At the age of 18, Oscar de la Renta left his hometown in the Dominican Republic to study painting in Madrid. Preferring design over oils and watercolors, de la Renta got his first start in the fashion world in Paris as an apprentice to Crist¿¿ Balenciaga. This provided him entr¿¿into the world of couture, where he later worked at the house of Lanvin before heading to he United States to design for Elizabeth Arden. In 1965, de la Renta began his own ladylike ready-to-wear label. In the past 40 years, his house has expanded to include accessories, fragrance, bridal, intimate apparel, and home furnishings, and his designs are embraced by the likes of Sarah Jessica Parker, Angie Harmon, and Victoria Beckham. Receiving the Lifetime Achievement Award in 1990 from the CFDA, de la Renta later won the CFDA Womenswear Designer of the Year Award in 2000. In 2006, Parsons School of Design honored him with its Lifetime Achievement Award, on the occasion of the 58th Annual Benefit and Fashion Show. In 2007, de la Renta won the CFDA award for Womenswear Designer of the Year for the second time, an honor he shared with Proenza Schouler's Lazaro Hernandez and Jack McCollough.
