Stella McCartney

Stella Nina McCartney OBE (born 13 September 1971) is an English fashion designer. She is the daughter of English singer-songwriter Sir Paul McCartney and his late wife, American photographer, musician, and animal rights activist Linda. Like her parents, McCartney is a firm supporter of animal rights and is particularly known for her use of vegetarian and animal-free alternatives in her work.

Stella McCartney
OBE
McCartney at the "End Sexual Violence in Conflict" Summit in June 2014
Born
Stella Nina McCartney

(1971-09-13) 13 September 1971
Camberwell, London, England
EducationRavensbourne University London
OccupationFashion designer
Spouse(s)
Alasdhair Willis
​
(m. 2003)​
Children4
Parent(s)Sir Paul McCartney
Linda McCartney
RelativesMary McCartney (sister)
James McCartney (brother)
Heather McCartney (half-sister)
Beatrice McCartney (half-sister)

Early life

McCartney was born on 13 September 1971 by Caesarean section at King's College Hospital in Camberwell, London.[1] She is named after her maternal great-grandmothers (both of Linda's grandmothers were named Stella). As a girl, McCartney travelled the globe with her parents and their group Wings, along with her siblings: older half-sister Heather (who was legally adopted by ex-Beatle Paul), older sister Mary, and younger brother James. According to her father, the name of Wings was inspired by Stella's difficult delivery.[2] As his daughter was being born by emergency caesarean section, Paul sat outside the operating room and prayed that she be born 'on the wings of an angel'.[2] Her mother was Jewish.[3]

Despite their fame, the McCartneys wanted their children to lead as normal a life as possible, so Stella and her siblings attended local state schools in East Sussex, one of them being Bexhill College. McCartney has said that while attending state school, she was a victim of bullying,[4] and had been a bully herself.[5]

Career

Beginning

McCartney became interested in designing clothes as a youth. At the age of 13, she designed her first jacket. Three years later, she interned for Christian Lacroix, working on her first haute couture collection, honing her skills working for Edward Sexton (her father's Savile Row tailor) for a number of years.

McCartney studied her foundation at Ravensbourne College of Design and Communication, followed by Fashion Design at Central Saint Martins in the early 1990s, graduating in 1995. Her graduation collection was modelled for free by friends and supermodels Naomi Campbell, Yasmin Le Bon and Kate Moss, at the graduation runway show, presented to a song especially written by her father, "Stella May Day".[6]

A lifelong vegetarian, McCartney uses no leather or fur in her designs. The Guardian described her in 2015 as a 'consistent and vocal' supporter of animal rights.[7] Some of McCartney's designs have text that elaborates on her 'no animal' policy; one of her Adidas jackets carries a sleeve that says 'suitable for sporty vegetarians'. A pair of her vinyl and ultrasuede boots were marketed specifically as vegan-friendly, though her use of oil-based synthetics still raised ecological concerns.[8]

In 1997 McCartney was named as the creative director of Chloe, a position she held until 2001.

Stella McCartney's store in West Hollywood

In 2001, McCartney launched a fashion house under her name, in a joint venture with Gucci Group (now Kering), and presented her first collection in Paris. She now operates 51 freestanding stores in Manhattan's Soho, London's Mayfair, LA's West Hollywood, Paris's Palais Royal, Barcelona's Passeig de Gracia, Milan, Rome, Miami and Houston, among other locations.[9]

In 2003, McCartney launched her first perfume, Stella. In January 2007, she launched a 100% organic skincare line, CARE, which includes seven products, from a cleansing milk made with lemon balm and apricot, to green tea and linden blossom floral water.[10]

In 2008, McCartney launched a new lingerie line.[11] In November 2010, the Stella McCartney Kids collection was launched for newborns and children up to age 12.[12]

