Princess Diana’s famed sheep jumper is being auctioned off.
Princess Diana left a large fashion legacy, and fans will soon be able to bid on one of her most renowned ensembles.
The renowned ‘black sheep’ jumper, originally worn by Lady Diana Spencer during a polo match in 1981 when she was engaged to the now-King Charles III, will be auctioned off Between August 31 and September 14, Sotheby’s in NY and digitally.
This extraordinary dress, scrupulously kept, bears hints of Princess Diana’s grace, charm, and a fine eye for design, according to Cynthia Houlton, Sotheby’s global head of fashion and accessories.
This extraordinary dress, scrupulously kept, bears hints of Princess Diana’s grace, charm, and a fine eye for design, according to Cynthia Houlton, Sotheby’s global head of fashion and accessories.
It’s an honor to include this historic jumper in our inaugural Fashion Icons auction, where it will be in conversation with other iconic and culturally significant pieces of apparel, she said.
Sally Muir and Joanna Osborne, along with their knitwear firm Warm & Wonderful, designed the knitted, bright-red wool crew neck with rows of white sheep and one black sheep on the front in 1979.
Diana’s appearance went viral, helping to popularise the little apparel company. The first time Muir and Osborne saw Lady Diana Spencer wearing the pinafore was on the front page of one of the Sunday newspapers, they stated in a statement.
Her effect was seen almost immediately, resulting in an increase in sales and public knowledge of our modest label, for which they are eternally thankful.
According to Sotheby’s, Muir and Osborne received a letter from Buckingham Palace a few weeks after Diana’s first outing with the sweater, informing them that Diana had damaged her beloved sheep sweater (a small tear in one of the cuffs is visible in images supplied by the auction house) and politely requesting either a repair or replacement.
The palace returned the jumper to the designers, who crocheted Diana a whole new one. The palace eventually wrote the designers a letter of thanks.
According to the Warm & Wonderful website, Diana was photographed wearing the new jumper at another polo match in 1982. The lone black sheep looks to be on a higher row of white sheep on the new jumper than on the original in the photos.
According to Sotheby’s, Muir and Osborne unearthed the original jumper in their attic in March of this year. It was hidden in a little box beside a cotton blanket.
The media has long speculated about the potential hidden meanings in Diana’s clothing choices, and in this case, the release says the jumper sparked speculation about whether the princess felt a connection to the lone black sheep due to her complicated relationship with the royal family. Others just view it as a celebration of the countryside and agricultural history of the United Kingdom.
A variant of the jumper may be found in the permanent collection of London’s Victoria and Albert Museum, and while Warm & Wonderful discontinued production of the lone black sheep model in 1994, it restarted production in 2020, with copies still available for pre-order online for £250 ($295).
A replica was also built for Emma Corrin, who played Diana in the fourth season of “The Crown,” Netflix’s hit drama on the British royal family.
Many people will be inspired by the late Diana, Princess of Wales’ style; only this week, designer Simon Porte Jacquemus devoted his most recent presentation to the princess.
Somebody will soon be able to have one of Princess Diana’s most famous pieces: the now-iconic ‘black sheep’ pullover that was once a mainstay of her wardrobe.
The particular jumper from Warm & Wonderful will be auctioned for the first time in August at Sotheby’s in New York, with an estimated value of £40,000 to £70,000.
Much to our surprise, we first saw Lady Diana Spencer wearing the jumper on the front page of one of the Sunday newspapers, recollecting Warm & Wonderful creators Sally Muir and Joanna Osborne. Her effect was seen almost immediately, resulting in an increase in sales and public recognition of our modest label, for which we will be eternally thankful.
Warm & Wonderful discontinued the design in 1994, but Jack Carlson, creative director of the American apparel business Rowing Blazers, approached Muir and Osborne in 2019 with a request to bring it back.
Carlson’s fascination with Diana’s wardrobe began as a youngster when his family lived in Hampstead in the early 1990s and his mother purchased an original sweater from the Warm & Wonderful Covent Garden booth.
Carlson tells Bazaar that Diana is a particular style icon of hers. It could have been unavoidable after growing up in Hampstead, North London, with my family in the early 1990s. She mastered the technique of blending high and low, blurring the distinctions between men’s and women’s fashion.
She seemed to have considered the semiotics as well as the aesthetics of what she wore. In a strange sense, she was doing streetwear before streetwear was a thing, but she was also the Sloane Ranger stereotype. She was all of these contrasts, and it was these qualities that made her so memorable. I believe the two most famous outfits she wore are the ‘Revenge Dress’ and the Warm & Wonderful sweater.
The relaunched version was worn by Emma Corrin in the famous Netflix series The Crown, where she played a young Diana.
So, why is the princess’ look still so iconic after all these years? Princess Diana’s fashion choices broke the mold from her early years as a shy and reserved royal to her later years as a confident and independent woman, explains Cynthia Houlton is the worldwide head of fashion and accessories at Sotheby’s.
Diana’s style, which combined high-end designer pieces with more affordable everyday clothes, sparked a surge of imitation and adulation that continues to this day, making an everlasting effect on the fashion industry and cementing the Princess as an icon in fashion history. Houlton goes on. This extraordinary dress, scrupulously kept, bears echoes of Princess Diana’s grace, charm, and strong fashion sense.
She goes on, It is a privilege to include this historic pinafore in our inaugural Fashion Icons auction, where it will be displayed among other iconic and culturally significant pieces of apparel.
Diana’s sheep jumper will also be on exhibit at Sotheby’s London from the 17th to the 14th of July.
