Cristóbal Balenciaga Eisaguirre (1895 – 1972) was a Spanish Basque fashion designer and the founder of the Balenciaga fashion house. From his early years, he spent many hours by his mother's side as she worked as a seamstress. At the age of twelve, he began work as the apprentice of a tailor. When Balenciaga was a teenager, the Marquesa de Casa Torres, the foremost noblewoman in his town, became his customer and patron. She sent him to Madrid, where he was formally trained in tailoring…