Πέμπτη 22 Δεκεμβρίου 2011
fashion diary: The Valentino Garavani Virtual Museum
fashion diary: The Valentino Garavani Virtual Museum: Instead of the static exhibitions in brick-and-mortar museums so familiar to fashion icons, the Valentino duo has used immersive 3-D technol...
The Valentino Garavani Virtual Museum
Instead of the static exhibitions in brick-and-mortar museums so familiar to fashion icons, the Valentino duo has used immersive 3-D technology to present archives spanning 50 years, including nearly 100 fashion shows on video, 5,000 dresses, the original working sketches from the designer’s hand and photographs of the clothes, the celebrities who wore them and a vision of the world of Valentino.
Τρίτη 25 Οκτωβρίου 2011
Σάββατο 10 Σεπτεμβρίου 2011
fashion diary: Daphne Guiness (exhibition at the museum at FIT )
fashion diary: Daphne Guiness (exhibition at the museum at FIT ): From her signature platinum-and-black striped hair to her notorious eight-inch platform shoes, her to-die-for couture collection and amazing...
Daphne Guiness (exhibition at the museum at FIT )
From her signature platinum-and-black striped hair to her notorious eight-inch platform shoes, her to-die-for couture collection and amazing diamond jewelry, Daphne Guinness is the very image of rarified personal style. “Who is this woman, what form of rara avis bedecked in diamonds and plumes?” asked Guy Trebay.“Daphne is one of – if not the – most stylish women living,” says fashion designer Tom Ford, who asked her to model in his show. The world has many beautiful, fashionable socialites and celebrities, but Daphne is in a class of her own. “Life is a stage for Daphne,” says the couturier Valentino. “Funerals or balls, she always makes a performance.”
Why do an exhibition on Daphne Guinness? Because she is fearless about wearing the most extreme clothes and shoes, but is no mere clothes horse. Because she is a serious collector of couture, who is also a creative force in her own right. Because she is an extraordinary individual whose perspective on fashion is unique and important.
The Honorable Daphne Suzanne Diana Joan Guinness was born in 1967, the daughter of brewery heir, Jonathan Guinness, Lord Moyne, and French beauty, Suzanne Lisney. Her paternal grandmother was Diana Mitford, one of the legendary Mitford sisters. In 1987, at the age of nineteen, Daphne married Spyros Niarchos. After her divorce in 1999, Daphne resumed her maiden name, and over the past decade has emerged on the world’s stage an extraordinary fashion creature.
We tend to think of fashion as being created by fashion designers. Yet designers do not create in isolation. Amanda Harlech, Karl Lagerfeld’s aide-de-camp and muse, has said that “Karl is continually inspired by [Daphne].” Moreover, although designers propose new looks, in order for something to become fashionable, to move off the runway and into real life, it has to be taken up by various fashion insiders, including editors, photographers, retailers, and fashion trendsetters.
Τετάρτη 1 Ιουνίου 2011
fashion diary: unreleased photographs:MARILYN MONROE
fashion diary: unreleased photographs:MARILYN MONROE: "(Photos:http://www.newsbeast.gr/lifestyle/arthro/178026/nees-fotografies-tis-merilin-monroe/?utm_source=mega&utm_medium=feed_widget&ut..."
unreleased photographs:MARILYN MONROE
Σάββατο 21 Μαΐου 2011
history of fashion(18th century)
With the death of Louis XIV and the coronation of Louis XV in 1715 , a smart and refined style called "rococo"
has blossomed.Thought the term rococo was later used in the nineteenth century in a derogatory sense,suggesting excess and frivolity,today it refers to a general artistic style emblematic of harmonious French culture.The culture responsible for the rococo style was characterized by the pursuit of personal pleasure.
Sinse that pursuit naturally included clothing,it,too, was soon elevated to the realm of rt.Thought France was already an acknowledged leader of fashion during the reign of Louis XIV,the rococo period confirmed the country's reputation as the leader o women's fashion worldwide.After the iitial popularity of rococo,clothing styles veered off in two diametrically opposed fashion directions,one involving a fantastic conceit of artificial aesthetics,and the oter a desire to return to nature.The French Revolution in 1789 modernized many aspects of society and brought a clear shift in clothing styles from decorative rococo to the more simple dress of neoclassicism.This radical change in clothing styles,a phenomenon unique in the history of fashion,is a reflection of the momentous upheavals in the social values of the period.
