How Coco Chanel changed the course of women’s fashion

Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel was one of the most influential couturiers of the 20th century. As a trained miller, she moved past hats to become a rebel and trailblazer in the world of fashion, creating a new sartorial style that freed women from corsets and lace frills by offering sailor shirts and pants. a footstool for them in their place.

“There is nothing more beautiful than the freedom of the body,” she once said, and her designs lived with those words: Chanel silhouettes were flowing and androgynous, her designs were loose and – in terms of the little dress She was black, or LBD – – democratic, she wanted women to move and embrace her clothes, just as men did in them, and her work was, in many ways, sort of of liberation of women.

Sunday marks the 50th anniversary of Chanel’s death, at the age of 87, although her legacy lives on. As well as changing the way we dress, she helped create a new kind of what a fashion brand could be: a multifaceted force that could appeal to all aspects of women’s lives, from formal attire to holiday wardrobe and evening ones.

Chanel captured her vision in “Coco-isms” which read like an acerbic forerunner of ubiquitous inspirational words today – “a woman who does not wear perfume has no future,” or “If you’re sad, apply more lipstick and attack. ”

Here are 8 important style tricks from a designer who once said famously: “I don’t do fashion. I do fashion.”

Women’s trousers

Chanel did not create women’s pants – they had already entered the wardrobe during the First World War, when women began to do jobs that men traditionally did. But no doubt she liked them as a fashion outfit.

The designer loved to wear pants herself (she often borrowed them from her male lovers), and, as early as 1918, she started sporting “beach pajamas” while on holiday on the French Riviera. Drawing inspiration from the straight, wide cuts in sailor pants, giving them a loose, comfortable shape, match them with oversized shirts or sleeveless tops.

The dress was considered risqué at the time, due to the attachment of pajamas to the bedroom, but by the mid-1920s it had become a staple among wealthy women and as a collection of Chanel collections.

Sea tops

French sailors and fishermen had been sporting British tops – striped jumpers made of tight wool for protection from the elements – since the 19th century. However, Chanel turned to fashion.

Striped pieces appeared in her shop in the Deauville society’s resort, Normandy, in the 1910s. She reworked them in a sweater, handing them patch pockets and accessing them with thick belts. The steep seascape, and far worse than the rugged beauty of the Belle Époque, quickly became very popular among elegant women both on and off the beach.

Soon enough, British stripes were found in the pages of British and American Vogue. And even today, you may have some in your closet.

Clothing jewels

Mixing high with the low is a common practice in fashion today. But it was considered radical when Chanel introduced clothing jewelery to her collections, turning something that was considered cheap and sleek into a symbol of modern style (although it should credit to her early rival Paul Poiret for leading the move).

“A woman should mix fake and real,” Chanel once said. “It’s not a jewel’s point to make a woman look rich but to dress her; it’s not the same thing.”

In the early 1930s, she collaborated with the Italian jeweler Duke Fulco de Verdura to create the iconic curves of the Maltese Cross, decorated with multicolored semi-precious stones. By the end of that decade, she was releasing signature necklaces made of slacks, delicate chains, and interconnected with faux pearls and shiny stones. Larger rows of false pearls – proudly worn by Chanel herself – followed and a movement was born.

The little black dress

In 1926, Vogue published a picture of a simple black calf dress, made from crêpe de Chine. It had long slender spears and a low thigh, and a row of pearls. The magazine referred to it as “Chanel’s Ford,” referring to the Model T. which was popular at the time. In other words, it was such a simple outfit that it would be accessible to any consumer – “a kind of dress for every woman of taste,” as the publication put it.

The ensemble has been dubbed the “little black dress” and the rest is history. During the Great Depression, the LBD became the clothing of choice for a whole generation of female consumers, and, in the decades that followed, became an integral part of women’s wardrobe everywhere. Countless statements and images have followed, but Chanel’s original numberless elegance remains unparalleled.

The Chanel suit

Chanel’s suit was a game-changer – not just for fashion but for women’s sartorial freedom.

Coco Chanel introduced her first two-piece set in the 1920s, inspired by women’s clothing and sportswear, as well as the suit of her then-boyfriend, the Duke of Westminster. Willing to free women from the restrained corsets and long skirts of previous decades, Chanel made a slim skirt and a collarless jacket made of tweed, a dress that was then considered very unconventional.

The suit was modern, slightly masculine in cut, and perfectly suited for the post-war woman who made her first foray into the world of business. It has remained popular over the years, appearing on collections from the Chanel house, including those by Karl Lagerfeld.

Chanel’s outfit was worn by some of the most influential women ever, from Audrey Hepburn and Grace Kelly to Brigitte Bardot and Princess Diana.

Chanel No.5

Chanel added its fragrance to No. 5 launched in 1921. A year earlier, and as the legend goes, she had challenged French-Russian perfumer Ernest Beaux to create a scent that would smell like a woman, and not like a rose. . “The product was a blend of 80 natural and synthetic ingredients, provided by Beaux with a numbered set of fragrance samples to choose from.

She picked up a fifth. The mix transcended the idea of ​​fragrances as a symbol of high social class, instead pushing the idea that women could be multifaceted: natural and artificial, inspiring and pure.

“That was what I was waiting for,” Chanel said afterwards. “Fragrance like nothing else. Women’s powder, with a female scent.”

It was also one of the largest and most successful branding exercises in fashion history. By prominently displaying her name on every bottle and advertisement for her fragrance, Chanel has forever linked them to the identity of the house.

Jersey dresses

Chanel loved a sweater. The dress was particularly prominent in her sportswear-influenced pieces, which surprised her clientele, who were used for satin and silk.

It was an unusual choice at the time: until then Jersey had been used mainly for men’s underwear.

But it was easy to work with and comfortable, incorporating everything the designer wanted to create for his customers. Importantly for Chanel, always an entrepreneur, it was also relatively cheap, and helped keep costs down as she established and labeled it.

She was the first designer to become popular in sweaters in women’s fashion, using the material for dresses, skirts, sweaters and more – a tradition that Lagerfeld maintained as a creative leader in the decades after her death.

Am baga 2.55

As one of the most iconic Chanel bags ever, the 2.55 reversed the rules when it was launched in February 1955 (hence the name). This was the first luxury bag for women that came with a shoulder strap – earlier shaving was required, including the ones from Chanel, all by hand.

The modern change gave women new freedom, and changed the way women’s bags were designed. Critics thought the 2.55 was uncouth, but buyers liked its practicality. And practically it was for sure: The chain strap could double and move from one shoulder, an outer flap pocket was designed to store money and the pouch in the middle was perfectly shaped for lipstick.

The 2.55 also introduced two Chanel signatures: the deep burgundy color used in its line, and the quilting with diamond stitching, inspired by jackets worn by men at the races.

Image above: Coco Chanel with Duke Laurino of Rome on a beach at the Lido.