In June 2012, McCartney invited the Soul Rebels Brass Band to perform at her 2013 spring fashion presentation at the New York Marble Cemetery in New York City. Other guests invited to the party included Anne Hathaway, Jim Carrey, Anna Wintour, Annie Leibovitz, Lauren Hutton, Amy Poehler, Solange Knowles, P'Trique, Greta Gerwig and André Leon Talley. Also in 2012, McCartney was part of The Sustainable Fashion Handbook.[13]

In November 2016, McCartney launched her first menswear collection, made up of many athleisure, pyjama-like casual outfits.[14] She said her father had inspired the collection.[15]

In April 2018, after 17 years of partnership with Kering, McCartney decided to purchase its stake of her company and take the reins of her global fashion empire.[16] She designed the wedding reception dress worn by Meghan Markle, and later created 46 replicas of it (23 in lily white and 23 in onyx black) for her "Made With Love" capsule collection, each priced at £3,500.[17]

On 15 October 2018, McCartney announced the launch of the "Stella McCartney Cares Foundation", a charity dedicated to breast cancer. (She lost her mother to the disease in 1998.) The charity will donate 1,000 of the brand's Louis Listening post-operative mastectomy compression bras to women undergoing breast cancer treatment.[18]

Collaborations
"Stella McCartney" branded dress worn by Caroline Wozniacki at the 2010 US Open.

McCartney launched a joint-venture line with Adidas, establishing a long-term partnership with the corporation in September 2004. This was a sports performance collection for women.[19]

In January 2010, McCartney announced she would be collaborating with Disney to create a jewellery collection inspired by Alice in Wonderland.[20] In July of the same year, together with PETA and eco-designer Atom cianfarani, McCartney worked to petition the British Ministry of Defence to cease the use of Canadian Black Bears as the fur for their guards' hats; the military is yet to make the change.[21]

In July 2011, McCartney participated at the catwalk of The Brandery fashion show in Barcelona.[22]

In December 2018, McCartney announced to launch a new fashion industry charter for climate action, in collaboration with the United Nations, to help fashion companies welcome sustainable business practices.[23]

In August 2019, American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift teamed up with McCartney to release a fashion line inspired by Swift's seventh studio album Lover, the project carrying the title "Stella X Taylor Swift".[24]

Team GB

In September 2010, McCartney was appointed Team GB's Creative Director for the 2012 Olympics by Adidas — the first time in the games' history that a leading fashion designer designed the apparel for a country's team across all competitions for both the Olympic and the Paralympic Games.[25] In March 2012, the Team GB kit was publicly displayed.[25] McCartney continued in this role for the 2016 Summer Olympics.[26]

Awards and media

McCartney received the VH1/Vogue Designer of the Year award in 2000 in New York. Her father Paul presented the award to her; she thanked him in her acceptance speech and dedicated the award to her late mother Linda.[27] This was followed by the Woman of Courage Award for work against cancer at the prestigious Unforgettable Evening event (2003, Los Angeles), the Glamour Award for Best Designer of the Year (2004, London), the Star Honoree at the Fashion Group International Night of the Stars (2004, New York), the Organic Style Woman of the Year Award (2005, New York), the Elle Style Award for Best Designer of the Year Award (2007, London), Best Designer of the Year at the British Style Awards (2007, London), Best Designer of The Year at the Spanish Elle Awards (2008, Barcelona), and the Green Designer of the Year at the ACE Awards (2008, New York).

In 2009, she was honoured by the NRDC, featured in the Time 100 and recognised as Glamour Woman of the Year. In November 2011, she was presented with the Red Carpet Award by the British Fashion Council; and in the 2013 New Year Honours, she was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for services to fashion.[28][29]

In 2012, McCartney was among the British cultural icons selected by artist Sir Peter Blake to appear in a new version of his artwork – the album cover for The Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band – to celebrate the British cultural figures of his life that he most admires.[30] In February 2013 she was assessed as one of the 100 most powerful women in the United Kingdom by Woman's Hour on BBC Radio 4.[31]

