Dignitaries and VIPs including former governors-general and three former prime ministers were there in number, such was influence of the Italian-born fashion pioneer and philanthropist, but this gathering was as much for the people she dressed as those who worked alongside her on many causes over her lifetime.
Among them was Yvonne Dite, who flew up from Melbourne and was wearing the 1967 Carla Zampatti design that has been with her through many of lifeâs most cherished moments â including meeting her husband, Bruce, who was with her.
Ms Dite said coming to the funeral was her way of paying âa final tribute to Carla. The success of this dress . [I wanted to say thank you] for this dress and for so many other people.â
She was 78.
Many of funeral-goers turned out in Zampatti designs, including former foreign minister Julie Bishop, who donned a navy velvet off-the-shoulder dress adorned in ostrich feathers around the neckline.
Inside the cathedral, Zampatti s three children stood arm-in-arm as they addressed the hundreds in attendance through tears, describing their mother as warm , captivating and incredibly driven. Mum proudly referred to herself as a new Australian, son Alexander Schuman said. Determination, hard work and saying yes to opportunity â they were what made her successful and as a mum, she wanted us to learn those lessons. CZ is what we called the family business. We referred to it as our other sibling â sometimes the favourite child.
Chic minimalist tailoring endeared generations smh.com.au - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from smh.com.au Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
In her memoir,
M
y Life, My Look, she also details a relationship peppered with infidelities as her husband made little attempt to hide his roving eye. The most difficult part is that he was in my business so we had to overcome that, she told
Studio 10.
In her divorce in 1970, Zampatti was forced to hand over her fashion factory and all remaining stock to her ex-husband. She was left with two apartments, two huge mortgages, her son, and a society that wasn t yet accepting of a single working mother.
In an interview with
Nine in May 2021, Zampatti spoke about her struggle to start a business as a single mother in the 60s and 70s, when women were in a different place .