[2] Whilst she gained a reputation among fashion insiders as a creative designer who used unusual materials, including a skirt made from film negatives and garments using wire and steel mesh filters, and was recognised for the superb cut of her clothing, she was not immediately successful.
[1] Her highest-profile wedding dress was a 1997 beaded lace gown worn by Estelle Skornik as 'Nicole' in the final instalment of the Papa & Nicole advertisements for Renault, which was estimated to have been seem by 23 million viewers.
[1][5] In 1997, a purple velvet Milner evening coat was chosen by Isabella Blow as part of her selection of garments representing 1997 in the Fashion Museum, Bath's Dress of the Year collection, alongside designs by Treacy, Hussein Chalayan, Julien MacDonald, and Lainey Keogh.
[7] Daphne Guinness, Blow's friend and organiser of the exhibition, told Vogue that she thought the coat "epitomised Isabella, somehow," hence the decision to use it as the main publicity image.
[13] The outfit drew media attention, with The Telegraph praising it and the matching Treacy hat and Nicholas Kirkwood shoes as chic, but criticising the 'matchy-matchy' nature of the additional accessories.