FAREWELL, VOGUE: Lucinda Chambers, the longtime fashion director of British Vogue, is leaving the magazine, Condé Nast Britain confirmed on Wednesday.
Her departure comes on the heels of the stylist Edward Enninful’s appointment as editor of the British title, and is part of a larger-scale changing of the guard at Condé Nast Britain.
She had been at the publication for 36 years, and famously styled the Duchess of Cambridge for the cover shoot for Vogue’s 100th anniversary issue last year.
Her signature was pure British bohemia, heavy on accessories, mismatching, lots of color and exaggerated volumes and shapes. She loves vintage items and is rarely seen without her styling kit, ready to snip, patch, sew and add individuality to any look.
She would often work with young designers — as well as the big names — and frequently worked alongside Mario Testino.
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“Lucinda has been the most wonderful creative collaborator, as well as friend, throughout my whole editorship,” said Alexandra Shulman, the title’s outgoing editor in a statement to Vogue.co.uk. “It is impossible to overstate her vision, commitment, imagination and her ability to bring the best out of teams that work with her.”
In March, 2015 Shulman hosted a party in Chambers’ honor at Home House in London. It marked the launch of the April issue, which was Chambers’ 100th cover for the magazine.
At the time, Shulman recalled feeling daunted when she first met the stylist in the early Eighties, after she joined the magazine. She described the young Chambers as a “sparkling, elfin person in a tutu and some kind of net contraption in her hair.”
She talked about Chambers’ “relentless pursuit of the picture,” recounting a cover shoot with Cheryl Cole, who was coming down with malaria at the time. Chambers told the singer “in a nurturing, but brisk, way to, ‘Pop an aspirin, love.’”
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