(photo:http://www.google.gr/imgres?imgurl=http://image.absoluteastronomy.com/images/encyclopediaimages/1/17/1793-1778-contrast-wholeplate-lowq.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.absoluteastronomy.com/topics/1750-1795_in_fashion&usg=__eYu0e-Nqp_uWS957B2wLO5p-MaY=&h=225&w=350&sz=30&hl=el&start=0&zoom=1&tbnid=XWF-WYGAUO3zVM:&tbnh=131&tbnw=204&ei=bgbXTYenM8WUswa0pL36DA&prev=/search%3Fq%3D18th%2Bcentury%2Bof%2Bfashion%26um%3D1%26hl%3Del%26client%3Dfirefox-a%26sa%3DN%26rls%3Dorg.mozilla:el:official%26biw%3D1280%26bih%3D698%26tbm%3Disch&um=1&itbs=1&iact=hc&vpx=144&vpy=394&dur=574&hovh=180&hovw=280&tx=187&ty=124&sqi=2&page=1&ndsp=19&ved=1t:429,r:14,s:0)
Δευτέρα 2 Μαΐου 2011
Zika Ascher: textile designer
His own anventive approach to textiles acted as a catalyst for fashion designers of that time:in 1952 his highly original large-scale floral prints were used by Dior and Schiaparelli,and in 1957 his shaggy mohair inspired Castillo to create huge enveloping coats.
photo a: http://www.google.gr/imgres?imgurl=https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAhW8H0GcWVaEH3dKlOW-uwYTfo7nYzKIsFlfxPVUQPjW95wBBJRY8I1WX1SjlecAcLrwVnQvmM6-N5PWyOyJaVA_oL9rMy2HLVcJBGet9WmO9oPDCRLsIkQUG8p_EX_E_nvI2pN9wXQ7c/s320/artist+scarves+collage.jpg&imgrefurl=http://crewalamode.blogspot.com/2010/09/ascher.html&usg=__KkuIsAQyqqWGFyrQ-Z75bpT1Oqg=&h=214&w=320&sz=38&hl=el&start=28&zoom=1&tbnid=Lq-jC9gPQ-8XRM:&tbnh=133&tbnw=183&ei=8eC9Tfj8KMz_4Abqk-XYBQ&prev=/search%3Fq%3DZika%2BAscher%26hl%3Del%26client%3Dfirefox-a%26rls%3Dorg.mozilla:el:official%26biw%3D1280%26bih%3D752%26site%3Dsearch%26tbm%3Disch0%2C912&um=1&itbs=1&iact=hc&vpx=450&vpy=282&dur=2812&hovh=171&hovw=256&tx=166&ty=84&page=2&ndsp=30&ved=1t:429,r:25,s:28&biw=1280&bih=752
photo b :http://www.google.gr/imgres?imgurl=https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYGYe4G7TniWnm1KS2a9O84Xd6N44hA_1f7eo-MHm9tvBz9toS003gosIfmI8qCPjtlMhtqwCITVAo7qt6VAieSNiIFEqMFCcPEYrkgOGriJfCYHjqL_7__E3T-020O0ASn531hIshw3wq/s1600/Zika+Ascher+NPG.jpg&imgrefurl=http://raceofstyle.blogspot.com/2010/09/ascher-studio-fabrics.html&usg=__nlVp5m_Rz2BOE4Yia5wpzdpIWd0=&h=498&w=480&sz=145&hl=el&start=0&zoom=1&tbnid=TdXjaFjBt2lAFM:&tbnh=101&tbnw=97&ei=oua9Tc_9FMWu8gP4nfHEBg&prev=/search%3Fq%3DZika%2BAscher%26um%3D1%26hl%3Del%26client%3Dfirefox-a%26sa%3DN%26rls%3Dorg.mozilla:el:official%26biw%3D1280%26bih%3D752%26tbm%3Disch&um=1&itbs=1&iact=rc&dur=437&page=1&ndsp=28&ved=1t:429,r:15,s:0&tx=67&ty=55
Κυριακή 1 Μαΐου 2011
Greta Garbo: -ICON-
Garbo called the greatest star of all.Beaton(photographer) wrote on his subject :Perhaps no other person has had such an influance on the appearance of a whole generation..the secret of her appeal seems to lie in an elusive and haunting sensitivity.Garbo has created a style in fashion which is concerned with her individual self. Garbo arrived in Hollywood aged nineteen in the entourage of Mauritz Stilla from Sweden.Signed up by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer,she went on to star in Queen Christina,Camille and Anna Karenina,dressed by Adrian.Famed as a recluse, she said in 1932,
"I AM AWKWARD,SHY ,AFRAID,NERVOUS AND SELF-CONSCIOUS ABOUT MY ENGLISH.THAT IS WHY I BUILT A WALL OF REPRESSION ABOUT MY SELF AND LIVED BEHIND IT "
