At a time when style seems dictated by a fear of standing out, 93-year-old Iris Apfel has spun multiple careers from her peacock taste. The documentary Iris, which opens today, celebrates the ways the nonagenarian style icon’s complete originality touches every part of her life. But it’s not simply the movie’s subject that’s iconic—Iris is also the final film completed by legendary director Albert Maysles. In an interview with VF.com, Apfel speaks about the honor that comes with being Maysles’s last dance, as well as her shopping habits, fashion philosophy, and what style means to her.
VF: Was it fun to be trailed by Albert Maysles? Did it ever get uncomfortable?
Iris Apfel: It was never uncomfortable; they were very discreet, and we had a lot of fun together. And Albert was a joy: I never knew what he was doing or what was going to happen, so I just did the whole film on blind faith. I had absolutely no inkling of what the film was going to be like.
Were you pleased with how it came out?
Oh yes—what pleased me the most was how much Albert liked it, and I know he took it to his grave. And I’m so delighted with the response, I can’t get over it. They’re carrying on about me as if I invented penicillin.
What was the last thing you bought?
I think a toothbrush.
Have you ever returned anything?
I would say that would be very rare. I’m pretty sure about what I see.
Are there any clothing items you think of as “the one that got away”? In other words, was there ever an item you thought about buying, and returned to find it gone?
That used to happen to me years ago, when we had to count our pennies—in the flea markets, where I was a very big shopper, I’d say, “Oh please hold it, I’ll be back!” And they didn’t believe me, and I’d go back and it was gone and I wanted to kill myself.
You always think about the things that got away. It’s like somebody once said: all the really great love affairs were unrequited.
How many times a day do you change your clothes?
I am not a fashionista, and I don’t dress up. Usually if I’m at home, where I am now, I’m wearing a robe. Most of the time, if I’m working or just running around, I work in jeans. I really don’t dress up unless it’s some special occasion. I love fashion, I think it’s wonderful, but it’s not my life. I think in the film they show I have various other channels that are more important.
Do you ever wear the same outfit twice?
Of course, especially when I’m busy. I used to love to create outfits, and I still do—I just don’t have the time. How can you wear one thing and never wear it again? Even my wedding dress—I had a dress made that I could wear again. I’m a child of the depression, so I’m very, very practical.
Do you ever wear hats?
I used to wear hats like crazy—great big hats. There was a designer in Paris called Svend, and he was absolutely marvelous. He made great, big, wonderful hats. And at the end of the collections, he used to save the good ones and I would buy them. It was really hysterical: he never had boxes big enough so I could send them back to New York, and it always cost me more to have the boxes made for the hats than the hats cost. They were just absolutely fabulous. But then when I started to wear glasses, and I don’t know, my face is not as full anymore and people aren’t wearing hats so much, and these were great, big ones—you couldn’t get in and out of a car in them.
Are there any items in your jewelry collection that are too precious or valuable to wear?
Of course, but I have a very odd collection: it goes from the sublime to the ridiculous. I have some very important, valuable things, and I have some junk, and I like to mix them all together. I’m constantly buying jewelry—I love it, I love it, I love it! I mean, I could be an octopus and have ten heads and I couldn’t wear it all.
Do you feel your sense of style has gotten better over the years, or just changed?
Well, I hope it’s gotten better! I don’t think it’s gotten worse. As you age, everything changes a bit, but it’s basically the same. I still wear the dress that I wore on my first date with my husband and that was 68 years ago. I get a lot of mileage out of my clothes.
Do you think of clothing as a kind of armor?
Well, I suppose it is for some people, but I don’t know that I have anything to fight against, or anything to protect myself from. I’m like a blank canvas: it’s kind of my way of being an artist.
Do you follow red carpet fashion at all?
Not really—it’s one look, and everybody looks the same. In a way, it’s rather sad, because there will be this nice little woman in Squeedunk who sees Angelina Jolie in a dress, who of course looks ravishing, and she’ll buy the dress and it will look pitiful. I think the worst faux pas in fashion is to look in a mirror and see somebody else—which so many people do. They think a dress is going to transform them. They don’t realize it’s themselves and their attitude. Because that’s what style is: attitude, attitude, attitude.
