The story beyond Coco Chanel
Larisa
The story beyond COCO CHANEL
An early portrait of Coco Chanel – 1910
Coco Chanel’s story is the classic tale of rags-to-designer-tweed, a stylish Dickensian drama. Born into poverty on Aug. 19, in 1883, she was shuffled off to an orphanage, after her mother died. Here she was taught to sew by Catholic nuns.
With the help of Arthur “Boy” Capel, at the age of 27, she opened her first shop on Paris’s Rue Cambon in 1910 and started out selling hats. She later added stores in Deauville and Biarritz and began making clothes.
“LUXURY MUST BE COMFORTABLE, OTHERWISE IT IS NOT LUXURY.”—Coco Chanel
Coco Chanel and her lover Boy Capel
Interestingly, what set her apart was her rejection of everything that was previously considered luxurious. Her clothes were easy to wear and did not require corsets. She used jersey as her primary fabric at a time when it was reserved for men’s undergarments. Additionally, she was one of the first designers to embrace minimalism.
Gabrielle ‘Coco’ Chanel – wearing one of her suits in the grounds at Fauborg, St Honore, Paris – 1929
She introduced the little black dress, which has become a staple garment in most women’s wardrobes, and in 1954, she launched a version of the Chanel suit the house is best known for today: a boxy, collarless blazer with a fitted skirt.
Coco Chanel herself in the tweed suit
“SIMPLICITY IS THE KEYNOTE OF ALL TRUE ELEGANCE” “A WOMAN CAN BE OVERDRESSED BUT NEVER OVER ELEGANT”-Coco Chanel
Coco Chanel for Vogue 1954
In the 1920s, Chanel took her thriving business to new heights. She launched her first perfume, Chanel No. 5, which is sold today every 30 seconds.
“PERFUME IS THE UNSEEN, UNFORGETTABLE, ULTIMATE ACCESSORY OF FASHION[…]THAT HERALDS YOUR ARRIVAL AND PROLONGS YOUR DEPARTURE”-Chanel once explained.
Coco Chanel wearing a jersey suit in Biarritz, 1928
Despite her ‘less is more’ clothing, Chanel’s apartment at 31 rue Cambon was a decadent space. Located above her boutique in Paris, it was filled with leather-bound books, chandeliers, and extravagant knick-knacks, like engraved cigarette boxes and gold Venetian lions.
But perhaps the most famous part of the apartment, which has remained unchanged since her death in 1971, is a mirrored staircase that leads down to where she presented her collections.