The director George Cukor said that reserved"HER REAL SENSUOUSNESS FROM THE CAMERA"(photo:http://www.google.gr/imgres?imgurl=http://images.npg.org.uk/790_500/0/1/mw73801.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.npg.org.uk/collections/search/portraitLarge/mw73801/Greta-Garbo-Greta-Lovisa-Gustafsson&usg=__Az651C5wLzzN7KIpmaJ9dMkxGbk=&h=500&w=500&sz=48&hl=el&start=0&zoom=0&tbnid=NFNexwM3eYERIM:&tbnh=130&tbnw=130&ei=xY-8TfjgFcmh8QPssL3EBg&prev=/search%3Fq%3Dgreta%2Bgarbo%2Bby%2BCecil%2BBeaton%26um%3D1%26hl%3Del%26client%3Dfirefox-a%26rls%3Dorg.mozilla:el:official%26biw%3D1280%26bih%3D752%26tbm%3Disch&um=1&itbs=1&iact=rc&dur=495&page=1&ndsp=28&ved=1t:429,r:20,s:0&tx=35&ty=51)
Παρασκευή 29 Απριλίου 2011
fashion diary: the most beautiful model:LILY COLE
fashion diary: the most beautiful model:LILY COLE: "Lily Luahana Cole (born May 19, 1988) is an English model and actress. Cole's modelling career was launched by a chance encounter with Ben..."
the most beautiful model:LILY COLE
Lily Luahana Cole (born May 19, 1988) is an English model and actress. Cole's modelling career was launched by a chance encounter with Benjamin Hart in Soho, London when she was 14.
Cole has featured in several well-known publications, including Vogue (US, UK, Italian, Japanese), other fashion clients have included Numero, V, Pop, Dazed, Citizen K, Christian Lacroix, Alexander McQueen, Chanel, Hermes, Galliano, Louis Vuitton, Jean Paul Gaultier and Marc Jacobs. Advertising campaigns include Longchamp, Anna Sui, Hermes, Moschino, Prada, Chanel, Cacharel, Moschino fragrance, and Ghost fragrance. She has a lucrative cosmetics contract with beauty brand Rimmel London and can be seen in TVC and print advertising as part of her work with them, attracting controversy in 2008 by appearing naked in a pictorial for Playboy magazine's French edition. Cole has also appeared in advertisements for companies such as high street retailer Marks and Spencer and cosmetics chain Rimmel.
After several minor acting roles, starting with St Trinian's in 2007, Cole's first leading role was as Valentina in the 2009 film The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, in which she starred alongside Heath Ledger, Johnny Depp, Colin Farrell, and Jude Law.
Magazines and fashion shows
Cole's distinctive red hair has attracted significant media attention. She is also recognised for what Entertainment magazine described as her porcelain doll-like beauty. Cole's modelling career was sparked from a chance encounter while walking through Soho when she was approached by Benjamin Hart, who asked her to consider modelling. She initially declined, later saying, "I was cynical enough to think it wouldn't come to much", though she later changed her mind and signed to Storm Models.
Her break came in 2003 when she caught the eye of photographer Steven Meisel. It was on that photoshoot, her first "only girl" story for Italian Vogue, that Cole was "catapulted into the spotlight" as one of the leading new faces of the year. Since then, Cole has worked with many other prominent photographers, including Craig McDean, Nick Knight, Juergen Teller, Arthur Elgort, and Irving Penn.
