Valentina Schlee

Valentina Schlee was a New-York City-based fashion designer most active in the 1930s through the end of the 1940s.

She was born Valentina Sanina in Russia on 1 May 1894 (some sources state 1899 and 1904).

Valentina began as a dancer and actress as a young woman at the Chauve Souris Theatre in Paris before she moved to New York and opened a small couture house, "Valentina's Gowns". In 1950 Valentina also introduced a perfume, "My Own". Valentina was a skilled self-promoter. She modeled her own designs and rarely let her dramatic, elegant air of self-possession falter. She was always impeccably turned out, earning her a mention on the International Best Dressed List. She died in 1989 in New York City.