27 Of Karl Lagerfeld's Most Iconic Chanel Muses Through The Years (2024)

Kristen-Stewart-Chanel

Lagerfeld and the Charlie’s Angels actress always maintained a close friendship, and she appeared in several ad campaigns that were lensed by the designer.

Margot-robbie-chanel

Aussie actress Robbie was famously the last Chanel muse to be commissioned by Lagerfeld before his February 2019 passing.

Lily-Rose-Depp-Chanel

Actress and the daughter of another Chanel muse, Vanessa Paradis, Lily-Rose Depp appeared in multiple Chanel campaigns and is the face of the brand’s ‘No. 5 L’eau’ fragrance.

Janelle-monae-chanel

In 2017, the singer revealed in an interview that she considered Lagerfeld to be one of her personal heroes. “Karl Lagerfeld is just my hero. When I saw that his show in Paris was NASA-themed, I was sick to my stomach because I wanted to be there,” she said, referencing her black-and-white aesthetic. “He is someone who sticks to black and white, too. And he finds a lot of freedom in what he wears.”

Ines-de-la-fressange-chanel

Lagerfeld stayed close with French supermodel and It-girl de La Fressange, who was a Chanel runway staple in the 1980s.

Penelope-cruz-chanel

Another of Lagerfeld’s last muses, Cruz memorably closed Chanel’s autumn/winter ’20 show, the designer’s posthumous final runway show.

blake-lively-chanel

Lively appeared in a handful of Chanel campaigns starting in 2010, and Lagerfeld even referred to her as “a kind of American dream girl”.

cara-delevingne-chanel

The millennial supermodel was a regular fixture on Lagerfeld’s runways, and even gave a speech at his memorial service, Karl For Ever, in June 2019.

lily-allen-chanel

Lagerfeld invited British singer Lily Allen to be a Chanel muse in 2009. Around that time, he said of Allen: “She looks a lot like Gabrielle Chanel and she is a self-made woman. She is cool, young and extremely witty.”

linda-evangelista-chanel

Linda Evangelista was a muse for many fashion designers, but aside from Gianni Versace, the supermodel worked with few designers more frequently than she did with Lagerfeld.

claudia-schiffer-chanel

Lagerfeld had a strong affinity for German supermodel Schiffer, and even cast her as his Chanel Couture ‘Bride’ an unprecedented 11 times.

kaia-gerber-chanel

The daughter of supermodel Cindy Crawford, 18-year-old supermodel-in-the-making Kaia Gerber regularly appeared on Lagerfeld’s runways from the age of 16.

naomi-campbell-chanel

Another supermodel and friend of Lagerfeld, Campbell has walked the Chanel runway multiple times in her career, most frequently in the 1990s.

kristen-mcmenamy-chanel

American supermodel McMenamy was so close with Lagerfeld, that the designer even walked her down the aisle at her 1997 wedding to photographer Miles Aldridge (pictured).

devon-aoki-chanel

American actress and model Devon Aoki was one of Lagerfeld’s runway regulars in the early 2000s, and appeared twice as his Couture Bride.

diane-kruger-chanel

German actress and Lagerfeld muse Diane Kruger said in a 2019 interview with People that she had a “special bond” with the designer, and that she saw him “twice or three times a week just walking down the street” as they were neighbours in Paris.

keira-knightley-chanel

Knightley is still the face of the ‘Coco Mademoiselle’ fragrance, and even wore a Lagerfeld-designed dress for her 2013 wedding.

vanessa-paradis-chanel

French singer Paradis has starred in many of Lagerfeld’s Chanel campaigns, most memorably in the famous ‘birdcage’ ad from 1992 by fashion photographer Jean-Paul Goude.

Pharrell-chanel

Aside from walking in Lagerfeld’s Chanel shows and appearing in his ad campaigns, Pharrell, now the creative director of menswear at Louis Vuitton, has even released his own Chanel capsule collection, and shared a close friendship with the designer.

Kimora-lee-simmons-chanel

Lagerfeld gave Simmons her big break at 13 years old, when she signed a runway contract with Chanel and walked in several of Lagerfeld’s late 1980s shows.

phoebe-tonkin-chanel

Like Margot Robbie, Australian actress Phoebe Tonkin was one of only a handful of Australian muses selected by Lagerfeld.

willow-smith-chanel

Though her brother, Jaden Smith, is a muse for Louis Vuitton, Willow Smith became one of Lagerfeld’s youngest muses when she was signed as an ambassador for the brand at 16.

caroline-de-maigret-chanel

As one of Lagerfeld’s most enduring muses, model and music producer De Maigret said of Lagerfeld in a 2019 interview with WWD: “He makes the woman feel sexy, but sexy with her brain and mind and attitude, and that’s the sexiness I like to have.”

Alice-dellal-chanel

Beginning her work with Lagerfeld in 2011, Dellal became the first face of Chanel’s ‘Boy’ handbag, which has since become one of the house’s most iconic accessories.

erin-wasson-chanel

Texas-born model Erin Wasson was one of a few muses who was so close with Lagerfeld, she referred to him endearingly as “Uncle Karl”.

gemma-ward-chanel

As a runway titan of the mid-2000s, Perth-born model Gemma Ward was one of Lagerfeld’s most-used models.

Freja-beha-erichsen-chanel

Danish model Beha Erichsen, undoubtedly one of the coolest it-girls to grace the fashion industry, worked with Lagerfeld for many years.