At the 2004 British Fashion Awards, Cole was named "Model of the Year". She has since made appearances on the covers of many fashion magazines including, amongst others, the American, Italian, British, Japanese and Korean editions of Vogue, Citizen K, Vand Vogue as well as featuring on Vogue's "best dressed" list in December 2005. She has also had cover appearances on Numéro and Interview.
She has modelled on the international runway circuit and at many fashion shows on behalf of Chanel, Shiatzy Chen, DKNY, Jean Paul Gaultier, Versace, Alexander McQueen, Jasper Conran, John Galliano, and Louis Vuitton. She was nominated, for the second time, for the "Model of the Year" award at the 2007 British Fashion Awards and, in December 2009, was listed by Vogue Paris as one of the top 30 models of the 2000s.
Cole's modelling career continued in 2010. She made a cover appearance on the January 2010 issue of the Canadian Elle, as well as giving an interview to the magazine and opening Hermès's winter 2010/2011 collection at Paris Fashion Week in March, wearing a black leather catsuit and bowler hat.
Towards the end of 2010, she featured in a documentary chronicling the career of Rolf Harris in which he painted her dressing up as the Queen of the fairies from A Midsummer's Night Dream.
(photo:http://www.google.gr/imgres?imgurl=http://www.entertainmentwallpaper.com/images/desktops/celebrity/lily_cole01.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.entertainmentwallpaper.com/download/50016880/&usg=__-EHE3ppMRjzzgpFGfe0jLN-6PLY=&h=1024&w=1280&sz=257&hl=el&start=136&zoom=1&tbnid=FlNihi6YtT_ucM:&tbnh=97&tbnw=142&ei=H9S5TZrkMdnZ4wazx_j0Dw&prev=/search%3Fq%3DLily%2BCole%26um%3D1%26hl%3Del%26client%3Dfirefox-a%26sa%3DN%26rls%3Dorg.mozilla:el:official%26biw%3D1280%26bih%3D752%26tbm%3Disch0%2C2905&um=1&itbs=1&iact=hc&vpx=282&vpy=312&dur=1126&hovh=201&hovw=251&tx=132&ty=87&page=6&ndsp=37&ved=1t:429,r:1,s:136&biw=1280&bih=752)
Τετάρτη 27 Απριλίου 2011
that's the new fashion book by taschen.
In celebration of 30 years at the forefront of international fashion and lifestyle publishing, this book, edited by Creative Director and i-D founder Terry Jones, features all of the iconic covers to date as well as the best stories behind the making of the images. In personal discussion with many of the creative talents he has worked with over the years, Terry Jones weaves his own personal web of diary, memories, and magic to give the reader an unforgettable look into a secret world before the digital age made everything accessible and public.
Taking us to the present day with Nick Knight’s three latest covers (streamed instantly and shown online as he was photographing them), this book offers an incredible insight into a creative world that is changing under our eyes, but still has its heart and its creativity firmly rooted in its beginnings.
The editor and author:
Founder and Creative Director of i-D magazine, Terry Jones started his fashion career in the 1970s as art director of Vanity Fair and Vogue UK. Since 1977 his Instant Design studio has produced catalogues, campaigns, exhibitions and books, including TASCHEN's Smile i-D, Fashion Now 1, Fashion Now 2 and Soul i-D.
The editor:
Edward Enninful was appointed Fashion Director of i-D in 1991, becoming the youngest ever Fashion Director of an international magazine. Today Enninful’s time is shared between i-D, Italian and American Vogue. His fashion campaigns have included Versace, Armani, Christian Dior, Mulberry and Lanvin.
The author:
Richard Buckley started his career as a journalist at New York Magazine in 1979. Editor-in-Chief of Vogue Hommes International between 1999 and 2005 he has also contributed to Dutch, Italian Vogue, Mirabella, Vanity Fair, WWD and W.
(http://www.taschen.com/pages/en/catalogue/fashion/new/04449/facts.i_d_covers_1980_2010.htm)
Τρίτη 26 Απριλίου 2011
Vintage Ideas for Home Improvement
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Adding vintage elements to your home can give it a retro feel even if it's newly built. The larger the element, the more design impact it will have - replacing all your interior doors with vintage split stable doors, for example, will completely change the look of your space. You don't have to go with authentic vintage if it proves too expensive: Plenty of companies specialize in producing new furniture, fittings, fixtures, wallpaper and floor treatments that resemble beloved products of years past.
