Homes of Fashion Moguls

Realtor.com For the two weeks per year in New York known as Fashion Week, it’s hard to avoid hearing fashion design organizations referred to fashion houses: the house of Armani, or the house of Fendi, and so on. But what types of homes are worthy of being the actual domiciles of these taste-making designers? Unlike actors’ mansions that always seem to be going on and off the real estate market, there doesn’t seem to be quite as high a turnover among homes of fashion designers. In fact, renowned wrap-dress designer Diane Von Furstenberg loves her Connecticut estate Cloudwalk so much that last year she made arrangements to be buried on the property. Many of the most-famous fashion moguls’ handsomely appointed home spaces and estates are showcased in glossy magazines, but when they are up for sale or rent and are listed online (many of the following were provided by Realtor.com) or in one case open to the public a a museum, it becomes a virtual catwalk. Anyone can peruse the homes of fashion designers from the legendary to the more recent players in the field. Here's a sampling.By Colleen KanePosted 15 February 2012

realtor.com | Inset: Andrew H. Walker | WireImage | Getty Images Location: Beverly Hills, Calif.Price: approx. $10 million Bedrooms: 4Bathrooms: 4Square Footage: 4,394Vera Wang is renowned for her couture wedding gowns. Her designs have been worn in the weddings of such celebrities as Alicia Keys, Mariah Carey and Victoria Beckham. Wang's also a former figure skater and was the senior fashion editor at "Vogue." A lifelong New Yorker, Wang bought this glass-walled, midcentury modern last year because she has been spending more time in Los Angeles, according to "The Wall Street Journal." It was built in 1967 and renovated for modern conveniences like a home theater. The last owner bought the house for $5 million and spent more than $3 million on renovations.

realtor.com  |Inset:  Frazer Harrison | Getty Images Location: Los AngelesPrice: $7.65 millionBedrooms: 7Bathrooms: 7Square Footage: 8,276Christian Audigier is the French-born designer behind the Ed Hardy brand, which gave the world the tattoo art-inspired T-shirts favored by the men of “Jersey Shore.” In addition to that, his work can be seen in brands such as American Eagle Outfitters, Lee and Levi’s. Last year, Audigier relisted his 1920s-era house for $8.265 million after buying it in 2007 for $4.78 million, according to the Realtor blog. Flying in the face of all house-staging advice issued by sources like HGTV, Audigier’s stamp remains on the house’s decor. This is especially evident in the living room, where a large crown tops the mantle and fur throws and pillows adorn the hot-pink velvet sofas. Elsewhere is a table formed by slicing a life-sized sculpture of a hippo horizontally.

corcoran.com | Inset: Antonio de Moraes Barros Filho | WireImage | Getty Images Location: New YorkPrice: $23,000/ monthBedrooms: 3Bathrooms: 3Square Footage: 2,066Native New Yorker Marc Jacobs is known for his eponymous line and Marc by Marc Jacobs. He is the creative director for the French fashion house Louis Vuitton, where he was the creator of its first ready-to-wear line in 1997. Around the time of the last fashion week, Jacobs parted with his penthouse loft, appropriately located in The Chelsea Mercantile, a converted fabric-making building from 1908. Curbed reported that he was paying $20,000 a month rent. Once Jacobs was out, the rent rose to $23,000 a month. And, hey, someone liked the 11-foot ceilings, “abundant closet space,” views of the Hudson River and downtown Manhattan and its fashion pedigree to bite. It’s now rented.

realtor.com  |Inset: Amanda Edwards | Stringer | Getty Images Location: Miami Beach, Fla. Price: $22.5 millionBedrooms: 5Bathrooms: 9Square Footage: 10,160Donald J. Pliner is a New York-based designer of casual luxury footwear sold in both department stores and five concept shops. His Moroccan-style mansion is for sale on star-studded Star Island, where neighbors include Shaquille O’Neal, Will Smith, Rosie O’Donnell and Madonna, according to Curbed. This property’s price has been on its own version of a South Beach diet. It went from $24 million to $20 million. Now, it’s back up to $22.5 million. Pliner purchased the mansion in 2004 for $11.8 million, according to the listing on Realtor. The colorful spread has soaring ceilings and internationally-inspired exotic decor.

