Gina Fratini

Gina Fratini
Born Georgina Caroline Eve Butler
(1931-09-22)22 September 1931
Kobe, Japan
Died 25 May 2017(2017-05-25) (aged 85)[1]
Occupation Fashion designer

Gina Fratini (born Georgina Caroline Eve Butler, 22 September 1931 – 25 May 2017) was a British fashion designer.[2][3]

Early life

She was born in Kobe, Japan, the daughter of the Hon. Somerset Butler (son of the 7th Earl of Carrick) and his wife Barbara, and spent most of her childhood in India. Her godfather was Sir Victor Sassoon.[2] On her return to the UK, she studied at the Royal College of Arts.

Career

She set up her own business in 1964 and became one of the top British designers of the early 1970s, winning the Dress of the Year Award in 1975; some of her garments from the period are held in the Victoria & Albert Museum's costume collection.[4] Among the top personalities who wore Fratini designs was Elizabeth Taylor, who wore a Fratini wedding dress for her second wedding to Richard Burton.[5] Diana, Princess of Wales, also wore Fratini designs to public events.[6]

Marriages

Gina's first marriage was in 1954, to David Goldberg. They were divorced in 1961, and Fratini married the Italian illustrator Renato Fratini, but they divorced in 1968.[7] Finally, in 1969, she married James Alan Short, a Scottish actor/comedian better known as Jimmy Logan; they divorced in 1977.[8] She was romantically involved with the actor Anthony Newley from 1993 onwards.[9] The couple had known each other in the 1950s. Following Newley's death, Fratini was quoted as saying: "We came back together at the perfect time, I suppose ... But it ended too soon."[10]

Later life

Gina Fratini's fashion house closed in November 1989, following which she was a guest designer for the house of Norman Hartnell.[11] She died on 25 May 2017.

References

  1. ↑ "Gina Fratini". thetimes.co.uk. Retrieved 3 June 2017.
  2. 1 2 Sheppard, Eugenia (26 September 1973). "Fragile, Feminine Look is Gina Fratini Specialty". Toledo Blade. Retrieved 19 September 2014.
  3. ↑ Theroff, Paul. "Butler: Ormonde, Carrick". www.angelfire.com. Retrieved 3 June 2017.
  4. ↑ "Your Search Results - Search the Collections - Victoria and Albert Museum". collections.vam.ac.uk. Retrieved 3 June 2017.
  5. ↑ "Elizabeth Taylor Gina Fratini Wedding Dress - Blog - Jan Leeming". www.jan-leeming.com. Retrieved 3 June 2017.
  6. ↑ Tom Tierney, Diana Princess of Wales Paper Doll: The Charity Auction Dresses, Dover Publications. ISBN 0486400158
  7. ↑ "An interview with Sim Branaghan, author of British Film Posters: An Illustrated History Film on Paper". filmonpaper.com. Retrieved 3 June 2017.
  8. ↑ "Jimmy Logan obituary". The Telegraph. 14 April 2001. Retrieved 11 October 2014.
  9. ↑ "BBC News - UK - Anthony Newley dies aged 67". news.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 3 June 2017.
  10. ↑ "Show Stopper – Vol. 51 No. 16". people.com. 3 May 1999. Retrieved 3 June 2017.
  11. ↑ Smith, Liz (6 February 1990). "Applying Pure Couture" (63622). The Times.
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