Lagerfeld had an inestimable impact on the career of Claudia Schiffer (far right on this picture). "Karl was my magic dust, he transformed me from a shy German girl" into one of the world's most famous top models in the 1990s, she said. "What Warhol was to art, he was to fashion; he is irreplaceable," she wrote on her Instagram account in tribute to her legendary mentor.

Lagerfeld saw her as the archetype of "the Parisienne." One of his earliest and most iconic muses, French model Ines de la Fressange (right) was the first to sign an exclusive contract with Chanel, in 1983. "He was the opposite of the great couturier who had to suffer to create. He did nothing but work yet he refused to make it look like work," she told press agency AFP after his death.

Lagerfeld felt the androgynous elegance of British model Stella Tennant perfectly reflected the spirit of Coco Chanel, and Tennant became another one of his muses. He described her as "the face and attitude of our times. She does not correspond to the glamour of the '90s. She is truly a beauty for the end of the century."

He initially worked at a helicopter manufacturing company before becoming a model — and Lagerfeld's muse. If Giabiconi (left) is now one of the world's top male models, it's thanks to his "guardian angel," as he described the designer on Instagram after his death. "Today I lost a part of me, a pygmalion, a father, a landmark."

The daughter of French star Vanessa Paradis — another one of Lagerfeld's muses — and actor Johnny Depp became a Chanel ambassador in 2015, just like her mother did in 1991. "Words can't express how much your belief in me has impacted every aspect of my life," she wrote on Instagram. "The world will never know another force like you."

Another one who is following her famous mother's catwalk footsteps, Cindy Crawford's daughter, Kaia Gerber, was only 16 when Lagerfeld first hired her to walk for Chanel. "My dearest Karl, you have taught me things that I am eternally grateful for," she wrote on Twitter. "The world is more beautiful now because of you."

Lagerfeld saw English model Cara Delevingne as the Charlie Chaplin of the fashion world. "She is a kind of genius, like a character out of a silent movie," he said. Her tribute on Instagram also expressed how he changed her life: "He believed in me when so many others didn’t including myself […] He is a visionary, a genius but more than that.... a dear friend."

The Canadian model (at Lagerfeld's left, along with Cindy Crawford and Claudia Schiffer) began working with the Chanel designer in 1985, and became one of the most influential models of all time. Lagerfeld once said of her, "There is not another model in the world as professional as she is." After his death, she posted a picture of them together, and simply wrote: "Great love of my life."

Karl Lagerfeld's ponytail and sunglasses made up his signature look. A shirt with a high collar, coat and tie, leather gloves and up to 30 rings on his fingers were just as indispensable. His unmistakable silhouette adorns the logo of his eponymous fashion label.

"I just can't stop buying books," Lagerfeld once said. They were all over his home. His bed was surrounded by towers of book and shelves line the walls, leaving little room for pictures. Lagerfeld's collection included about 300,000 books, mainly illustrated books on fashion and art, history and philosophy as well as essays and poems. The latter were his favorite.

Fashion, books — and then there was his third great passion: his cat, Choupette. The famous "cat who refuses to eat from the floor" has her own staff, Facebook and Twitter accounts and inspired two Chanel collections. "There is something unforgettable about her," Lagerfeld said. "She is an inspiration for elegance, for posture."

Choupette was by no means Lagerfeld's only muse. Beginning in 1990, he boosted the international top model career of Claudia Schiffer (photo). Baptiste Giabiconi was another source of inspiration. Lagerfeld photographed the young French model himself, and presented the results in illustrated books and exhibitions.

In 1987, Lagerfeld took over some of the camerawork for his agency because the advertising campaigns for Chanel didn't always meet his high aesthetic standards. He shot numerous Chanel campaigns, photographed stars including Nicole Kidman, did fashion portraits for Vogue and made short films for Fendi and other fashion houses. In the above photo, Choupette stars in a campaign for Opel.

Sweatpants are a sign of defeat, Lagerfeld famously claimed. People lose control of their lives and "go out on the street in sweatpants," he added. That was probably not true for the Chanel variety he designed in 2014 as part of a campaign targeting "leisure activities with a professional background," which was, in fact, how Lagerfeld described his job. "Standing on an assembly line, that's work."

Lagerfeld's looks, his quick tongue, his muses and the cult surrounding his Burmese cat were enough to make him a brand in his own right. But first and foremost, he was the soul of the house of Chanel. He had been creating haute couture and pret-a-porter collections up throughout his life. He died on February 19, 2019, at the age of 85.

"Sweatpants are a sign of defeat. You lost control of your life, so you bought some sweatpants," said the fashion designer on a German talk show in 2012. Two years later, he sent Chanel models out on the catwalk in his own stylish sweatpants and didn't seem to care. He was true to his motto: I'm not interested in yesterday's gossip.

The fickleness of the fashion world perfectly embodies Karl Lagerfeld. Trends come and go, and there's certainly plenty of fluctuation when it comes to models on the catwalk. In Lagerfeld's words: "Anyone considered beautiful today will find it hard to even land a cleaning job tomorrow." The couturier stayed true to his words, and changed his muses regularly.

Lagerfeld would never say a bad word about his cat. Choupette was his one-and-only, and she traveled in his private jet around the world eating gourmet food. In 2013, he shocked with this declaration of love: "I never thought that I would fall in love like this with a cat," he said. "If I could, I would marry Choupette." Real emotions or a marketing ploy? Regardless, it definitely drew attention.

He powdered his hair white, drove a Rolls-Royce and always wore sunglasses and black gloves. At night, the designer supposedly slept in a long, white nightshirt, in which he also liked to draw. But Lagerfeld didn't find it funny. "I am very grounded, just not on this Earth," he said of his lifestyle. Not hard to believe.

He once called for a 48-hour day, because 24 hours simply weren't enough. Lagerfeld was a workaholic that remained bustling in his 80s. Every year, Chanel's eight collections featured his works, as did numerous collaborations. His motto was: "I don't know stress, I know only rhinestones!" A quote that definitely works better in German, where rhinestone is "strass."