Chanel dreaming

If I was on death row because I committed some kind of hideous crime, like wearing leggings as pants, my last wish would be to attend a Chanel fashion show. The amazingness, theatrics and sheer scale of the Chanel fashions shows, staged in Paris, are second to none and inspire the kind of return to fashion as an art form rather than a throwaway trend.

Chanel Paris FW 2012Chanel FW12 – image thanks to Peter Stigter

chanel paris 2006Chanel Fashion Show 2006

 When I studied fashion history, and learnt of the incredible lengths Coco Chanel went to in order to create her brand, it’s easy to see why the label has lasted as it has. Even today, the dedication of Karl Lagerfeld in maintaining that aesthetic is one of the main reasons why the Chanel brand is as widely known and coveted the world over as it is.

The promotional material is treasured as much as the items themselves – invitations are worth framing and look books akin to coffee table works of art, with most of the divine photography being taken by Karl himself. Is there nothing that man can not do?  The videography is simply stunning; short films of such beauty, you can watch them again and again.

Sarah at Chanel Paris 2010At Chanel Rue Cambon, Paris, in 2010

On my first visit to Paris, and my first trip to the original Rue Cambon store, I was quite overwhelmed with the awesomeness of it all. My first purchase – the classic interlocking C’s earrings – are still treasured and worn everywhere, from breakfast dates to formal affairs.

There is something Chanel for everyone, from lipsticks and nail polishes, through to sunglasses, or for the more high earning among us, shoes and clothing and jewellery and bags that are passed down to children and grandchildren.

Chanel MelbourneThe new Chanel store in Melbourne, corner Flinders Lane and Russell Street

Tonight, I am honoured (thrilled, excited, crazy looking forward to) to be attending the Chanel store party as a guest of Sarah Willcocks from Style Melbourne. The new Melbourne store is said to evoke the spirit of Paris and if I never get invited to anything else, ever again, it won’t matter. This is just about as close as I’ll ever get to a Chanel fashion show, and I’m so happy to be experiencing it with good friends, at my ‘local’ store.

As an amusing aside, while searching for my old posts about Chanel, I discovered one I wrote four years ago, promising I was going to buy myself a Chanel 2.55 bag for my 30th birthday – isn’t it funny the things you say (and record for prosperity!!) I’ll be 30 in less than 3 months – better start saving!!!

 

  • 10 years ago
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Chanel, 33 Rue Cambon, Paris

Every girl needs a little Chanel in her life.

33 Rue Cambon is where Coco Chanel started her empire and where in Paris, I made my first Chanel purchase.

While Paris is another world, so too is Chanel – a happy place where dreams come true and a million memories are made. A bit like Disneyland for fashionistas.

There is something about the allure of couture – whether you can afford it or not – that makes you feel special and just being in this store can do that.

Miss J and I headed to Rue Cambon to experience the significance of this particular Chanel store and found that whether you plan on spending $140 or $14,000, every Chanel customer is treated with the same magical experience.

We tried on shoes. Touched scarves. Modelled jewellery and flashed rings. Tested nail polish – and then asked to remove it. An American lady trying sunglasses was offered coffee. Yes, we would like one too please.

Coffee at Chanel. I could have died. There we were, at one of the most significant fashion sites IN THE WORLD, drinking coffee next to people buying 2.55 bags in several colours. Ooh la la indeed.

When you buy something at Chanel, your purchase is not simply thrust into a bag. Care is taken – and time – to wrap your items like they were made of glass, as if they were to be given as a gift, even is that gift is for yourself.

Your Chanel purchase IS special, worthy of your money and a fufillment of your dreams. Why shouldn’t you have an experience to match?

For the record, I bought earrings and a bracelet. I haven’t opened the packaging yet because it is just that beautiful.

Images by Jennifer Estrada.

 

  • 13 years ago
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Chanel 2.55

Last night, while gathered with my family for my Dads birthday, I made an announcement. Probably not an announcement my parents were expecting, or one they were particularly happy about, but a big deal for me nonetheless.

I announced I was going to buy myself a Chanel bag for my 30th birthday.

This was met with strange looks and amusing comments: ‘You are not supposed to buy yourself birthday presents’ said my Dad, to which I replied, ‘Are you going to buy me a $2,500 handbag?’ He quickly shut up. My brothers continued to make fun, all the while telling me about the new thousand dollar super dooper triple extreme power tool they had their eye on.

Apparently because my bag won’t actually make me any money, it’s pretty much deemed a waste of money. As I tried to explain to my fashion challenged family that a Chanel bag is not just any bag, I started to think about why the Chanel bag is pretty much the ultimate of the ultimate. It is the pinnacle of my fashion world, the aspiration of fashionistas the world over.

But to my family, that bag is just some leather, metal and stitching.