Vintage Appliances
- Vintage appliances are one way to give a kitchen a dose of classic style. Certain models of stoves and refrigerators are prized by antique dealers: Many sell gorgeous, glossy white Wedgewood stoves, which were popular from 1930 to the late 1950s.
Often, dealers will restore these stoves before selling them; unrestored stoves are cheaper to buy but may require lots of work. They cost more than modern cooking ranges; a restored vintage stove can set you back $6,000 or more, while a no-frills new range costs around $600. You can also buy restored vintage fridges, such as Kelvinators, 1950s Frigidaires and Hotpoints. These refrigerators are very stylish, often coming in pastel colors with curved chrome handles and logos that look like they belong on old Cadillacs. They can be very expensive, sometimes costing upwards of $10,000, but they do add the perfect touch of '50s-style glamor to your kitchen.
Faux Vintage
- You don't have to find authentic vintage fixtures, fittings or furniture to create a vintage look: You can fake it. Distress your furniture to give it the charm of an old piece. Use a technique called frottage, or rubbing, to make a wooden piece look like it came straight from a 19th century farmhouse. After you've painted the piece, you then rub colored glaze onto it with pieces of crumpled newspaper, which will create an uneven stippling effect on the wood, as if the paint is old and weathered.
Another way to achieve a faux-vintage look is to mimic it with new materials: Do up your kitchen floor like they did in the 1960s, with black-and-white or color-flecked vinyl tile squares, but skip trying to find original vinyl. Several manufacturers sell a new product that looks just like the old.
Vintage Doors and Windows
- Using salvaged doors and windows can give your home a vintage feel, whether or not the house was built in the same time frame as the doors or windows were created. Visit an architectural salvage store to find different styles of doors and windows. You can go with one style for several fittings, such as wood Mission doors and stained-glass Mission windows, or tall, narrow Victorian double doors and arched Victorian windows.
You can also mix your vintage styles. At architectural salvage stores, not only can you find great vintage pieces, but you're also being ecologically conscious by choosing to reuse building and decorating materials.
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1840 to 1850
The Gothic era arrived on the scene and fashion lines wilted into drooping ringlets and dragging skirts. Sleeves lost their fullness and became fitted; shoulders were extended below their natural line and skirt hems lowered to the floor. Generally necklines were worn high during the day and wide in the evening. The skirt became very domed in silhouette, requiring yet more petticoats to achieve the desired shape. Trimmings of tucks and pleats were used to emphasize this new line. Colors shifted to darker tones and solid color fabrics were more in tune with the new solemnity.
In mid-century, skirts become even fuller with horizontal flounces or tucks added to the base skirt to give it even greater width and volume. Lines shifted from the vertical to the horizontal assisted by shorter, wider bodices. A new triangular, cone-shaped silhouette emerged featuring new pagoda sleeves.
Κυριακή 27 Μαρτίου 2011
Τρίτη 22 Μαρτίου 2011
History of Karl Lagerfeld
Born in Hamburg in 1938, Karl Lagerfeld emigrated to Paris at the age of 14. He was to go on to become one of the most celebrated designers this century has seen.
In 1955, at the age of just 17, Lagerfeld was awarded a position at Pierre Balmain, after winning a competition sponsored by the International Wool Secretariat (the coat he had designed for the contest was later put into production by Balmain). In 1958, he left to take up a job with Jean Patou, which gave him an invaluable knowledge of couture but apparently very little pleasure. After just one year, he quit to work as a freelance designer for such fashion houses as Krizia, Charles Jourdan and Valentino. By 1964, he had grown so disillusioned with the world of haute couture that he left Paris altogether to study art in Italy.
In 1967, Lagerfeld returned to fashion, joining Fendi as a design consultant. In the Seventies, however, his name was more closely associated with the house of Chloe, where he was given carte blanche to produce exquisite floaty and feminine ready-to-wear collections which claimed to rival contemporary couture. His 1972 Deco collection, which consisted of black and white prints and clever bias-cutting, brought him worldwide acclaim. He produced his last collection for Chloe - now designed by Phoebe Philo - in 1983 to move to Chanel (though he did return briefly in 1993, to replace outgoing designer Martine Sitbon).
