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GENERAL ENGLISH · GENERAL ISSUES · INTERMEDIATE (B1-B2)

IRIS
APFEL
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1 Warm up

This photo was taken at Iris Apfel’s 100th birthday party at Central Park Tower in New York. She died
two years later, in 2024.

Work in pairs to answer these questions.

1. Who do you think Iris Apfel was?

2. What work did she do?
3. How would you describe her look?

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2 Vocabulary
Choose the best word to complete each sentence. Explain your answers.

1. The combines / combinations of colours in those paintings really hurt my eyes!

2. The actors were dressed in beautiful historic costumes / customs.

3. My brother chose the curtains – he’s studying inside / interior design at college.

4. We factory / manufacture several types of products in my hometown.

5. Her new hair colour is really strict / striking.

6. You never know what valuable treasures / bargains you might find in an antique shop.

Match the words in bold in each sentence with their meanings.

1. I went to see the new spring couture collection, but there’s no way I’d ever be able to afford any
of the pieces.

2. Are you sure you want to wear a striped shirt with plaid trousers? The patterns clash!

3. What a cool outfit! I love the way the shirt, jacket and skirt are all made out of the same material.

4. The designer is using some really modern textiles for the sofa covers and curtains.

5. I knew it was really him because of his trademark smile.

6. If you really want to meet today’s trendsetters, you should talk to the students at art college.

a. something that a person does or has that makes it easy to recognise and identify them

b. people who start new fashions

c. clothes that are meant to be worn together or that someone has chosen to wear together

d. a synonym for cloth, fabric or material

e. expensive, fashionable clothing produced by a top designer or fashion house

f. look unattractive together

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3 Listening 1

You are going to listen to information about the life of Iris Apfel (1921-2024). Before you listen, read
the sentences and try to predict the best option. Then listen and check your ideas.

1. When she was growing up, the young Iris loved visiting clothes markets / department stores /
second-hand stores.

2. At university, she studied art / art history / history.

3. She and her husband designed interiors for Buckingham Palace / Elvis / the White House.

4. Apfel enjoyed wearing her collection of clothes at home / to parties / to work.

5. The glasses she wore made her look like a fly / Harry Potter / an owl.

6. Apfel became a model at the age of 79 / 88 / 97.

7. Her collection was given to a museum / inherited by her children / sold.

4 Language in context

Read these sentences from the recording and explain the meaning of the words in bold.

1. On her extensive travels abroad, Apfel picked up any unusual clothing, jewellery and accessories
which caught her fancy.

2. Visitors loved it and their rave reviews online made Apfel, then in her eighties, into a household
name.

Finish these sentences in a logical way. Compare answers in pairs.

1. The things that usually catch my fancy in a shop are ...

2. I would definitely give a rave review to ...

3. I’m sure ... is a household name in my country.

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5 Listening 2

Read the questions. Can you remember the answers? Listen again to check.

1. How did her parents influence her?

2. What was her first relevant work experience?

3. Where did the Apfels get the materials for their business?

4. What specific examples are given of Apfel’s unusual clothes?

5. What happened in 2005 and why?

6. How could people find out more about her in the 2010s?

7. What did Iris believe about style?

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6 Language point

You heard quite a few phrases with on and off in the recording. Complete the sentences with the
missing words.

course / displays / exhibition / nothing / rack / sales / side / sold / thing / travels

1. On the , she started to look for antiques and textiles to resell.

2. On her extensive abroad, Apfel picked up any unusual clothing, jewellery and
accessories ...

3. ... whether traditional or modern, designer or off-the- .

4. Apfel was fearless in her combinations, teaming casual pyjamas or a historic opera costume with
couture items and finishing the whole off with plenty of bling.

5. was off-limits – she was happy to wear clashing prints or costume jewellery even
to quite formal social occasions.

6. In 2005, the Costume Institute at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York based a travelling
on her clothing collection ...

7. She was easily recognisable with her trademark round “owl glasses,” which actually featured in an
Iris Apfel Halloween costume on one year.

8. ... (she) worked on window for top department stores, as well as teaching on a
fashion at the University of Texas.

