Gabrielle Bonheur “Coco” Chanel (August 19, 1883 – January 10, 1971) was a French fashion designer and businesswoman. The founder and namesake of the Chanel brand, she created a signature style that became modern classicism.
Table of Contents:
1. Early life
2. Career
3. Personal life
4. Legacy
5. In popular culture
6. Top Coco Chanel Quotes
Early Life:
Gabrielle Bonheur Chanel was born on August 19, 1883, in Saumur, France. She was the second daughter of Albert Chanel, a itinerant street vendor, and Jeanne-Devolle Chanel, a laundrywoman. When Gabrielle was 12, her mother died of tuberculosis, and Gabrielle and her sisters, Julia-Berthe and Antoinette, were sent to the Catholic orphanage of Aubazine, which Gabrielle hated.
At the age of 18, Gabrielle left the orphanage and moved to Moulins, where she worked as a cabaret singer. It was there that she met Étienne Balsan, a wealthy textile heir. Balsan helped Gabrielle to establish herself in Parisian high society, and she eventually became his mistress.
Career:
In 1909, Gabrielle Chanel opened her first dress shop, “Chanel Modes”, at 21 rue Cambon in Paris. The shop was a success, and Chanel began designing and manufacturing her own clothing.
In 1913, Chanel debuted her first line of women’s clothing at the Paris Fashion Show. The collection was met with critical acclaim, and Chanel’s designs became popular among fashionable women.
In 1919, Chanel launched her first perfume, ” Chanel No. 5″. The perfume was an instant success, and remains one of the world’s best-selling fragrances.
In the 1920s, Chanel became increasingly popular among the aristocratic and wealthy classes. Her clientele included the Duchess of Windsor, the Grand Duchess of Russia, and the Princess of Wales.
In the 1930s, Chanel began to design clothing for men, and her designs became popular among the Hollywood elite. Chanel also began producing costume jewelry, and her ” Chanel suit” became a fashion staple.
In 1954, Chanel debuted her first collection of haute couture, and her designs were met with critical acclaim. Chanel continued to design clothing and accessories until her death in 1971.
Personal Life:
In 1924, Chanel began a relationship with the Duke of Westminster, and the two remained together until his death in 1930.
In 1931, Chanel met the composer Igor Stravinsky, and the two became close friends.
In 1939, Chanel closed her fashion house and left Paris for Switzerland. During World War II, Chanel lived in Switzerland and then in the south of France.
In 1953, Chanel met the writer Arthur Miller, and the two became close friends.
In 1971, Chanel died of natural causes at her home in Switzerland.
Legacy:
Chanel’s legacy continues to influence fashion designers and fashionistas around the world. Chanel’s style is characterized by simplicity and elegance, and her designs are often imitated but never duplicated.
In Popular Culture:
Chanel has been featured in numerous films and television shows. In 2009, she was the subject of the biographical film “Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky”. In 2012, she was the focus of the television series “The Fashion Fund”.
Top Coco Chanel Quotes
“The most courageous act is still to think for yourself. Aloud.”– Coco Chanel
“As soon as you set foot on a yacht you belong to some man, not to yourself, and you die of boredom.”– Coco Chanel
“Dress shabbily and they remember the dress; dress impeccably and they remember the woman.”– Coco Chanel
“Women have always been the strong ones of the world. The men are always seeking from women a little pillow to put their heads down on. They are always longing for the mother who held them as infants.”– Coco Chanel
“I am not young but I feel young. The day I feel old, I will go to bed and stay there. J’aime la vie! I feel that to live is a wonderful thing.”– Coco Chanel
“I only drink Champagne on two occasions, when I am in love and when I am not.”– Coco Chanel
“I invented my life by taking for granted that everything I did not like would have an opposite, which I would like.”– Coco Chanel
“Guilt is perhaps the most painful companion of death.”– Coco Chanel
“He will soon be claiming that the Resistance has liberated the world.”– Coco Chanel
“There is nothing worse than solitude. Solitude can help a man realize himself; but it destroys a woman.”– Coco Chanel
“Those who create are rare; those who cannot are numerous. Therefore, the latter are stronger.”– Coco Chanel
“In fashion, you know you have succeeded when there is an element of upset.”– Coco Chanel
“Fashion is not something that exists in dresses only. Fashion is in the sky, in the street, fashion has to do with ideas, the way we live, what is happening.”– Coco Chanel
“Fashion has become a joke. The designers have forgotten that there are women inside the dresses. Most women dress for men and want to be admired. But they must also be able to move, to get into a car without bursting their seams! Clothes must have a natural shape.”– Coco Chanel
“Jump out the window if you are the object of passion. Flee it if you feel it. Passion goes, boredom remains.”– Coco Chanel
“The best things in life are free. The second best things are very, very expensive.”– Coco Chanel