At the same time as taking on the title of director of collections and ready-to-wear at Chanel, Lagerfeld launched his own-name label, now synonymous with strong tailoring, combining easy-to-wear cardigan jackets in his favourite bright colours and softly shaped knitwear to create what he describes as "intellectual sexiness". Meanwhile his designs for the super-chic French fashion house, a fusion of pre-war Chanel and contemporary trends, carried the label to the pinnacle of high fashion in the Eighties and Nineties. Notable moments of his career at Chanel include teaming the traditional box jacket with denim mini skirts in 1991, combining club-influenced black fishnet bodystockings with the traditional Chanel camellia placed cheekily over the breasts and matching hefty lace-up boots with flowing georgette skirts and leather jackets. By 1997, Vogue had crowned him the "unparalleled interpreter of the mood of the moment".
Despite moving from label to label, Lagerfeld has managed to retain a sense of his own style throughout his career. His success lies in an ability to make a bold statement and he is never afraid to try something new. He has also maintained a sense of humour throughout his designing that has produced such legendary pieces as a shower-dress, with beaded water streaming down the front; a car-dress with a radiator grille and fender, and a multitude of outstandingly eccentric hats, from armchairs to cream cakes, translating Chanel trademarks such as the quilted handbag into a range of seasonal must-haves, including the handbag earring, the handbag hat, the doll-sized shoulder bag, the quilted hip bag, the quilted Alice band and the outsize baguette bag.
Δευτέρα 21 Μαρτίου 2011
chanel history
The House of Chanel, more commonly known as Chanel, is a Parisian fashion house in France founded by Gabrielle Bonheur "Coco" Chanel. According to Forbes, the privately held House of Chanel is jointly owned by Alain Wertheimer and Gerard Wertheimer who are the grandsons of the early Chanel partner Pierre Wertheimer.
The company is owned by Luxottica. The perfume, accessory, and skin line divisions have been made public in recent years.
Founded in 1910, the small shop selling ladies headwear had moved to the upmarket Rue Cambon within a year. The house became especially famous with the elegant little black dress and its signature Chanel No. 5 fragrance - so called because she was given a set of five samples by the perfumeur Ernest Beaux. She had instructed him to create a fragarance that should be "All about scent and nothing about the bottle." Out of the five scents samples, she preferred No. 5. "It will bring me luck," she declared. Ernext Beaux also created four other perfumes for Chanel; the are the little known Bois d'Illes, No. 22, Cuir de Russie, and Gardenie. However, Gardenie has recently been re-released by the House in 2005 with international acclaim, a scent that fuses jasmine with musks.
Chanel revolutionized haute couture fashion by replacing the traditional corset with the comfort and casual elegance of simple suits and dresses. She introduced to the world her signature cardigan jacket in 1925 and signature “little black dress” in 1926, introducing a more sultry and seductive definition to “sexy.” She had numerous other major successes that changed the fashion industry including the ever popular "'Chanel suit'", an elegant creation composed of a knee-length skirt and trim, boxy jacket, traditionally made of wooven wool with black sewing trim and gold buttons, worn with large costume-pearl necklaces. Elite women of high socities around the world began to flock to the now legendary Rue Cambon boutique to commission couture outfits from her. The House of Chanel became an icon of elegance and from then on, the name “Chanel” became synonymous to elegance, wealth, and elitism, as well as the ultimate sign of French high class, la coquettrie.
After Chanel No. 5 was launched in 1921, Coco Chanel's fashions became even more well-known and were purchased by the high flyers of London and Paris society alike. Chanel took to living at the Ritz Paris, and her suite of residence has become famous and is now named the "Coco Chanel Suite."
Chanel is also known for its quilted fabric which also has a "secret" quilting pattern sewn at the back to keep the material strong. This material is used for clothing and accessories alike. During the early 1970s London socialite millionairess Diane Boulting-Casserley Vandelli was ambassador to the brand, making it ever more popular amongst the European jet-set and upper classes. The brand is now headed by German-born designer Karl Lagerfeld, who had previously designed for the House of Fendi, where his most memorable achievement was the creation of the signature "FF" logo print (referred to as Zucca) commonly used on handbags.