9. Much of her enormous collection was off before she died so that others could
enjoy the items as much as she had.

Which phrase means ... ?

a. available for anyone to buy cheaply in shops, the opposite of couture:

b. complete the final part of an action:

c. forbidden or impossible:

d. make some or all of a business available to buy:

e. not as part of someone’s main job:

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7 Talking point

Discuss these questions in pairs or small groups.

1. What would you ask Apfel if you could meet her?

2. The older Apfel really caught the public’s attention. Do you think she could have done this as a
younger person?
3. What role do you think social media played in Apfel’s rise to fame?
4. Which of these Iris Apfel quotes do you like best and why?

"I’m not a pretty person. I don’t like pretty, so I don’t feel badly. Most of the world is not with
me, but I don’t care."

"When you don’t dress like everybody else, you don’t have to think like everybody else."

"Great personal style is an extreme curiosity about yourself.

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8 Optional extension

These sixteen items all relate to jewellery and accessories and can be classified into four groups of four
items. How many connections can you spot immediately? Use your dictionary to help you complete
the activity.

Group 1 Group 2 Group 3 Group 4

What other examples can you think of to add to each category?

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Transcripts

3. Listening 1

Speaker: Iris Barrel was born in 1921 in New York City. Her father worked in interior design and her
mother in fashion. As a girl, she loved going around the second-hand shops of Manhattan,
finding treasures from the past. During the Depression of the 1930s, her whole family
managed to find ways to dress their home and themselves without spending much money.

Speaker: She studied Art History at university, and after a short time as a teacher in the 1940s,
began to work at a fashion publication called Women’s Wear Daily. On the side, she started
to look for antiques and textiles to resell.

Speaker: After she married Carl Apfel in 1948, the couple worked as a team in his design
and decorating business, travelling the world to buy up interesting traditional cloth or
manufacturing other textiles through their company Old World Weavers. Their business
was highly successful, and their clients included luxury hotels, palaces and even the White
House.

Speaker: On her extensive travels abroad, Apfel picked up any unusual clothing, jewellery and
accessories which caught her fancy, whether traditional or modern, designer or off the
rack. She wore the items she had collected, assembling them into striking outfits. Apfel
was fearless in her combinations, teaming casual pyjamas or a historic opera costume with
couture items and finishing the whole thing off with plenty of bling. Nothing was off-limits
– she was happy to wear clashing prints or costume jewellery even to quite formal social
occasions.

Speaker: Apfel became better known for her fashion than her decorating business. In 2005, the
Costume Institute at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York based a travelling
exhibition on her clothing collection, called Rara Aves, or Rare Birds. Visitors loved it and
their rave reviews online made Apfel, then in her eighties, into a household name. She was
easily recognizable with her trademark round “owl glasses,” which actually featured in an
Iris Apfel Halloween costume actually on sale one year.

Speaker: As she got older, there were more and more opportunities for her to share her love of
fashion. She found work as a design consultant with magazines and online publications,
and worked on window displays for top department stores, as well as teaching on a fashion
course at the University of Texas. She even became a model at the age of ninety-seven.
Her later years were the subject of a documentary in 2014, and a book in 2018.

Speaker: Apfel continued working almost up to her death from natural causes at the age of a hundred
and two, in 2024. She is remembered as a free spirit and trendsetter who recognised that
style is something apart from age and appearance, and that dressing up could provide a
fun and creative outlet for everyone. Much of her enormous collection was sold off before
she died so that others could enjoy the items as much as she had.

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Key

1. Warm up

5 mins.
Students are introduced to the topic of the lesson via a photograph (call attention also to the header image) and
invited to speculate or share information about her. Round up this stage with some ideas from the class and tell
them they will find out more about Apfel during the lesson.

