Coco Chanel‘s designs were a symbol of her independence and unwillingness to submit herself to societal demands. She took her ‘wild’ ideas of style, strength, and empowerment and incorporated those into her designs and words. Chanel helped to abolish the previously strict and rigid social structure in society, allowing everyone to feel more equal. She turned women’s perception of fashion and lifestyle upside down by liberating women from constrictive clothing.
The influence Chanel still holds in fashion is credited to the fact that she did not care about what people thought or what was expected of her, she simply made her dreams of business come to life.
The fashion of the late 19th and early 20th century was very modest and restrictive. The women of the decade wore frilly, puffed blouses and fluted skirts with long tunics over the top, decorated with lace and ribbon ties. In addition, impractical outfits which included corsets and high necklines were also popular at the time. Due to the expensive fabrics and other adorations, it was easier to tell apart the lower classes from those of higher social ranking. This emphasized the social disparity and inequality of the early 20th century. The lower classes tended to have simpler designs that were usually made of cotton, the upper classes outfits had many decorations and were made of more expensive fabrics, such as silk. Chanel signified a change in the way women’s clothes were seen in society by designing clothes that could be worn by anyone no matter their social status.
Chanel‘s fashion impacted the role that women had in society; it gave women a place in the community because they were no longer viewed as pretty little things that could do anything, but they were now being accepted into the work society. Coco Chanel said, “One world was dying, another coming into existence. I was there is an opportunity beckoned and I took it. I was the same age in the new century, so it turned me to expression clothing.” People had only thought that Chanel was a “revolutionaire” in the fashion world. She also impacted society do you to the fact that she broadened the fashion that was available to women which gave them more opportunities. For example, when pants were created for women they could ride horses freely and not just have to see them sideways and fear falling off. She set examples and took a bold leap branching out of the norm. “ if I cut my hair, others did. If I shortened my progress, so did everyone.” Chanel was becoming a major influence in fashion at that period and had the majority of people following her trends.
Coco Chanel’s views and impacts carried on to broader trends in the early 20th century. She started this change of how women viewed themselves, and how society viewed women. This trend then continued onto a larger scale in the early 20th century when women gained the right to vote, and there was an increase in feminism. Feminism is advocating for women’s social, political, and economic rights to be equal to men’s. Coco Chanel drew attention to the day-to-day issues that women face. It’s part of a larger awareness of other issues that women of that period faced. Although Coco Chanel passed away, her inspiration and ideas stuck with women as they fought for a more equal society and other designers as they began making more liberating clothes for women.
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Essay on Lifestyle and Fashion.
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