Daphne Guinness is one interesting lady. It’s easy to say “oh she’s just some rich heiress who spends all her money on clothes,” but after seeing her personal clothing collection at the Fashion Institute of Technology it appears her love of couture runs deeper than that. First up, the exhibition space was slightly odd. It was held in the basement of the school and only very dimly lit, with strictly no photography allowed. This seems strange when the apparent reason for this clothing retrospective in the first place was to allow the students to touch and feel the clothes, and to study how they were made. Strictly no touching, either.

The exhibition itself is well curated and split into six different sections, each reflecting the constant styles of Ms Guinness. ‘Dandyism’ plays on her love of structured tailoring – especially anything militaristic by Karl Lagerfeld or Alexander McQueen. These rigid jackets are commonly worn with slim fit leggings and a Balenciaga white dress shirt. Next up is ‘Armor’, which is rather self explanatory. Gareth Pugh did a good version of a black catsuit completely covered in nails. ‘Chic’ and ‘Evening Chic’ compromise all Guinessess’ nighttime looks, including several stunning silk satin dresses from Chanel, Alexander McQueen and Dior. Diamonds are rife as extras upon all these gowns, generally cascading down the bare back or attached to overlays.

‘Exoticism’ and ‘Sparkle’ denote the bower bird side of Guinness’ character – a plethora of sequins and fur from designers like Balenciaga, Givenchy, Alaia and Valentino. She sure is loyal to her favourite brands, proving that this isn’t fad fashion. Each piece is purely Daphne, and the only thing we wish was that each outfit was cited with the year it was made, as well as the occasion where it was worn. After all, she isn’t really one to wear things twice. I guess this is why Guinness can bear to part with these garments for over four months.

So if you are in, or heading to New York anytime before January 7, please pop down to FIT for a look at the incomparable Daphne Guinness’ personal clothing collection. It is quite a rarity to see such a varied range of couture all in the one space. We have our fingers crossed that the next ‘fashion icon’ wardrobe on display is of the late Isabella Blow, which Guinness also owns in full.