French fashion designer Sonia Rykiel has died at the age of 86, it was announced on Thursday. Rykiel, nicknamed the Queen of Knitwear, had been suffering from Parkinson’s disease for some time before her death. Nathalie Rykiel, managing and artistic director of the Sonia Rykiel fashion label, said, “My mother died at 05:00 this morning at her home in Paris from the effects of Parkinson’s.” French President François Hollande praised her as “a pioneer”. He said Rykiel, whose relaxed striped knitwear was seen as a shift away from more formal … Continue reading French fashion icon dies at 86