By way of a short history lesson, thanks to Wikipedia, the story goes that in the 1920s, Ms. Chanel became tired of having to carry her handbags in her arms and decided to design a bag that freed up her hands. Inspired by the straps found on soldiers’ bags, she added thin straps and introduced the resulting design to the market in 1929. After her successful comeback to the fashion industry in 1954, Chanel decided to update her bag for the modern woman. The resulting design was called 2.55 after the date of creation, February 1955.

The Chanel 2.55 is today a classic; a fashion staple; and an item I have coveted for many years. While many people choose their 30th birthdays to travel the world, buy themselves a diamond ring or splurge on a spectacular new car, I am earmarking this date (ironically, also a February, so obviously meant to be) as when I will finally own a piece of fashion history, and future.

The bag will be one for special occasions, for gifting to a daughter, an heirloom for a granddaughter. The 2.55 Chanel bag will be 59 years old when I procure mine, yet I imagine in another 59 years, when my granddaughter tells her friends about her Chanel bag; that this leather, metal and stitching will be just as iconic then as it is now.   

Just three and a half short years to go until the big day arrives. That’s approximately 1277 days. At $2 a day, that’s $2554. A Chanel bag and a spare $50! Now who says I don’t make my money work for me?  

    

  • 14 years ago
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Chanel Coco & Igor Stravinsky


Last night I had the pleasure and privilege of attending a preview screening of the new Chanel film, Coco & Igor. The film picks up around the same time as Coco Avant Chanel concluded and through the films are in no way related through writers, directors or the like, it is a continuing journey through the life of this fashion visionary.

The story begins in Paris 1913, where Chanel (Anna Mouglalis) and Boy Capel are lovers and Chanel is driven by her passion for her work. Chanel attends Igor Stravinsky’s (Mads Mikkelsen) opening night performance of The Rite of Spring, a powerful and modern musical ballet. While the audience do not appreciate the performance, writing it off as scandalous, Chanel is enthralled.

The film then skips ahead to 1920 when Chanel is wealthy and successful. She is in mourning after the loss of her lover (where Coco Avant Chanel concluded) while Igor and his family are living a penniless existence in a hotel after the Russian Revolution. Their introduction immediately sets wheels in motion for a tumultuous love affair, played out at Chanel’s villa on the outskirts of Paris.

While we get to see Chanel’s impeccable taste in fashion and Stravinsky’s modern and unusual musical styling’s, the film is also about emotion, longing and loss. A particular highlight for me was the inclusion of the process of creation of Chanel’s signature perfume, Chanel No. 5 and the flawless nature of the Chanel brand, down to personal inspection of the salesgirls before trade began for the day.  

If you enjoyed Coco Avant Chanel, expect something slightly more dark and foreboding but still a worthy way to spend two hours. Fashionable, arty and educational.

  • 14 years ago
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Coco Avant Chanel Tres French Chic!

After listening to numerous reports about how wonderful the new film, Coco Avant Chanel (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1035736) is I finally got my turn to see it last night.

The film is magical, and even if you are not into the fashion, the story of a girl who has ambition and follows her dream is at the very core of the storyline. It has love, life and death, all set in beautiful surrounds of the fabulously wealthy and the pleasantly peasant poor.

Audrey Tautou is splendid, and portrays Coco as many would imagine she lived. Her passion and famous ‘you should always take one thing off before leaving the house’ is evident throughout the film – her simple tastes and style start from an early age and it is easy to see why women coveted the clothes she designed. Way ahead of her time, Chanel wore pants long before they were popular for women and pioneered the French fisherman/sailor look.

Visit http://www.chanel.com/ for further inspiration and to see how an orphan girl became one of fashion’s greatest visionaries and a label still relevant today.

In honour of Chanel and her Parisian dreams, today’s recipe is for French toast. Nice and simple, but oh so good!!

French Toast (serves 2)

2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 tbs thin cream
30g unsalted butter
4 thick slices brioche (square)
1 banana, sliced
Creme fraiche, to dollop
Maple syrup, to drizzle
Ground cinnamon, to dust

Beat the eggs together with the vanilla and cream. Heat the butter in a large non-stick frypan over medium heat. When butter is sizzling, dip brioche slices in egg mixture, then place in the pan. Cook brioche for 2 minutes on each side, or until golden.
To serve, stack 2 slices of french toast on each plate, then top with slices of banana and a small dollop of creme fraiche. Drizzle with maple syrup and dust with cinnamon.

Thanks to taste.com.au for recipe

  • 15 years ago
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Say yes to the wedding dress ~ Part One

You might say that I’m the kind of girl who has thought about her wedding dress for some time. You might imagine that ‘some time’ started long before there was a wedding in sight, and you’d be right. When it comes to all out frocks, the wedding dress is perhaps the only time you get to step outside the box and wear something truly incredible (unless you are someone who regularly attends awards ceremonies or black tie galas).

chanel

So my wedding dress search for my upcoming nuptials started in earnest. I was super excited to be the princess I’d always dreamed of, but I also had lots of ideas about my this one amazing dress. My plan was a bit champagne tastes on a beer budget and my fashion experience and ethics said I wanted something I could wear more than once, so after poring over several issues of Hello May, I was convinced I could find what I was looking for.

