Last week photos surfaced on the internet of some behind the scenes shots of Karl Lagerfeld and Claudia Schiffer shooting the Chanel 2010 Spring Ad Campaign. This is not the first time Karl used Claudia as the face of a Chanel campaign, and we most recently saw her as the face of last year’s cruise collection.
Claudia Schiffer is certainly a woman aging gracefully who is beautiful and a great role model for shunning plastic surgery. That said, I don’t get why she has been the face of Chanel campaigns – she doesn’t seem the Chanel type to me. I feel like she’s lacking that certain “je ne sais quoi” to make her the representative of the brand. Mlle. Chanel herself used to choose models that looked similar to her -more brunette than blonde. Let’s hope that this doesn’t become a habit for Karl…
Vanessa Paradis (aka Johnny Depp’s French ladyfriend) has had a long relationship with the House of Chanel. The affair began in 1992 when she was the face of the Coco fragrance…
Vanessa Paradis in Chanel Coco Campaign
Years later, she was the face of the Cambon handbag collection.
Vanessa Paradis for Chanel Lipstick
Yesterday, Chanel announced that Mlle. Paradis would be the face of the Rouge Coco de Chanel lipstick. Who better than the lady who gets to lock lips with Johnny Depp?? Chanel always does a great job with their ad campaigns and I can’t wait to see what they come up with for the Rouge Coco de Chanel lipstick when it launches in 2010.
Left: Rendering of the Chanel Shanghai Boutique (WWD); Right: Coco Chanel in her apartment with her beloved comorandel screens
Each year Chanel produces my favorite collection of the year – the “métiers d’art” collection – where Karl Lagerfeld takes on his magic carpet to the magical places that inspired Mlle. Chanel and whose ready-to-wear line features embellishments “with the couture ateliers Chanel owns.” Two years ago it was London, and last year it was Moscou. This year, the collection is called “Paris-Shanghai” and is, you guessed it, inspired by Shanghai, China. The collection will also include a short film directed by Uncle Karl himself.
To coincide with the collection, Chanel is opening a boutique in Shanghai on December 3, 2009. The boutique will be housed in the chic Peninsula Hotel on the riverfront and will be filled with commissioned art. French artist “Jean-Michel Othoniel, … created a giant, swirling strand of glass pearls, echoing the founding designer’s necklaces.”
Chanel to Open a Boutique in Shanghai
The layout of the boutique, designed by architect Peter Marino, echoes Coco Chanel’s apartment on 31 Rue Cambon and will also include an “ultra luxe” salon (don’t worry, if you can’t make it to Shanghai, you can visit the Chanel Ultra Luxe Boutique in Las Vegas).
Chanel recently hosted the Sprig 2010 Ready to Wear collection at the Grand Palais in Paris where the country atmosphere was inspired by Fragonard’s artwork and Marie Antoinette’s Hamlet at Versailles.
Below you’ll find some behind the scenes shots as Lily Allen prepared for her performance at the show, as well as some behind the scenes photos of the Spring 2010 look book photoshoot.
Brass Shaft of Wheat from Cco Chanel's Apartment at 31 Rue Cambon
The shaft of wheat pictured above is from Coco Chanel’s apartment and inspired, in part, the Chanel Spring 2010 collection. The shafts of wheat were Mlle. Chanel’s lucky charm, symbolizing “creativity that never ends.” Wheat makes an appearance in all of the rooms of her apartment from a brass bouquet, to a single shaft of wheat painted by Dalí himself just for Coco. Wheat played a large role in the collection from being tucked into the models’ hair to the bride’s bouquet at the close of the show. The wheat was definitely lucky for Chanel this season as it was a gorgeous collection and stunning presentation.
It was a hoedown at The Grand Palais in Paris with models strutted around a Chanel barn, haystacks and all. Karl Lagerfeld never disappoints in showmanship and the Chanel Spring 2010 Ready to Wear show was an example of how he can take something as dowdy as country bumpkin and make it très chic.
Lagerfeld was inspired by Marie Antoinette’s shepherdess phase, as well as citing Coco Chanel’s love for escaping the big city to experience the country. Signature Chanel themes like tweed, lace, and the ubiquitous bags were all there – but with a country twist. Dresses and skirts were short – perfect for frolicking in the fields and the looks were completed with milk maid clogs.
The beauty was kept simple and natural with hair in messy Bardot-eque twists with shafts of wheat tucked in the up-dos. One of my favorite aspects of the show was the body paint. From the double C’s, to a rosary, models have body paint on writs, necklines and their legs. And the new nail colours! It looks like a beigey-taupe color will be popular for Spring.
