Gabrielle Bonheur Chanel was a French fashion designer and one of the fashion leaders, whose name was synonymous with elegance and chic. She claimed a birthdate of 1893 and a birthplace of Auvergne but she was actually born in 1883 in Saumur. She adopted the name Coco during a brief career as a cafe and concert singer from 1905 to 1908. By the mid-1920s she had launched the classic Chanel look, consisting of a casual but extremely well-cut wool jersey suit with straight, collarless cardigan jacket and short, full-cut skirt, worn with Art Deco costume jewelry and a sailor hat over short hair.
Her designs were inspired by her personal wish for comfortable, simple, and practical clothes. Throughout the 1920s and 1930s her look was widely influential. The basic ingredients were cardigans, woollen jersey dresses, the 'little black dress,' bell-bottom trousers, and costume jewelry.
The development of Chanel No. 5 perfume in 1922 became world famous and assisted in the financing of her couture empire during difficult years. Chanel closed her couture house during World War II and successfully revived the understated Chanel look in 1954 at the age of 71, reintroducing the Chanel suit, which formed the basis for many of her collections and become a hallmark.
Her influence touched many American and European designers. Designer, Karl Lagerfeld took over designing the Chanel couture line in 1983. Throughout the 1990s and into the 2000s Lagerfeld kept the Chanel name alive and well.
Chanel was larger than life, a legend before her death and respected after. Over three decades after her death, Chanel still remains a highly respected line of clothing and perfumes.
Web Sites
Catalog
Search the library's catalog for Coco Chanel.
Databases
Enter Coco Chanel in these databases: