“Strength is built by one’s failures, not by one’s successes.”- Coco Chanel

Gabrielle Bonheur "Coco" Chanel (1883–1971), a French orphan whose rough upbringing and life of hardship, hard work and survival instincts shaped the woman of this century.

Before Chanel, women of the Belle Epoque wore corsets and clothes so highly structured that they could hardly breathe. She believed that "women were supposed to dress for themselves and not their men". Contemporary to the invention of the automobile, Chanel created sportswear, literally borrowing sporting clothes from her boyfriends, like sailor shirts, trousers and tweed jackets. She designed women's clothes out of wool jersey, previously used for men's underwear. She dare to pile fake jewelry, faux pearls, which had been unheard of before. It was called "poor chic".  She revolutionized the way women looked, popularizing the sun tan, bobbed hair, and red lipstick. Her perfume Chanel No. 5, sold in a glass cube that still looks modern today, is the number one selling fragrance in the world and the first perfume ever to have a designer's name.

Chanel's style is associated with the 1920s flappers, a new breed of self-confident young women that challenged the establishment. The flappers demonstrated their independence through new looks and attitude, such as short skirts and haircuts, openly using cosmetics, and being seen to smoke and drink cocktails. Compared to previous generations, the flappers were more active, pursuing athletic sports, driving their own automobiles, and going out to nightclubs where they could listen to jazz music and dance Charleston.

Coco Chanel was living proof of her motto, "Fashion passes but style remains." She said "I gave women a sense of freedom; I gave them back their bodies: bodies that were drenched in sweat, due to fashion's finery, lace, corsets, underclothes, padding."

To understand her deeply, take a tour to her apartment at the Ritz in Paris with this incredible animated video, the place where she spent the last 30 years of her life. She lived 88 years and worked until then: http://www.coco-mademoiselle.com/amus/

Watch the trailer of the recently released movie about her life "Coco Avant Chanel" at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bvDFPjx-uBU
You may also visit the movie official website, don't miss the photo gallery: http://www.sonyclassics.com/cocobeforechanel/

The trailer of a previous movie, now in DVD, produced by Lifetime, "Coco Chanel": http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5aIywO5DhU

Coco Chanel parle de l'élégance. Even if you don’t speak French you can apreciate her brillant mind... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qu3-Z32ljIE&feature=related

So Chanel... A flash from the past, Chanel Resort 2009/2010 designed by Karl Lagerfeld. Watch it : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nwoTCBgIubU and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=71So8g_AlLk&feature=related A close-up to the accessories: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ITj7tIe0Zk&feature=related

Patrick Nagel illustrated the 80's Iconic Woman.

Like some of the old print masters Toulouse-Lautrec and Bonnard, Nagel (1945-1984) was influenced by the Japanese woodblock print, with figures silhouetted against a neutral background, with strong areas of black and white, and with bold line and unusual angles of view. His simple and precise imagery is also reminiscent of the art-deco style of the 1920s and 1930s- its sharp linear treatment, geometric simplicity, and stylization of form yield images that are formal yet decorative.


Born in Ohio, lived most of his life in LA, where he accepted commissions from major corporations and magazines, including IBM, ITT, United Artists, MGM, Universal Studios, Playboy, Architectural Digest, Rolling Stone, Oui, and Harpers. 

By 1976, Nagel became very popular for his sexy illustrations defining "the Nagel Woman". In 1978, he created his first poster image for Mirage Editions. He also painted the cover of rock group Duran Duran's Rio album, which later became a top selling album.

He influenced the esthetic of a decade, introducing a stronger almost insensitive extremely beautyful woman never portrayed before. Some say that he inspired the look of the Robert Palmer's babes in videos like Addiction to Love and Simply Irresistible. Watch them at: http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xh51d_robert-palmer-addicted-to-love_music and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UrGw_cOgwa8

This last one later turned in a Pepsy commercial. Watch it at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_0CSs7_6jHs&feature=related and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xzQWjByw-rE&feature=related

And let's not forget ladies, the improved version of the "Addicted to Love", "Man, I Feel like a Woman" by Shania Twain. Now we may call it "the Nagel Man" Enjoy the view... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VfXEeBj6u-Y&feature=related

Temperley London opens The Circus

For spring/summer 2010 collection the British label Temperley London introduced its travelling Circus Zoetrope installation in New York instead of a traditional catwalk show. Acrobats, contortionists and circus paraphernalia along models created a magical illusion of animation in the recreation of a spinning zoetrope.
A fascinating short film created by Legs Studio based in NY http://www.welcometolegs.com/ Watch the film at http://www.temperleylondon.com/collections/spring-summer/film/

Play with an interactive experience clicking at http://www.temperleylondon.com/collections/spring-summer/interact/

Learn how did they make it: http://www.temperleylondon.com/collections/spring-summer/backstage/

Finally the entire collection can be seen at http://www.temperleylondon.com/collections/spring-summer/runway