The highlight of the show was Lily Allen, the face of Chanel’s Coco Cocoon Collection, rising from the ground in a giant bale of hay to perform her country-inspired hit, Not Fair. You can see her perform and see the A-list celebs that were front row (like Rihanna and Prince) in the videos below.
Coco Avant Chanel (Coco Before Chanel in the U.S.) finally hit stateside last week as it makes its way across the globe. You didn’t think that a film about one of France’s most celebrated icons would come and go without Colette doing something special did you?
"Coco Avant Chanel" Exclusive Box Set at Colette
To celebrate the release, Colette has put together a beautiful Coco Avant Chanel Exclusive Box Set with only 100 produced. The box itself is a hat box containing a boater hat from La Maison Michel, a limited edition picture of Gabrielle Chanel, a book of quotations from Coco Chanel, a dvd of the movie Coco Avant Chanel and a Blue Ray collector edition including a booklet depicting the making-of the movie. I want this now! The Coco Avant Chanel Box Set costs €150 and is available on the Colette web shop.
Coco Chanel was a master at combining casual and luxurious so the Coco Cocoon collection is something that fits in nicely with Chanel’s original vision. Made of nylon or lambskin, the collection is called Cocoon because it’s reminiscent of the big down coats we cocoon ourselves in during the winter. Many of the styles are reversible (thus as beautiful inside as they are out) and feature very subtle branding. The collection is available in beige, black, chocolate or burgandy – the burgandy is the same legendary shade used for the lining of the famous “2.55″ handbag. The collection also includes small goods like wallets, cases, pouches and key rings.
Coco Cocoon Collection
Check out the Chanel Coco Cocoon site to see all of the products in the collection, the inspiration, the campaign images and videos of Chanel clad young ladies showing you how great each of the pieces are.
Last February, I visited the Chanel Ultra-Luxe Boutique at The Encore in Las Vegas at the coaxing of Ruby Romero. She tempted me with exotic skins and extremely limited product – how could a girl resist? The experience did not disappoint. Ruby is an enthusiastic associate and I made a friend out of the experience. I felt like I had “died and gone to Chanel heaven.”
When I returned to Vegas last week, I had to stop by to see Ruby and all the lovelies that she would undoubtedly show me (and let me try on). The visit was a treat, from the iconic black tweed jacket to the Camelia watch and pink tweed boater hat, I tried them on. As if that weren’t enough, Ruby surprised me with a special treat – a copy of Karl Lagerfeld’s “Chanel’s Russian Connection – a book detailing the silent film Lagerfeld produced, as well as the Métiers D’Art Pre-Fall 2009 Paris-Moscou collection. I don’t know if Ruby knew that I collected Chanel books, but this was truly a lovely, heartfelt gift.
Karl Lagerfeld - Chanel's Russian Connection
f you are ever in Las Vegas, be sure to visit Ruby at the Chanel Ultra-Luxe Boutique at The Encore. She knows her stuff. She’s the first sales associate at a luxury goods store that is up on everything (I’ve had a few experiences going into other shops and it’s a bummer when I know more than the sales associate). Not only that, but she’s got the sweetest disposition -no pressure to buy here! Ruby understands that part of what makes Chanel such an amazing brand is the fantasy involved. I have vowed that no matter what city I’m in, if I want to make a Chanel purchase, I’m calling Ruby and buying from her – you should too.
Chanel at Encore - Ruby Romero - Excellent Customer Service
"Coco Before Chanel" Official Poster & Movie Stills
My life is the story – often the tragedy – of a woman on her own, her miseries, her grandeur, her uneven and fascinating struggle against herself, against men, attractions, weaknesses, and dangers that arise from all sides.
Coco Avant Chanel premiered in France earlier this year and now the eagerly anticipated Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel biopic is hitting stateside this Fall. In English speaking countries, the film is dubbed Coco Before Chanel, and like the title indicates, the feature focuses on the formative years that made Coco Chanel the fashion icon that she is today.
The movie opens up with Gabrielle Chanel being dropped off at an orphanage by her father – a glimpse into the sadness and betrayal that she felt from a very early age. Rather than knocking her down, young Gabrielle knew that the world had much to offer, and her resilience and cleverness made her successful, though the road to success was paved with obstacles.
I have always found Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel inspiring. Fashion influence aside, I am most impressed with what she was able to achieve in the time period that she lived. She was born in 1883, during the Belle Époque when corsets and show-piece hats ruled the day. Your family determined your wealthy, social status and whom you could marry. While men could make some efforts to advance through work, at this time, women of status didn’t work. So what’s a girl to do? Chanel did not let her poverty get in her way. Her fierce determination and ambition is what got her ahead – in a time when it was unheard of for women to do so – is what I find most inspiring about Mademoiselle Chanel.
