Among a handful of successful women fashion designers, Diane von Furstenberg (born 1946) made a name for herself when she devised a simple jersey wrap dress. She became internationally acclaimed for her no-nonsense, affordable clothing that acknowledged the modern woman as both beautiful and career-minded.

Diane von Furstenberg was born Diane Simone Michelle Halfin on December 31, 1946, in Brussels, Belgium. Her well-to-do Jewish parents, Leon, an electronics executive, and Liliane Nahmias Halfin, provided von Furstenberg with a comfortable childhood. Her mother, a Nazi concentration camp survivor, imbued her with the self-confidence and drive that helped her become one of the world's most successful fashion designers.

Von Furstenberg attended finishing schools in Switzerland, Spain, and England, and in 1965 entered the University of Madrid. Transferring a year later to the University of Geneva, she selected economics as a major. She then worked briefly at Investors Overseas Ltd., a mutual fund company in...