Marianna | Creative CommonsInset: Gamma-Keystone | Getty Images Location: Granville, FrancePrice: not for saleBedrooms: N/ABathrooms: N/ASquare Footage: N/AChristian Dior introduced the small-waisted New Look that defined femininity in the middle of the 20th century.  Although he died in 1957, his name remains a titan in the fashion world as the founder of the Christian Dior fashion house. Villa Les Rhumbs is Dior’s childhood home, and for the past decade it has served as a museum. In a country so associated with fashion, this is the only Musee de France dedicated to a couturier. A key attraction at this 19th century Belle Epoque estate is the artists’ garden arranged by Madeline Dior (the mother of Christian), one of the few remaining examples dating to the early 20th century.

realtor.com  |Inset: Gregg DeGuire | FilmMagic | Getty Images Location: Los AngelesPrice: $2.1 millionBedrooms: 4Bathrooms: 4Square Footage: 3,009Lauren Conrad is a celebutante who made forays into the fashion world while starring in the MTV reality series “The Hills,” which ran from 2006-2010. She started with the Lauren Conrad Line, then moved on to LC by Lauren Conrad at Kohl’s stores, and most recently started the Paper Crown line.Her Spanish-style house dates to the 1920s, much like many other Hollywood homes, except that this one was the setting for scenes in the “The Hills.” As the Realtor blog points out, this property includes the very guest house where Audrina Patridge lived and the same pool where she swam with Justin Bobby. (In MTV terms, this amounts to ancient history.)

Burger Sotheby's International Realty, France |Inset: Roger Viollet | Getty Images Location: Cap Martin, FrancePrice: $50.732 millionBedrooms: 7Bathrooms: N/ASquare Footage:10,000One of the biggest icons in fashion, Coco Chanel invented the little black dress. Recently, her former home overlooking the Mediterranean, Villa La Pausa, went up for sale. Chanel supervised the building of the estate, and her hand can be seen in the simple yet chic interiors, among the first to use a neutral palette. The stone staircase in the grand hall was modeled after the one in the Cistercian convent orphanage where she grew up.

realtor.com | Inset: Mark Mainz | Getty Images Location: Los AngelesPrice: $3.75 millionBedrooms: 1Bathrooms: 1 full, 1 partialSquare Footage: 2,235The son of the owner of the L.A. boutique Maxfield, James Perse got into the fashion game when he set out to design the ideal cap. Its success eventually led him to sell his T-shirts and other casual wear in his own store, as well as retailers such as Barneys New York and Saks Fifth Avenue. At the end of 2011, Perse put his 1953 Hollywood-Hills, midcentury-modern house on the market. The asking price of $3.75 million is rather steep for a one-bedroom house, so what's the allure? Its minimal, laid back aesthetic and floor-to-ceiling windows bring the outdoors in, much like Perse’s designs. The master suite has a fireplace and walk-in closet. The kitchen is updated and there are numerous show-biz neighbors like Leo DiCaprio, Matthew Perry and Larry Flynt.

bing.com | Inset: Peter Michael Dills | Getty Images Location: East Hampton, N.Y.Price: $3.775 millionBedrooms: N/ABathrooms: N/ASquare Footage: 4,203The woman behind the labels Donna Karan and Donna Karan New York (DKNY) designed for Anne Klein before starting her own label.  Since 1990, another main occupation seems to be collecting a line of beach houses in the Hamptons, where she has four in adjacent lots. The Daily Mail reported that Karan purchased the property in the compound just before last summer’s season. Karan’s daughter Gabby lives in the 7,969 square-foot house next door, which the paper says is worth in excess of $6 million (it was purchased for $2.45 million). The other two houses cost about $1 million and $1.5 million, respectively.

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