In June 2017, McCartney was the guest for BBC Radio 4's Desert Island Discs. Her choices included "Road to Nowhere" by Talking Heads and "Blackbird" by the Beatles. Her favourite was "God Only Knows" by the Beach Boys.[32] She would later receive the Special Recognition Award for Innovation at the 2017 Fashion Awards[33]

Personal life

McCartney married British publisher Alasdhair Willis on 30 August 2003 at Mount Stuart House on the Isle of Bute. Her wedding dress was an updated version of her mother's wedding dress from 1969.[34] Willis works as creative director of shoewear brand Hunter Boot Ltd. In 2015, he was named one of GQ's 50 best-dressed British men.[35]

McCartney and Willis have four children:[36] sons Miller Alasdhair James Willis (born 2005)[37] and Beckett Robert Lee Willis (born 2008)[38] and daughters Bailey Linda Olwyn Willis (born 2006)[39][40] and Reiley Dilys Stella Willis (born 2010).[41]

McCartney has a younger half-sister, Beatrice Milly McCartney, born on 28 October 2003 to her father and his second wife, Heather Mills.[42]

In 2018, McCartney said: 'When my mum died, Dad, my brother and I went to see the Maharishi... I had quite a reaction that I didn't feel in control of. I possibly suppressed my emotions and I started having panic attacks, physical reactions to that loss.' She said that Transcendental meditation made an almost instantaneous difference in her ability to cope. 'It really did help me at a time when I really needed some help... I didn't want to part with money for it. But, you know, it's probably the best investment I ever made.'[43]