Anne Fontaine, the director of the film, does an excellent job of showing us that it was not an easy road to success. By focusing on her early life and rise to fame, Fontaine helps us understand the woman behind the myth. I think that the director herself is a woman helped bring a sensibility to the portrayal of Chanel’s life that I don’t think a man would have been able to grasp. She elaborates, “It was not so much the fashion as the characteristics of this exceptional woman that interested me. I had been particularly touched by the fact that she was a self-made person.”
Audrey Tautou plays Coco Chanel and I can’t think of anyone that would do the character more justice. A French woman herself, Tautou transforms into Gabrielle Chanel and the resemblance is remarkable. She breathes life into the designer at once being fragile and robust, vulnerable and determined.
“Coco Before Chanel” Movie Stills
And the costuming! Coco Before Chanel was produced with Maison Chanel’s blessing and the company opened up its archives, the Chanel Conservatory, so that actual original pieces could be used in the final catwalk scene (that was filmed on the actual famous mirrored staircase). In fact, she met with Karl Lagerfeld to go over sketches. Regarding her experience designing the costumes for Coco Before Chanel, Catherine Letterier explained:
Chanel’s [style] is instantly recognizable. What Karl Lagerfeld did in adapting the Chanel style to the future, I did backwards towards the past. I went back in time, designing the first models that Chanel might have created and which could have fashioned her style. The Chanel style is distinctive in its cut, the supple hang of its fabric and the perfect simplicity of its finish. The costumes designed for the film had to be up to the exacting standards of haute couture.
Since Chanel started her career in fashion as a milliner, they brought on the best hat makers alive today – Stephen Jones and Pippa Cleator. Coco Before Chanel definitely does not disappoint in bringing the spectacle of fashion in all of it’s glory from the extravagant gaudiness of the Belle Époque to the simplicity of French sailor shirts.
Though the fashion in the film is spot on, a lesson in fashion history it is not. Letterier definitely took artistic license to the extent that the film showed certain looks and pieces well before they actually became part of the Chanel repertoire. For examples, Chanel didn’t focus in on black as a main theme until after the death of Boy Capel in 1919. Before then, black was predominantly worn for mourning. When she invented “the little black” dress she was rumored to have said “I’m going to put the whole world in mourning for him.” (Chanel: A Woman of Her Own, Axel Madsen) Little did she know she was starting a trend that still hold weight today.
The men’s French sailor shirt that she appropriates doesn’t actually happen until the 1930s. The film ends with a fashion show that is essentially a “best of” collection of a lifetime of work. The tweed box suits that figure so prominently didn’t actually come into existence (in that form/style/silhouette) until Chanel’s comeback collection in 1954. However, the artistic license in not conforming to a strict fashion historical time line enhances the story. Though not historically accurate, it’s a testament to the longevity of Mlle. Chanel’s career – spanning decades and trends – as if we are watching her entire career pass us by. The final catwalk scene exemplifies the impact of Coco Chanel, and is so timeless and classic, it looks just as chic today as it did sixty-plus years ago.
There have been several films that have come before such as Chanel Solitaire and Coco Chanel, the Lifetime made-for-television movie – all of which interestingly focus on Chanel’s early life and rise to fame. However, none come close to capturing the true essence of Mademoiselle Chanel the way Coco Before Chanel has. The rare combination of an artistic screenplay, sensitive director and selfless actress have made Coco Before Chanel an excellent film. I will watch this repeatedly because in some way, it will be closest I can ever come to knowing Gabrielle Chanel. Bring plenty of tissues – the story is inspiring but if I said I didn’t shed a tear I’d be lying. The only downside to the film? As a former smoker, watching Coco Before Chanel made me want to run out and smoke cigarettes as elegantly as only Coco Chanel could.
Coco Before Chanel premiers in NY an LA on September 25, 2009, and in the Bay Area on October 2, 2009.
Last Friday, Karl was spotted in Paris, in front of the Chanel boutique on Rue Royal, shooting the “Starting Point” press kit for Chanel’s pre-spring collection. Models Lara Stone and Baptiste Giacobini channeled Marlon Brando circa The Wild One. The motorcycle, customized in Toulouse, France, is a similar model that Brando rode in the film. Unlike the bicycle, word on the street is that the motorcycle won’t be for sale – sorry ladies, no “Easy Riding” for you.
