Fashion doyenne and former SBS chair Carla Zampatti has been farewelled with a state funeral attended by a swathe of leading figures from Australia's fashion, arts, business, political, media and corporate circles.
Mourners gathered at Sydney's St Mary's Cathedral to honour the extraordinary life of the trailblazer whose stellar career and elegant designs won the admiration of the nation for nearly six decades.
The service was streamed live and members of the public were also invited to farewell the 78-year-old fashion icon who died last month after falling at a performance of La Traviata at Mrs Macquaries Point in Sydney.
Many in the cathedral wore Zampatti's own designs - in a final tribute to the pioneering woman who established her eponymous fashion label in 1965 and left an enduring legacy while forging a trail for women in business.
Her daughter Bianca Spender - who has a fashion label of her own - noted that her mother loved spotting women wearing her designs.
"Nothing made her happier than seeing her garments out in the world. If she was alive, she'd say this is the best dressed funeral she'd ever attended."
Another daughter, Allegra Spender, said her mother's personal philosophy was that "if you were well dressed you felt better" and she wanted to empower women with her clothes.
Mourners at St Mary's Cathedral in Sydney for Carla Zampatii's state funeral. Source: AAP
Carla Zampatti arrives at the 2019 Australian Fashion Laureate Awards at Customs House in Sydney Source: AAP
Among the mourners were NSW Governor Margaret Beazley, Premier Gladys Berejiklian, Jenny Morrison representing Prime Minister Scott Morrison, Foreign Minister Marise Payne and her predecessor Julie Bishop, as well as three former prime ministers and their wives - John and Janette Howard, Malcolm and Lucy Turnbull, and Tony and Margie Abbott.
Others included fashion designers Alexandra Smart and Camilla Franks, Vogue editor-in-chief Edwina McCann and broadcaster Alan Jones.
Leading the tributes was former governor-general Quentin Bryce, who described her friend of 40 years as someone who had a "deep personal connection to women across Australia".
Dame Quentin said she bought her first Zampatti design in 1969, admitting "there have been very many since".
Zampatti who arrived from Italy at nine and left school at 14, was a single mother who built a business from scratch.
She was not deterred when the bank refused to lend her money when she got divorced and her sense of sisterhood fortified her to rally against the chauvinism of the time.
Her sophisticated and innovative designs set her part and her fierce determination kept her going through tough times, Dame Quentin said.
Carla Zampatti with her daughters in the 1980s Source: Supplied
She became a fierce advocate for women in business, a supporter of the arts, the multicultural community as well as a philanthropist.
Zampatti was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia in 1987 for service to the fashion industry as a designer and manufacturer.
She also served as the chair of SBS for 10 years from 1999 to 2009.
She was made a Companion of the Order of Australia in 2009 for her service through leadership and management roles in fashion and retail, multicultural broadcasting and as a role model and mentor to women.
In 1980 she was Australian Businesswoman of the Year and in 2008 she was awarded the Australian Fashion Laureate Award - the highest honour in the Australian fashion industry.
Although she won many accolades Dame Quentin said that was not what she treasured most.
"Carla always said her greatest reward was having women wear her clothes."
