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Princess Diana’s 'iconic’ black sheep sweater up for auction. It could fetch…
The designers of the sweater Sally Muir and Joanna Osborne, were also recognised.
A red jumper with a flock of sheep pattern worn by Princess Diana is expected to sell for more than $50,000 at auction. The sweater features a single black sheep amid a pattern of white ones and is up for auction at Sotheby’s online Fashion Icons sale in September. Princess Diana was photographed wearing the sweater at a polo match in June 1981 when she was 19 years old. She had then just been engaged to then-Prince Charles.
As Princess Diana became a style icon and one of the world’s most photographed women, the designers of the sweater Sally Muir and Joanna Osborne, were also recognised. The sweater was part of their small knitwear label Warm & Wonderful. Later, the designers received an official letter from Buckingham Palace saying that Princess Diana had damaged the sweater and asking whether it could be repaired or replaced.
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The original was then returned, showing damage to a sleeve. The designers thought that the damage might have been caused by snagging on Princess Diana's diamond and engagement ring. A new sweater was knitted and dispatched for the princess which Diana wore, with white jeans and a black ribbon tie at an event in 1983.
Warm & Wonderful still makes a cotton version of the design, which sells for 190 pounds ($250), Associated Press reported. When the designer found the original lying in a box in an attic earlier this year, they decided to put it up for action.
Cynthia Houlton, Sotheby’s global head of fashion and accessories, said that “this exceptional garment, meticulously preserved, carries the whispers of Princess Diana’s grace, charm, and her keen eye for fashion.”
The sweater has an estimated price of $50,000 to $80,000. It be on display at Sotheby’s New York showroom from September 7-13 while online bidding opens on August 31 and runs to Sept. 14, Sotheby informed.
