink gingham, and for being one of the first couturieres to launch a prêt-à-porter line. She was the first Paris designer to patent a push-up bra.
Marie-Louise Carven was born Carmen de Tommaso on 31 August 1909 in Châtellerault, France. However, she strongly disliked her given name, and when she founded her business, she assumed the name by which she is better known. Carven showed an interest in fashion design from a young age by making outfits for her pet cat.
As a young woman, Carven studied architecture and interior decor at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris.
In 1945, at the age of 34, Carven opened her fashion house on the Champs-Élysées. The name Carven combined Carmen, her given name, with the last name of her aunt Josy Boyriven, who introduced her to couture. The 5'1" Carven focused her line on petite women, "because [she] was too short to wear the creations of the top couturiers, who only ever showed their designs on towering girls."
Carven soon became known as “the smallest of big couturiers.” The signature piece from her first collection was a full skirted, green and white striped summer dress. Green and white stripes became the signature of the House of Carven. The material had found in the attic of a chateau and was likely originally purchased for the summer uniforms of housemaids prior to World War I. Her early clients included Leslie Caron, Martine Carol, Zizi Jeanmaire, and Edith Pilaf.
Carven was an inventive marketer. In 1946, she publicized the launch of her first perfume by parachuting hundreds of sample bottles across Paris. In 1950, Carven created a collection inspired by Gone with the Wind to coincide with the film's French release. She toured France with the collection, staging fashion shows at movie theaters.
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