The 'Le Smoking' suit was created by Yves Saint Laurent in 1966. It was a tuxedo suit for women and was the first of it's kind in the fashion world. It introduced this androgynous style for women that was seen as inappropriate at the time.
The suit was popularised by Helmut Newton. He secured it's iconic status in society when he did the image (shown below) for french Vogue in 1975.
Some facts about the suit:
- It has been made in the same fabric for more than 30 years. A house model is used at every stage of the creative process to make sure that the suit is practical and wearable for every day life and activities. It is designed for the every day business woman, so it needs to be durable and practical.
- It was banned from restaurants. Nan Kempner was famously turned away from Le Cote Basque in New York whilst wearing her YSL tuxedo suit. (1970)
- At first, editors and buyers really didn't like the idea of the suit. They described it as 'lumpy' and 'outdated'.
- Catherine Deneuve was the first customer in 1967 (French Actress).
- Popular fashion stores such as H&M, Uniqlo, Express and more have taken inspiration from the Le Smoking suit and tried to recreate their own version but with a high street price tag.
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