The Coco Chanel Era
Coco Chanel, founder of the House of Chanel, began her fashion career in 1910. She heralded new designs and revolutionized the fashion industry by going “back to basics,” incorporating elegance, class, and originality. Under her tight reign from 1910-1971, Coco Chanel held the title as ‘Chief Designer’ until her death on January 10, 1971.
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1910-1932
In 1910, Chanel opens a shop, under the name of ‘Chanel Modes’ at 21 rue Cambon in Paris, to create hats. Her hats were worn by famous French actresses which helped establish her reputation. Chanel introduced in 1913 women’s sportswear at her new boutique in Deauville, France. Her line of jersey clothes changed not only women’s relationships with their bodies, but also with their way of life, or the French savoir vivre. It became an immediate success.
Her fashion became known in 1915 throughout France that prioritized freedom of movement by passing ostentatious and useless things in her designs. She affirmed the House’s style of authentic and naturally seductive with fluid and comfortable lines. She then opened her first couture house in Biarritz, France to introduce her other fashion lines.
1921 saw the introduction of the first Chanel perfume, No. 5. It was greeted internationally by high society ladies as their choice when going out during the night. “La Société des Parfums Chanel’’ was founded in 1924 to produce and sell perfumes and beauty products, after the critically acclaimed No. 5, a perfume that commands the highest sales in history.
1924 also greeted the first Chanel costume jewelry collection that Harper’s Bazzar greeted as “one of the most revolutionary designs of our time.”
In 1928, Chanel introduced the ‘little black dress,’ greeted by Vogue as the ‘new uniform of the modern woman.’ That same year, Chanel introduced the classic tweed. Inspired by visits to Scotland with the Duke of Westminster, Chanel was inspired and created her first tweed suits.
Chanel premiered a fabulous exhibition of fine jewelry in 1932 dedicated to the diamond, featuring designs which became the talk of the town for their simplicity and originality. Several of the pieces, including the ‘Comet’ and ‘Fountain’ necklaces were re-introduced by Chanel in 1993.
1935-1981
Chanel reached the peak of her fame in 1935 when she employed 4,000 workers and owned numerous buildings throughout France. In 1939, she retired from fashion design and closed her popular couture house, prompting protests from New York high society to the Parisian aristocracy. Only her perfumes and accessories were sold at Chanel’s boutiques.
Coming out of fashion retirement at the age of 71, Chanel re-opened the couture house. Her first show received international acclaim, with her signature jersey suit being introduced that bore her favorite number: 5. In 1955, Chanel introduced the quilted bag with the shoulder strap, a bag that shook the fashion world. It became so popular the first year, she had to decline numerous requests due to the lack of time to painstakingly manufacture each one by her skilled artisans. That same year, Chanel launched her first eau de toilette for men, Pour Monsieur.
In 1957 at the Fashion Awards in Dallas, Chanel and her Spring collection received the Fashion Oscar. The fashion world applauded her as the ‘most influential designer of the twentieth century.’
After dozens of other internationally acclaimed collections, Chanel introduced in 1970 a new perfume by the name of No. 19, after her birthday date. On January 10, 1971, Coco Chanel died, ending an era of revolutionary fashion that would still be the classic model fashion designers today find inspiration in. Her posthumous Spring collection enjoyed considerable success.
However, her influence did not pass with her death. Other posthumous projects came to light a few years. In 1974, the House of Chanel launched Cristalle eau de toilette, which was in the workings when Coco Chanel was alive. 1978 saw the launch of the first non-couture, prêt-à-porter line and worldwide distribution of accessories. In 1981, Chanel launched a new eau de toilette for men, Antaeus.
The Iconic Logo
The Chanel logo is an overlapping double 'C' - one facing forward and the other facing backward. This comes from the name Coco Chanel."Coco" is the nickname frequently used by Chanel founder, Gabrielle Chanel. The logo was not trademarked until during the first openings of Chanel stores. Chanel is currently trying to deal with their logo being illegally used on cheaper goods, especially on fake handbags. Countries said to be producing great numbers of fake Chanel handbags are Vietnam, Thailand and China. An authentic Chanel handbag retails for around $1500, while fakes usually cost around $60, creating a demand for the signature style at a cheaper price.
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