"She built an empire and today, her empire still has her name on it on over 300 Chanel stores worldwide but who is Coco Chanel? Coco was born in Saumur, France on August 19, 1883. After her mother died when the girl Gabrielle, who later in life will be called Coco, was 12, she was left in a convent by her father. Chanel learned how to sew thanks to the nuns who raised her. Her early years were not glamorous of course considering that she grew up in a convent but Gabrielle would later create timeless designs that will later function as a symbol of luxury and style. Chanel did not care for wearing corsets because she believes that luxury should be comfortable or else it shouldn’t be called luxury in the first place." (Sigrid, 2012).
"Chanel decided to celebrate women's freedom and independence, and in defiance of the beauty standards of the time, cut her hair short like a boy's. She became the first woman with short hair. In three years, she found herself at the head of a business with over 300 seamstresses working for her.She was successful and was able to completely reimburse Arthur Capel. Chanel had promised herself to never depend on someone else and refused all financial attachments. The only thing she needed was a contact list and it was by befriending Misia Sert, Bonnard's and de Vuillard's muse, that she acquired one. " (Tendances de mode, no date)
"Sometimes when the big one hits, the first few tremors are barely detectable. On this day in 1923, Mlle. Gabrielle Chanel gathered a small group of journalists in her salon at 31 Rue Cambon in Paris for an afternoon showing of her new line, which included what would become—wait for it—the Chanel suit." (Basye, 2010)
At the beginning of World War II in 1939, Chanel closed her shops stating that 'it was not the time for fashion' and after some time she got involved with a German Military officer, Hans Gunther Von Dincklage. She was not charged as a collaborator but the general public considered this relationship as a betrayal of her country, so Chanel moved to Switzerland in some sort of exile. However, eventually she returned to the fashion scene and after receiving negative reviews from critics but her feminine and easy going designs soon won over the public and critics.
Source:http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,2029774_2029776_2031804,00.html
"Coco Chanel died on January 10, 1971, at her apartment in the Hotel Ritz. She never married, having once said “I never wanted to weigh more heavily on a man than a bird.” Hundreds crowded together at the Church of the Madeleine to bid farewell to the fashion icon. In tribute, many of the mourners wore Chanel suits."(A&E Television Networks, 2012).
