Empress of Fashion (14 page)

That was how the story was later told. In reality Carmel Snow, who worked at
Vogue
in the 1920s, had known of Diana as a fashionable New York debutante and had occasionally mentioned her in the magazine. After the Vreelands returned from Europe in 1935, Snow probably did not spot Diana in a white dress by Chanel in summer but in a pink dress by Vionnet in the winter of 1935, at a party where New York society paid for its tickets, a new trend. And Diana had in fact known she would have to earn a living somehow in New York well before she left England. The Vreelands had spent money on 17 Hanover Terrace that would never be recovered. She had been obliged to close her lingerie shop. Reed had been ill. Several months in the sumptuous Beau-Rivage could only have further depleted their funds. At the same time she was unsure of her direction. Before she left Europe, Diana took tentative steps toward becoming an interior decorator by signing an agreement with Syrie Maugham that she would receive a commission on “Syrie” furniture she sold in New York. By the time Snow approached her in New York, Diana had already started work for a small Hearst magazine,
Town & Country
, that would have involved her in society journalism.

But the outcome of the story was the same. Until this point Diana's divine spark had been directed at herself and her household. From now on, with her faith in the power of dreams and dream making vindicated, and her “European upbringing” complete, it would be transmitted outward to many thousands of readers. Carmel Snow did not yet understand this, but she knew she had spotted a woman of rare taste and originality who deserved a broader canvas. She telephoned the editor of
Town & Country
and ordered him to hand Diana over to
Harper's Bazaar
. He did as he was told—and another legend was born.

Diana aged nine, with her sister, Alexandra, c. 1912.

 

Diana aged thirteen, with her father, Frederick Dalziel, and Alexandra outside the Villa Diana.

 

Diana's mother, Emily Hoffman Dalziel, photographed by
Town & Country
in 1911. The
Town & Country
caption describes Emily as living with her husband in Paris “until coming to New York a few years ago.”

 

Freck, Reed, and Tim Vreeland, c. 1931.

 

Diana and Reed in Tunisia in the early 1930s. (Photographer: John McMullin)

 

Diana in a preparatory study for a portrait by William Acton, c. 1931.

 

Diana as international woman of style. (Photographer: George Hoyningen-Huene)

 

Diana presented to readers of
Harper's Bazaar
by Carmel Snow in January 1936. (Photographer: Martin Munkácsi)

 

Untitled, n.d. Diana styling a model on a fashion shoot in Arizona in 1941. (Photographer: Louise Dahl-Wolfe)

 

Diana and Carmel Snow at work in Snow's office at
Harper's Bazaar
in 1952, with a forthcoming issue laid out on the floor. (Photographer: Walter Sanders)

 

Untitled, n.d. Freck, Diana, Tim, and Reed at Brewster in the early 1940s. (Photographer: Louise Dahl-Wolfe)

 

Diana and Reed in Southampton in the 1950s.