And then I went shopping.

Following solo trips to a vintage store and David Jones, I decided to start at the epicenter of wedding dresses in Melbourne – High Street, Armadale. First mistake? I tried to make appointments at the stores a week before I wanted to head in. It was almost amusing how the sales assistants laughed when I requested an appointment a week out. As if!

10684023_346048638888726_1746111459_n

So I went anyway and just hit the pavement, taking a walk up and down High Street and simply window shopping, removing the stores from my list that were not in my price range, not in my date range, or not in my style range. I had one left.

My appointment at The Bridal Atelier was a wonderful experience. I took two girlfriends (we are not having a bridal party) and there was champagne. So far, so good! I tried on frocks of various shapes and colours, including a gorgeous gold SarahSeven creation that had to be seen to be believed and a pink ombre number that was ridiculously heavy and cost $13,000.

bridalatelier

I picked a favourite and we went on our way, stopping in at Rachel Gilbert, Aje and Carla Zampatti since we were in the area. They were all good, but not great.

Next stop? Madame Virtue & Co for the most amazing vintage and designer dresses a girl could ask for – if she has a teeny sized waist. I squeezed into a sweet original 1950s Audrey Hepburn-eque gown and shimmied in feathers and sequins. It was the most fun I’d had so far, but I wasn’t feeling it. I can’t wait to go back and just find fab pieces for my wardrobe though!

Carla Zampatti at David Jones got another run with the new season collection, before I made appointments with Gwendolynne and Pamela Usanto to talk bespoke dresses. It was a dream world of sequins and beading, tulle and taffeta.

pamela

And yet I wasn’t feeling it. The more I looked, the more confused I became and the more what I wanted became murky. It was time to broaden the search – so off to the suburbs I went.

Images 1-3 with thanks to instagram/thebridalatelier and 4, instagram.com/pamelausanto

  • 9 years ago
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Fashion Film

These three beautiful fashion films have recently been released to highlight the work that goes into couture dresses and bags. They are romantic in their detail, and truly show the craftmanship that is Dior and Chanel.


Le “Be Dior” sous toutes les coutures par VOGUEPARIS

  • 9 years ago
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A blog birthday

Five years ago, I was living in Mooroolbark. I worked full time. I was single. I hadn’t travelled, I’d never set foot in a Chanel store and I’d never bought anything from ASOS.

In two weeks, this little piece of the interwebs will have been around for five years. Every year, (one, two, three and four) I’ve reiterated how it all started out, and where I am today, so it’s no surprise that I thought thats how I’d start this time round. But you’ve heard it all before. And your time is worth more than that.

So, in two weeks, whilst everyone is celebrating the Queens Birthday weekend, I’ll be celebrating my blog birthday weekend. It’ll be as big as when I turned 30. Stay tuned.

Kathryn Sprigg

Image thanks to Kathryn Sprigg (via Instagram)

  • 10 years ago
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The eve of 30 – Part Four

The final countdown. The last hurrah. There are less than 12 hours left of my 20s. And there are only six things left of my 30 moments before 30 list.

25. Turning 26
My mother was 26 years old when I was born. She’d been married for six years, owned a house and was getting on with life. I had a period of wondering where my life was going – I didn’t have a boyfriend so I wasn’t close to having babies – I wasn’t even working in a job I liked! Many nights of reassuring myself that I had plenty of time left and remembering all the stuff I had going for me made me remember that everyone does things differently. I was having an awesome time living in the city, running my blog and the social side of things. It paid to remember the good things I had, rather than what I didn’t it.

26. My first fashion show
There’s a certain feeling when the lights go down and the big screen comes to life. A fashion show gives me that buzz, a feeling of adrenaline while the music pumps and the lights dim to reveal works of art through a smoky haze. From my first runway show, Target Rocks the Runway, at the L’Oreal Melbourne Fashion Festival close to ten years ago at Waterfront City Docklands, to a personal showing in Paris and a Chanel party in my hometown, my fashion journey is really one I could only ever have dreamt of.

27. The first time I smoked
Many of my high school friends smoked. They’d buy them for 50c a cigarette, or steal them from their parents, and smoke at recess, lunch and after school in the cricket nets on the main oval. I was always terrified of getting caught, plus I knew it was illegal and bad for you. I was straight as an arrow in the behaviour department. As I grew up and rebelled, I asked one of my girlfriends to teach me. We were 16, and she came over after school and we went to the local park where I was apparently ‘a natural’. I came home and immediately confessed to Mum. I couldn’t even rebel without dobbing myself in.

