Businesswoman, best-selling author, interior designer, style icon—it’s fair to say that Iris Apfel’s career has been cut from many cloths. The 99-year-old design legend—who is known as much for her vivacious personality as she is for her incomparable style (who could forget those signature glasses?)—has been setting trends in the fashion world for more than 50 years with her exuberant, taboo-busting creations. So when Iris and Zenni came together for their first eyewear collaboration in celebration of her 100th birthday (dubbed her Zentennial), the fit couldn’t have been more perfect.
When Iris began choosing her 100 favorite Zenni frames, the cameras started rolling to capture the sartorial superstar at work. Here’s what went down.
Alongside Dilyara from the Zenni merchandising team, Iris pored over an abundant selection of frames with one very specific objective: to curate a collection to help people show off their individuality. “More is more and less is a bore,” she says.

These are just a few of the frames she picked out for the Iris Apfel edit. “That’s what’s so great about this line,” she says. “There are so many possibilities and so many unusual colorways!” You can check out the rest of her choices here.
Iris and the team shot late into the night while they made their selections, with plenty of outfit changes along the way. (Fun fact: Almost all of the props were taken from her home.) For more, watch the video below.