2. Vocabulary

10 mins.
Students define vocabulary that they will encounter in the recording. In the first exercise, they distinguish between
similar items and explain their ideas. Check pronunciation when you check answers.
Explanation of answers:
1) these are part of the same word family relating to things going together, but we need a noun in this sentence;
2) costumes are what people wear while customs are what people do; 3) both words have a similar meaning but
only interior collocates with design; 4) the concepts are related but we need a verb here (a factory is a place where
manufacturing takes place); 5) these words appear similar but strict relates to the strong enforcement of rules,
while striking means noticeable, attracting attention; 6) a bargain is something that you bought cheaply, while a
treasure is something valuable.

1. combinations 2. costumes
3. interior 4. manufacture
5. striking 6. treasures
In the second exercise, students match meanings to words in bold. Drill the pronunciation of all items and pose
the follow-up question for students to discuss briefly in pairs. This will help to prepare them for the listening. You
could elicit some short responses around the class to conclude this stage.

1. → e. 2. → f.
3. → c. 4. → d.
5. → a. 6. → b.

3. Listening 1

10 mins.
First, go over the sentences and ask students to work in pairs to predict the answers before they listen – this
stage will probably be very brief. Then students can listen to the recording and check their ideas. Before you
check answers with the whole class, students can check answers in pairs.
Audio sources:
https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2024/mar/03/iris-apfel-obituary
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/02/style/iris-apfel-style-fashion-photos.html
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-68455510

1. second-hand stores 2. art history

3. the White House 4. to parties

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5. an owl 6. 97
7. sold

4. Language in context

5 mins.
This is a quick practice in deducing meaning from context, an important skill for students at this level. Go over the
sentences with the whole class and elicit the answers. Encourage students to notice the whole phrase and drill
pronunciation. Complete the follow-up activity to consolidate these phrases.

1. which she noticed and liked, in a random way; we can also say strike someone’s fancy or catch someone’s eye.
2. a rave review is full of praise and admiration; a household name is someone famous that most people recognise

5. Listening 2

10 mins.
Go over the questions with the whole class. Students should work in pairs before listening to recall/predict the
answers and then listen again to confirm/find the answers. They can check answers again in pairs before you go
over the answers with the whole class.
If any students need extra support for this exercise, you could make the transcript available to them while they
listen or after they listen. Students often enjoy listening and reading anyway – if you haven’t repeated the listening
more than twice so far, they may want to do this now.

1. They were both involved in creative jobs, in interior design and fashion.
2. Working at Women’s Wear Daily, a fashion publication.
3. They bought textiles from around the world or made them at their own company, Old World Weavers.
4. The recording mentions pyjamas, opera costumes and couture items, as well as jewellery.
5. The Costume Institute of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York held an exhibition of items from her
collection because she had become so famous for the way she dressed.
6. They could watch a documentary or read a book.
7. She believed that it was unrelated to age and appearance.

6. Language point

10 mins.
This is a quick look at expressions with on and off, some of which, at least, students will have encountered before
this lesson and all of which they heard in the recording.

1. side 2. travels
3. rack 4. thing
5. Nothing 6. exhibition
7. sale 8. displays ≀ course
9. sold
After completing the exercise the items that are likely to be unfamiliar are defined in a short matching exercise.

a. off the rack b. finish something off

c. off-limits d. sell something off
e. on the side

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7. Talking point

10 mins.
Students can work in pairs or small groups to discuss these questions. If your classroom set-up allows, students
could move around the room, forming small groups to discuss one question at a time, changing groups for each
new question. Conduct a quick round-up of answers either after each question or at the end, encouraging students
to give reasons and examples for their answers.
Source for quotes: https://www.brainyquote.com/authors/iris-apfel-quotes

8. Optional extension

10 mins.
This activity reviews and extends vocabulary related to jewellery and accessories. The categories are earrings,
hair, men and necklaces, but only reveal these to students if they are struggling to complete the task. The activity
also gives practice in dictionary skills – use English-English dictionaries. Students could work alone or in pairs.
Stop the activity when three individuals or groups have completed it. Check answers including pronunciation, and
the categories if not already revealed. You could also ask students to suggest similar words they know.
Answers:
Earrings: cuff, hoop, pendant, stud
Hair and head: barrette, headband, scrunchy, tiara
Men: bow tie, cravat, cufflinks, tie pin
Necklace: chain, choker, pearls, beads

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