Elsa Schiaparelli
![](/Images/godic/202501/11/Elsa_schiaparelli_19371127.jpg")
![1948 Schiaparelli suit with large ornamental buttons. PFF Collection.](/Images/godic/202501/11/Schiaparelli1127.JPG")
![Evening coat designed in collaboration with Jean Cocteau, London, 1937. V&A, T.59-2005.](/Images/godic/202501/11/1938_coat_designed_by_Elsa_Schiaparelli_and_Jean_Cocteau1127.jpg")
![Zsa Zsa Gabor in Moulin Rouge (1952).](/Images/godic/202501/11/Zsa_Zsa_Gabor_as_Jane_Avril,_Moulin_Rouge_19521127.png")
Elsa Schiaparelli (Italian pronunciation: [ɛlsa skjapaˈɾɛlːi], English pronunciation: /skæpəˈrɛli/ skap-ə-RE-lee, 1890–1973) was an Italian fashion designer. Along with Coco Chanel, her greatest rival, she is regarded as one of the most prominent figures in fashion between the two World Wars. Starting with knitwear, Schiaparelli's designs were heavily influenced by Surrealists like her collaborators Salvador Dalí and Jean Cocteau. Her clients included the heiress Daisy Fellowes and actress Mae West. Schiaparelli did not adapt to the changes in fashion following World War II and her couture house closed in 1954.