“I’m so sick of immaturity, of name-calling, of labels, of gossip, of high school. It doesn’t make sense anymore, and I find myself being nice to people that I want to strangle.”– Coco Chanel
“I don’t know why women want any of the things men have when one of the things that women have is men.”– Coco Chanel
“The age of a woman is not important: you can be wonderful in your 20’s, amazing in your 40’s and stay fabulous for the rest of your life.”– Coco Chanel
“I simply value Arthur Capel friendship. And even so, he knows very little about me.”– Coco Chanel
“You can be gorgeous at thirty, charming at forty, and irresistible for the rest of your life.”– Coco Chanel
“If a man talks bad about all women, it usually means he was burned by one woman.”– Coco Chanel
“Some people think luxury is the opposite of poverty. It is not. It is the opposite of vulgarity.”– Coco Chanel
“Where should one use perfume?’ a young woman asked. ‘Wherever one wants to be kissed.”– Coco Chanel
“In order to be irreplaceable one must always be different.”– Coco Chanel
“Arrogance is in everything I do. It is in my gestures, the harshness of my voice, in the glow of my gaze, in my sinewy, tormented face.”– Coco Chanel
“Gentleness doesn’t get work done unless you happen to be a hen laying eggs.”– Coco Chanel
“Those who create are rare; those who cannot are numerous. Therefore, the latter are stronger.”– Coco Chanel
“In 1919 I woke up famous. I’d never guessed it. If I’d known I was famous, I’d have stolen away and wept. I was stupid. I was supposed to be intelligent. I was sensitive and very dumb.”– Coco Chanel
“We are born with only one face, but laughing or crying, wisely or unwisely, eventually we form our own.”– Coco Chanel
“There are many more attempts to define happiness than unhappiness. It is because people know all too well what unhappiness is.”– Coco Chanel
“A girl should be two things: classy and fabulous.”– Coco Chanel
“Everyone marries the Duke of Westminster. There are a lot of duchesses, but only one Coco Chanel.”– Coco Chanel
“I consider lace to be one of the prettiest imitations ever made of the fantasy of nature.”– Coco Chanel
“People laughed at the way I dressed, but that was the secret of my success. I didn’t look like anyone.”– Coco Chanel
“It’s not the appearance, it’s the essence. It’s not the money, it’s the education. It’s not the clothes, it’s the class.”– Coco Chanel
“A woman’s education consists of two lessons: never leave the house without stocking, never go out without a hat.”– Coco Chanel
“The problem of aging is the problem of living. There is no simple solution.”– Coco Chanel
“Women think of all colors except the absence of color. I have said that black has it all. White too. Their beauty is absolute. It is the perfect harmony.”– Coco Chanel
“I don’t understand how a woman can leave the house without fixing herself up a little – if only out of politeness. And then, you never know, maybe that’s the day she has a date with destiny. And it’s best to be as pretty as possible for destiny.”– Coco Chanel
“God knows I wanted love… but the moment I had to choose between the man I loved and my dresses… I chose the dresses”– Coco Chanel
“I wanted to give a woman comfortable clothes that would flow with her body. A woman is closest to being naked when she is well-dressed.”– Coco Chanel
“The more stupid and unlucky man is, the more claims he makes to the woman.”– Coco Chanel
“If you are sad, If you are heartbroken , make yourself up , dress up , add more lipstick and attack . Men hate women who weep.”– Coco Chanel
“There is no time for cut-and-dried monotony. There is time for work. And time for love. That leaves no other time!”– Coco Chanel
“Fashion has two purposes: comfort and love. Beauty comes when fashion succeeds.”– Coco Chanel
“A style does not go out of style as long as it adapts itself to its period. When there is an incompatibility between the style and a certain state of mind, it is never the style that triumphs.”– Coco Chanel
“You cannot keep up a nightlife and amount to anything in the day. You cannot indulge in those foods and liquors that destroy the physique and still hope to have a physique that functions with the minimum of destruction to itself. A candle burnt at both ends may shed a brighter light, but the darkness that follows is for a longer time.”– Coco Chanel
“I imposed black; it still going strong today, for black wipes out everything else around.”– Coco Chanel
“Happiness is the secret of beauty. But who knows the secret of happiness? The wise woman keeps her cosmetics at hand.”– Coco Chanel
“I don’t care what you think of me. I don’t think of you at all.”– Coco Chanel
“What every Englishman thinks about patriotism, the last refuge of a scoundrel.”– Coco Chanel
“There are rich people, and there are those who have money. They are not the same people.”– Coco Chanel
“There is nothing more comfortable than a caterpillar and nothing more made for love than a butterfly. We need dresses that crawl and dresses that fly. Fashion is at once a captapillar and a butterfly, caterpillar by day, butterfly by night.”– Coco Chanel
“I wanted to give a woman comfortable clothes that would flow with her body. A woman is closest to being naked when she is well-dressed.”– Coco Chanel
Source: Wikipedia Britannica Chanel Harpersbazaar Biography Lofficielusa Newyorker Vogue Brainyquote Artsandculture