See also

References
  1. http://beatlechildren.tripod.com/stella.html
  2. Miles, Barry; Badman, Keith, eds. (2001). The Beatles Diary After the Break-Up: 1970–2001 (reprint ed.). London: Music Sales Group. ISBN 9780711983076.
  3. https://forward.com/culture/186536/secret-history-of-paul-mccartney-the-jewish-beatle/
  4. "Stella Mccartney Wants Son To Go Private". Contactmusic.com. Retrieved 27 October 2011.
  5. "Stella Mccartney – Stella Looks For Private School". Contactmusic.com. Retrieved 27 October 2011.
  6. "Chronicle". The New York Times. 14 June 1995. Retrieved 27 October 2011.
  7. Hoskins, Tansy (13 March 2015). "Stella McCartney's fake-fur coats are worlds away from the brutal fur trade". The Guardian. Retrieved 19 May 2017.
  8. "Thigh high boots by Stella McCartney, c.2005". V&A Search the Collections. Victoria and Albert Museum. Retrieved 19 May 2017.
  9. "Stella McCartney in Houston – River Oaks District – Shopping Women's Fashion". riveroaksdistrict.com. Archived from the original on 6 June 2017. Retrieved 12 July 2017.
  10. "Care by Stella McCartney at Sephora". Sephora.com. Archived from the original on 5 February 2007. Retrieved 27 October 2011.
  11. "Stella's Smalls". Vogue. UK. Retrieved 4 October 2017.
  12. "Stella Mccartney Kids Collection – MY MALL MAGAZINE". MY MALL MAGAZINE. 20 October 2012. Retrieved 4 October 2017.
  13. Blank, Sandy (2012). The Sustainable Fashion Handbook. London: Thames and Hudson. pp. 32–33. ISBN 9780500290569 – via Open edition. The seeds were sown in my personal life, then they came into my business life
  14. Raina Shepeleva (18 November 2016). "Stella McCartney Lauches A Menswear Line". Haute D'Vie. Retrieved 2 December 2016.
  15. Marie-Louise Gumuchian and Jane Witherspoon (14 November 2016). "Stella McCartney's debut menswear fashion line inspired by her dad". Executivestyle. Retrieved 2 December 2016.
  16. Neate, Rupert (28 March 2018). "Stella McCartney buys Kering's 50% stake in her fashion label". The Guardian. Retrieved 11 April 2018.
  17. Bailey, Alyssa (14 June 2018). "Stella McCartney Is Selling Just 46 Replicas of Meghan Markle's Royal Wedding Reception Dress". Elle. Retrieved 20 June 2018.
  18. "STELLA MCCARTNEY CARES FOUNDATION: BRITISH DESIGNER ANNOUNCES LAUNCH OF BREAST CANCER CHARITY". The Independent. Retrieved 15 October 2018.
  19. "Adidas by Stella McCartney". Adidas.com. Archived from the original on 11 November 2010. Retrieved 27 October 2011.
  20. Sells, Emma (13 January 2010). "Stella McCartney designs for Disney". Elle UK. Retrieved 27 October 2011.
  21. "Bears may kill but it's cruel to kill bears too". The Times. Retrieved 15 February 2016.
  22. TV Fashion Runway Show Archived 3 September 2011 at the Wayback Machine, The Brandery Catwalk
  23. "Stella McCartney Launches Sustainable Fashion Charter to Fight Climate Change". VegNews.com. Retrieved 3 January 2019.
  24. Scott, Ellen (22 August 2019). "First look at Taylor Swift and Stella McCartney's fashion collaboration inspired by Lover". Metro News. Associated Newspapers. Retrieved 26 August 2019.
  25. "Team GB kit for London 2012 Olympics designed by Stella McCartney and Adidas launched". 22 March 2012. Retrieved 22 March 2012.
  26. "Stella McCartney Adidas Collaboration For Team GB's Rio Olympic Kit Revealed". Fashion Times. 29 April 2016. Archived from the original on 2 May 2016. Retrieved 1 December 2016.
  27. "ENTERTAINMENT | Stella triumphs in New York". BBC News. 21 October 2000. Retrieved 27 October 2011.
  28. "No. 60367". The London Gazette (Supplement). 29 December 2012. p. 12.
  29. White, Belinda (29 December 2012). "Stella McCartney awarded OBE in 2013 New Year Honours List". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 29 December 2012.
  30. "New faces on Sgt Pepper album cover for artist Peter Blake's 80th birthday". The Guardian. 15 November 2016.
  31. "Woman's Hour – The Power List 2013 – BBC Radio 4". BBC. Retrieved 12 July 2017.
  32. "Stella McCartney, Desert Island Discs – BBC Radio 4". BBC. Retrieved 12 July 2017.
  33. Croft, Claudia. "Stella McCartney Wins A New Award For Her Lifelong Stance". British Vogue. Retrieved 12 July 2019.
  34. Jo Craven (11 May 2011). "Stella McCartney bio". Vogue. UK. Archived from the original on 16 May 2008. Retrieved 27 October 2011.
  35. "50 Best Dressed Men in Britain 2015". GQ. 5 January 2015.
  36. "The Tatler List". Tatler. Archived from the original on 5 February 2016.
  37. Alexander, Bryan (1 March 2005). "Stella McCartney's Baby Gets Family Name – Birth, Stella McCartney". People.com. Retrieved 27 October 2011.
  38. "Stella McCartney welcomes a baby boy, Beckett Robert Lee Willis, to the family". Vogue. UK. Retrieved 27 October 2011.
  39. "Stella McCartney gave birth to a little girl on Friday". Vogue UK. 12 December 2006. Archived from the original on 15 October 2007. Retrieved 27 October 2011.
  40. Perry, Simon (12 December 2006). "Stella McCartney, Husband Welcome daughter". People.com. Retrieved 27 October 2011.
  41. "Stella McCartney Welcomes Daughter Reiley Dilys", People, 29 November 2010.
  42. "McCartneys 'ecstatic' over baby". BBC News. 30 October 2003. Retrieved 27 October 2011.
  43. McCartney, Stella (29 January 2018). "Stella McCartney on meditation: 'When my mum died, Dad, my brother and I went to see the Maharishi'". The Times. Retrieved 29 February 2020. I didn’t want to part with money for it. But, you know, it’s probably the best investment I ever made
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