Know Your Designer: Chanel

The House of Chanel (say sher-nell), more commonly known as Chanel, is a Parisian fashion house in France founded in 1910 by Gabrielle Bonheur 'Coco' Chanel. This fashion house started off as a small shop selling ladies head wear then became especially famous with the elegant LBD (Little Black Dress) in 1926, tweed suit and it's signature No. 5 fragrance in 1921.

Chanel revolutionised haute couture fashion by completely replacing the traditional corset with the comfort and casual elegance of simple suits and dresses. Coco Chanel introduced the world to her signature cardigan jacket in 1925 and the 'Chanel suit', an elegant creation composed of a knee-length and trim, boxy jacket, traditionally made of woven wool with black sewing trim and gold buttons, worn with large costume-pearl necklaces.

Elite women of high societies around the world began flocking to her 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 coquetterie.

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. 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.

Coco 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 to 1971, Coco Chanel held the title as 'Chief Designer' until her death on January 10, 1971. From then on, Karl Lagerfeld took charge. With his flashy sense of style combined with a strong vision of a new Chanel, he brought the couture house to new levels, and is still continuing to woo and awe the fashion world.

For more information and what are the latest trends Chanel has to offer, you may want to visit their official site: www.chanel.com

It's Chanel Month!

Hello people, it's me again! Some of you will wonder why this month my post is quite late. Haha, I've been busy recently. Okay, never mind that. By demand of Kenrick, May is Chanel month. The history of this label will be posted shortly.