28. Starting my blog
I can’t remember the moment I decided to start a blog. Whether it was my idea, or someone said I should, it came about while I was working in a job that wasn’t very stimulating and I needed something to fill my days. I hadn’t been on Twitter for long and it seemed having a blog was the thing to do. I started Sarah’s Style Emporium using the Blogger platform, and proposed to write a recipe and the outfit you should cook it in. An acquaintance said he gave it two weeks. My blog has moved home twice, gone through several makeovers and in June 2014, will celebrate its 5th birthday. I’ve been invited to events, gifted shoes and drunk so many glasses of complimentary champagne I can no longer keep count. I have been spoilt rotten and I’ve loved every single minute of it.

29. A Little Ray of Sunshine
It’s silly how every time I hear this song, I get a bit choked up. When Mum was pregnant with me, she says that she heard ‘A Little Ray of Sunshine’ by Axiom, ALL the time, and so she knew she was having a girl. For as long as I can remember, it’s been my song. I understand there are a whole stack of girls out there claiming it as their song, but I feel like it’s legitimately mine. Mum and Dad even played it during the speeches at my 21st – and if I was having speeches at my 30th, I’d play it then too.

30. TODAY
Do you ever have those days where you take a moment, sigh, and realise just how friggen awesome your life is? Some people don’t get 30 significant moments in a lifetime, let alone in 30 years – and if I’m being honest, this is just the tip of the iceberg. I have plenty more where those came from – I’m lucky enough to have them coming out my ears. Today my boyfriend wished me a Happy Birthday eve. Last week he wished me a Happy Birthday month. These are the crazy little things that make me smile – when friends send me a fashion picture or an article they think I’ll like; when Mum serves my favourite dinner when we visit; when my brothers help me move house (again); when Dad fills my car with petrol when changing the oil.

Today is significant because it’s my last in my 20s. When I left my teenage years, I couldn’t have imagined this is what life would be like at 30. I was sure I’d have kids by now, living in the suburbs – I doubt I ever would have been to Paris! I have plans for the future now, but I no longer feel like they are instructions or a roadmap. They are a guide, designed to help, but not direct. There is no right or wrong.

Thank you for sharing my moments. I’d love to hear if you have any you feel were turning points in your life – or, if I missed any! And if your birthday is in February, Happy Birthday Month.

Love, Sarah x 

  • 10 years ago
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MSFW 2013 Launches!

How quickly six months flies by in the wonderful world of fashion, as we gathered this morning in Campbell Arcade, beneath Flinders Street Station, to launch to the ‘other’ Melbourne Fashion Event, Melbourne Spring Fashion Week. 


The City of Melbourne led festival, now in its 19th year, will host over 100 events from August 31 through to September 8, showcasing trends, the hottest looks for the warmer seasons and the gems in Melbourne’s fashion crown. This mornings launch unveiled a film, starring Kate Peck and a who’s who of the Melbourne Fashion Scene, entitled ‘Reflections’, and is a glowing tribute to Melbourne and all things style. 

Hosted by Rebecca Madden and Lord Mayor Robert Doyle, this years festival is again a celebration of all things Melbourne – Rebecca quoting Chanel and adding her own twist by saying ‘Fashion in Melbourne is not something that exists in dresses only. It is in the air we breathe.’

Reflections is a reflection (no pun intended!!) of this love of Melbourne, the Lord Mayor saying that the festival is not about frivolity or indulgence, but about smart manufacturing and smart design. With over 90% of the MSFW content being Melbourne derived, we can be sure this is true.


The MSFW: Designer runways will again be hosted at the Melbourne Town Hall, and will this year include a Resort collection runway. Over four nights (and at the bargain price of $35 a ticket), the best of Australia’s designers will strut their stuff on the catwalk and consumers will have the ability to shop the look in stores around Melbourne.


The MSFW: Hub returns to City Square, providing a live site where your lunch break can be filled with beauty, fashion and a retail wonderland. MSFW continues to support the up and comers in MSFW: Emerging, a platform where students from a variety of Melbourne Fashion Schools can exhibit their talent.


The industry events are one of my favourites and 2013 sees MSFW trial a new style of event for the business minded, a full day of thinking and opinions. MSFW: Industry provides the opportunity to learn and share, and is my weeks’ highlight.

Finally, the MSFW: Curated will pepper the week with cultural highlights. Fashion, art, food, film, design and culture will allow visitors to explore the city and discover what exactly makes us tick. Hidden in laneways and around corners, these events are both ticketed and free.

melbourne.vic.gov.au/msfw and tickets at Ticketek
Images thanks to Lucas Dawson/MSFW
T-B: Finale (Designer), David Jones (The Hub), Neo Dia (Emerging)

  • 11 years ago
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