NEW YORK, April 17, 2006 (AFP) - A haute couture yard sale from the wardrobe of flamboyant pop star Elton John has raised more than 700,000 dollars to help fund the fight against AIDS, a spokeswoman for the organisers said Monday.
All the proceeds from the five-day sale that ended Friday at the Rockefeller Center in New York will go to the Elton John AIDS Foundation, Maya Israel said.
Around 10,000 pieces of classic couture and outrageous outfits from John's eclectic fashion collection and that of his partner, David Furnish, had been inluded in the charity sale.
Amid 15-dollar T-shirts and a 5,000-dollar cashmere coat, the collection featured some of John's most fantastic outfits, like the Richard James-designed polka-dot suit he wore during a controversial duet with rapper Eminem at the 2001 Grammy Awards.
But it also includes high-brow tailored suits and pieces by top designer labels such as Versace, Louis Vuitton, Comme des Garcons and Gucci.
The Elton John AIDS Foundation has distributed over 60 million dollars since 1992 in support of programs to educate about AIDS prevention, to fight prejudice against AIDS-infected patients and to provide services to those living with AIDS.
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