Sir Elton John and husband David Furnish are known for their voracious consumption of high-fashion, but as we all know, closets quickly fill up and instead of expanding their walls, the couple is generously purging their expansive closets for their latest charity sale, “Out of the Closet.”
Sir Elton John and husband David Furnish are opening their closets to the public for a “pop-up shop” in London’s vibrant Covent Garden where high-end items belonging to the couple will be sold for charity.
The charity sale came to be in part due to dramatic weight loss by Sir Elton and weight gain by Furnish in addition to the pair having an extreme love for high-end items and the means to purchase the items in extensive quantities. The charity sale will be happening this Saturday and is set to be the most fruitful such sale the fashion-forward couple have held to date.
Furnish says, “Looking through these clothes brings back years of memories. They’re beautiful and have given me a lot of joy. But they’re very sellable, and we can raise a lot of money.” Sir Elton adds that the sales “always get a fantastic response—I think the idea that the items we all buy and enjoy can help someone in dire need, particularly at this time year, really strikes a chord.”
The sale is anticipated to have thousands of barely used luxury items which have been flown in from the couple’s homes in Atlanta, Windsor, and Cannes. Many designer shirts, suits, and coats belonging to Furnish are being sold, in addition to vividly printed silk shirts by Gianni Versace, who was a very close friend of the couple before his untimely death. Both men have an inside leg measurement of 31 inch, so if you’re in London and know someone who wants to be suited up like Sir Elton or Furnish, don’t miss this opportunity to grab it while you can.
Other items to be sold include knitwear, dressing gowns, belts, bags, sunglasses, hats, and tracksuits. All items will be priced individually, with Sir Elton’s stage costumes and other memorabilia scheduled to be sold at a premium. In general, however, prices are going to be ranging anywhere from approximately $50 to $400 for shirts, $25 to $800 for jackets, $50 to $400 for shoes, and $240 to $1,200 for suits.
The pop-up shop with all charity sale items will be located in Russell Street, Covent Garden on Saturday, December 12. Every day the shop will be restocked with luxurious items until every item is sold. Any items that remain by Sunday, December 18 will be shifted at clearance prices, so mark your calendars accordingly.
The first sale of its kind was held in 1996 and since then more irregular events in the US and UK have been held. Funds raised have been for the Elton John Aids Foundation, and to date millions of dollars have already been raised.
