French fashion designer and founder of the Chanel brand. Chanel's philosophy was to emphasize understated elegance through her clothing. Her popularity thrived in the 1920s, because of innovative designs. Chanel's own look itself was as different and new as her creations. Instead of the usual pale-skinned, long-haired and full-bodied women preferred at the time, Chanel had a boyish figure, short cropped hair, and tanned skin. She had a distinct type of beauty that the world came to embrace.
During the 1920s, Coco Chanel became the first designer to create loose women's jerseys, traditionally used for men's underwear, creating a relaxed style for women ignoring the stiff corseted look of the time. They soon became very popular with clients, a post-war generation of women for whom the corseted restricted clothing seemed old-fashioned and impractical.
By the 1920s, Maison Chanel was established at 31, Rue Cambon in Paris (which remains its headquarters to this day) and become a fashion force to be reckoned with. Chanel became a style icon herself with her striking bob haircut and tan placing her at the cutting edge of modern style.
In 1925, Chanel launched her signature cardigan jacket, and the following year matched its success with her little black dress. Both items continue to be a staple part of every Chanel collection.
Coco Chanel worked until her death in 1971 at the age of 88, spending her last moments in the style she had become accustomed to at her opulent private apartment in The Ritz.
Karl Lagerfeld has been chief designer of Chanel's fashion house since 1982. His ability to continuously mine the Chanel archive for inspiration testifies to the importance of Coco Chanel's contribution to the world of fashion.
INSPIRTATION?
From a very young age Chanel had a difficult childhood. At twelve years of age, Chanel’s mother passed away and within that same week she was abandoned by her father. Because of this she was taken in by the nuns at the local orphanage.
Chanel took comfort in learning to sew from some of the nuns. Without the overwhelming tragedies in her childhood, Chanel might never have learned the craft of a seamstress. As she grew up, she was determined to do more with her life. To overcome the poverty and make a name for herself. Leading her to open a small store specializing in linens. After that effort failed, she attempted to make a living by singing, dancing, and acting. Although this did not provide her with the life she wanted, she did come out of phase with her famous nickname, Coco.
Chanel began considering what she was passionate about, and what she wanted to do to fulfill her aspirations. She believed that she wanted to focus on making hats. She opened her first milliner shop after she met a young businessman named Arthur Capel. With his help, she began designing and selling hats in her very own shop in Paris in 1910. Chanel's business was growing, and she began to sell clothes, as well as hats, she found happiness in designing hats and clothing, so she opened her own boutique in 1913. Coco Chanel found something that she was passionate about, was able to express herself through, and was able to make a name for herself with. Her initial clients were the wives of rich French men. Chanel’s name was spread by these women, and her clientele base expanded rapidly. Chanel funneled her energy into being both a designer and a business woman.
Chanel’s personality and designs appealed to a wide group of people, and for the first time, she became an international figure. Chanel opened the door for dressmakers to become a part of society. Never did Chanel design for others. In fact, she stated, “I did not go into society because I had to design clothes. I designed clothes precisely because I did go out, because I was the first to live the life of this century.”
Chanel, as a designer, designed for her own sense of purpose. She was inspired by the life style of her century andwaited for something in the world to influence her, and then took that inspiration and channeled it into a unique design.
The Closure and the Comeback
Despite her great success, Chanel closed the doors of her salon in 1939, when France declared war on Germany. Other couturiers left the country, but Chanel endured the war in Paris, her future uncertain. Chanel found she could not idly stand by and observe the early success of Christian Dior, whose "New Look" prevailed in the postwar period. While many admired Dior's celebration of femininity, with full skirts and nipped-in waists, Chanel felt his designs were neither modern nor suitable for the liberated women who had survived another war by taking on active roles in society. Just as she had following World War I, Chanel set out to rescue and reinvigorate women's fashion.
The designer faced challenges in this endeavor: securing finances, assembling a new staff, seeking out new fabrics, competing at age seventy against a new generation of designers. Chanel's comeback collection of couture debuted in 1953. Although it was not a critical success, the Chanel persevered. Within three seasons, Chanel was enjoying newfound respect. She updated her classic looks, reworking the classic tweed designs until wealthy women and celebrities returned to the showroom in droves. The Chanel suit became a status symbol for a new generation, made of solid or tweed fabric, with its slim skirt and collarless jacket trimmed in braid, gold buttons, patch pockets, and—sewn into the hem—a gold-colored chain ensuring it hung properly from the shoulders. Chanel also reintroduced her handbags, jewellry, and shoes with great success in seasons.
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