First seen in June 1981, this red sweater made an appearance on the late Princess Diana at a Summer polo match. The red sweater, with white and just one lone black sheep, was so simple, innocent, and sophisticated just like she was.
The sweater was one of the first pieces designed by Sally Muir and Joanna Osborne for their knitwear label Warm & Wonderful, and it quickly became a viral and cultural phenomenon. Muir and Osborne attribute their small business’s meteoric rise to this once-in-a-lifetime advertisement, which catapulted Warm & Wonderful into the public eye.
Much to our amazement, the first we knew of Lady Diana Spencer wearing the sweater was when we saw her on the front page of one of the Sunday newspapers. Her influence was impactful almost immediately thereafter, leading to a surge in sales and public awareness of our small label, for which we will be forever grateful.”
SALLY MUIR AND JOANNA OSBORNE, WARM & WONDERFUL FOUNDERS
SALLY MUIR AND JOANNA OSBORNE, WARM & WONDERFUL FOUNDERS
Warm & Wonderful, who stopped producing the black sheep style in 1994, reissued the design in 2020 in collaboration with American designer Jack Carlson and his brand Rowing Blazers. The same year, a replica of the sweater appeared in the fourth season of Netflix’s series, “The Crown,” worn by actress Emma Corrin.
Almost four decades later, the sweater is set to headline Sotheby’s inaugural Fashion Icons sale this September, with online bidding open from 31 August through 14 September – during New York Fashion Week – and will be displayed in New York starting 7 September. The sweater is offered with an estimate of $50,000/80,000 (£40,000 – 70,000)
