Dora Maar: Dior Lady Bag Spotlight

A social media story written for Dora Maar, outlining the history of Dior’s Lady Bag.

Originally appeared on @shopdoramaar Instagram account.

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There’s no denying Princess Diana’s effortless ‘90s style had the ability to captivate fashion lovers around the world and for decades to come. Diana’s recent introduction on season 4 of The Crown only reconfirms her fashion icon status.

Among her many iconic and replicable looks, she carried Dior’s Lady bag: a hero piece to her feminine daytime skirt suits and, even, her glamourous eveningwear.

In 1994, Dior’s then-creative director, Gianfranco Ferré, introduced the Chouchou bag (French for “favorite), as one of the brand’s latest styles. The new design sported a modern square silhouette, fit with top handles and embellished with metallic pendant charms, spelling out the house’s name.

Though new and innovative, Ferré designed the bag steeped in the house’s heritage and French history. The clean-lined shape referenced styles from Dior’s 1950’s archives.

The bag’s recognizable, quilted topstitching was an ode to the house’s first show in 1947, where the runway was lined with Napoleon III chairs, detailed with a similar cannage pattern.

A year after the bag’s debut, Princess Diana was gifted the first leather rendition by France’s former First lady, Bernadette Chirac, during a 1995 trip to Paris.

Chirac’s gift was customized for the fashionable Princess in just one night.

Princess Diana’s appeal instantly elevated the Chouchou to an it-bag status. And soon following, Dior renamed it the Lady Dior bag in her honor.

Today, the Lady Bag is still considered as one of the most covetable styles in fashion and has become one of Dior’s longest-lasting designs.

Each season, the house reimagines the silhouette with new patterns, prints and embellishments, but continues to leave options for those who prefer the timeless original.