Gabrielle Bonheur “Coco” Chanel, was a French fashion designer and businesswoman. She was also the founder and namesake of the Chanel brand, she was credited in the post-World War I era with popularizing sporty, casual chic as the feminine standard of style.
Her style replaced the “corseted silhouette” that was dominant beforehand with a style that was simpler, far less time-consuming to put on and remove, more comfortable, and less expensive, all without sacrificing elegance. She is the only fashion designer listed on Time magazine’s list of the 100 most influential people of the 20th century.
A prolific fashion creator, Chanel extended her influence beyond couture clothing, realizing her aesthetic design in jewelry, handbags, and fragrance.
Her signature scent, Chanel No. 5, has become an iconic product, and Chanel herself designed her famed interlocked-CC monogram, which has been in use since the 1920s.
Chanel’s design aesthetic redefined the fashionable woman in the post-World War I era. The Chanel trademark look was of youthful ease, liberated physicality, and unencumbered sportive confidence.
The horse culture and penchant for hunting so passionately pursued by the elites, especially the British, fired Chanel’s imagination. Her enthusiastic indulgence in the sporting life led to clothing designs informed by those activities. From her excursions on the water with the yachting world, she appropriated the clothing associated with nautical pursuits: the horizontal striped shirt, bell-bottom pants, crewneck sweaters, and espadrille shoes—all traditionally worn by sailors and fishermen
