In order to pay the many bills, the resourceful, thrifty and hardworking Deborah helped transform Chatsworth into a commercial enterprise, opening it to the public, starting a farm shop and staging events. The collection also captured the spirit of Deborah’s former home, Chatsworth, one of England’s great estates. They were all part of Erdem’s spring show, which took place once again under the grand portico of the British Museum. The late duchess loved fashion (Lanvin, Balmain and Dior among her favorites) and her chickens and, of course, Elvis. The designer’s past collections have focused on a variety of grandes dames of the 19th and 20th centuries, including aristocrats, photographers and other cultural figures, and now it’s Debo’s turn on the catwalk, and it’s something she surely would have enjoyed. London’s history boy Erdem Moralioglu took Deborah, the late Duchess of Devonshire, as his latest muse for a collection that was at once lavish, and tattered.
