Coco Chanel
135 years ago today, Coco Chanel was born. She is my favourite fashion designer of all time!
She was said to have had many love interests and courted quite a number of aristocrats and oligarchs but it is a shame she never married. Anyway, you can read her timeline below.
Chanel's Biography:
Gabrielle Bonheur Chanel was born on 19th August 1883, in France to a poor family. She had four siblings.
In 1895 and when Gabrielle was only twelve, her mother died of Tuberculosis. She was then sent, along with her two sisters, to an orphange, while her two brothers stayed behind to work with their father. During her stay at the orphange, she was taught to sew amongst other things.
In 1901, too old to stay at the orphange at 18 years old, she moved to a boarding house for Catholic girls. She worked as a seamtress and did a little singing on the side.
In 1910, she became a licensed designer and started making hats.
In 1913, she opened her first shop in Deauville.
In 1915, she opened her second shop in Biarritz that saw even more success for it's strategic location.
Harper's Baazar even raved over her designs:
By 1919, she became a registered couturière and established her fashion house.
In 1924, she launched her first perfume 'Chanel No.5'.
In 1931, she went on to design clothes for two films in Hollywood and in the process, gained two big names as private clients; Greta Garbo and Marlene Dietrich. But, she did not think her fashion meshed well with Hollywood:
In 1939, in the beginning of World War II, she decided to shut her business because she thought it wasn't time for fashion.
In 1954, she re-entered the fashion world gaining new big name clientele like Elizabeth Taylor, Grace Kelly and Jackie Kennedy.
In 1971, she died from a heart attack in the room she occupied for thirty years, at the Ritz.
Chanel's Name "Coco":
When Chanel pursued a short-lived singing career, she sang a few songs and amongst the popular ones were; "Ko Ko Ri Ko" and "Qui qu'a vu Coco". She was then given the nickname "coco" by soldiers in the audience.
Chanel's Contribution To Fashion:
Which of Chanel's signature items do you need to get?
I really need to get the whole shebang plus more but at the moment I NEED the Jacket!
What is your favourite quote from Chanel?
Mine are:
Coco Chanel, 1962 by Douglas Kirkland
She was said to have had many love interests and courted quite a number of aristocrats and oligarchs but it is a shame she never married. Anyway, you can read her timeline below.
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Chanel's Biography:
Gabrielle Bonheur Chanel was born on 19th August 1883, in France to a poor family. She had four siblings.
In 1895 and when Gabrielle was only twelve, her mother died of Tuberculosis. She was then sent, along with her two sisters, to an orphange, while her two brothers stayed behind to work with their father. During her stay at the orphange, she was taught to sew amongst other things.
In 1901, too old to stay at the orphange at 18 years old, she moved to a boarding house for Catholic girls. She worked as a seamtress and did a little singing on the side.
In 1910, she became a licensed designer and started making hats.In 1913, she opened her first shop in Deauville.
In 1915, she opened her second shop in Biarritz that saw even more success for it's strategic location.
Harper's Baazar even raved over her designs:
"The woman who hasn't at least one Chanel is hopelessly out of fashion … This season the name Chanel is on the lips of every buyer"
By 1919, she became a registered couturière and established her fashion house.
In 1924, she launched her first perfume 'Chanel No.5'.
In 1931, she went on to design clothes for two films in Hollywood and in the process, gained two big names as private clients; Greta Garbo and Marlene Dietrich. But, she did not think her fashion meshed well with Hollywood:
"Hollywood is the capital of bad taste … and it is vulgar"
In 1939, in the beginning of World War II, she decided to shut her business because she thought it wasn't time for fashion.
Coco Chanel by Loomis Dean
In 1971, she died from a heart attack in the room she occupied for thirty years, at the Ritz.
Chanel's Name "Coco":
When Chanel pursued a short-lived singing career, she sang a few songs and amongst the popular ones were; "Ko Ko Ri Ko" and "Qui qu'a vu Coco". She was then given the nickname "coco" by soldiers in the audience.
Chanel's Contribution To Fashion:
- She introduced the Jersey fabric to high fashion, allowing for more practical designs, saying:
"I make fashion women can live in, breathe in, feel comfortable in and look younger in"
- She shifted the designs of women's fashion from uncomfortable corseted silhouettes to sporty casual chic, changing the standards of feminine clothes.
- She created the concept of the little black dress, a style worn to this day.
- The Jacket
- The Bag
- The Black Dress
- The Perfume
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Which of Chanel's signature items do you need to get?
I really need to get the whole shebang plus more but at the moment I NEED the Jacket!
What is your favourite quote from Chanel?
Mine are:
"Some people think luxury is the opposite of poverty. It is not. It is the opposite of vulgarity"
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"I don't care what you think about me. I don't think about you at all"
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Elegance is when the inside is as beautiful as the outside"
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"Nothing makes a woman look so old as trying desparately to look young"
I don’t know I got goosebumps reading this. I LOVE it!
ReplyDeleteShe accomplished a lot is such a short amount of time.
I hope she reunited with her family after leaving the Orphanage.
My favourite quote is:
“Nothing makes a woman look so old as trying desparately to look young.”
This one always comes up whenever I search for anything, And I love it, But I’ve never searched for her quotes. So, I’ll search and then comment again hehe.
I know that she was always with her sisters and aunt but I didn't read anything about her father or brothers. I assume they stayed in contact.
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