Originally just a women’s fashion line, the House of Chanel
was founded in 1909 by Gabrielle Chanel, and has since become an
internationally recognised high-end brand. In 1910, Gabrielle Chanel (nicknamed
Coco) opened her first boutique in Paris and by 1919, she was a licenced
couturiere.
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| Chanel Boutique |
The most infamous Chanel product is undoubtedly perfume
Chanel No.5, the best-selling fragrance in the world. Presented to the market
in 1922, Chanel was the first fashion house to create a perfume. It was named
after Gabrielle’s lucky number, 5! 30 years later, the fragrance was still
hugely popular, in fact, during an interview in1954, Marilyn Monroe famously
answered the question, “What do you wear to bed?” with the line, “Just a few
drops of No5”.
In the 70s however, Chanel decided that No.5 had lost it’s
exclusivity so the reinvented it and made it less widely available.
The beauty empire of Chanel came about soon after the
fashion house created their first perfume, Chanel No.5. Since then it has grown
into a complete beauty line including skin care, makeup and other perfumes. The
cosmetics line launched in 1924 and was soon followed by skincare in 1929.
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| Advertisement for Chanel No.5 |
Today, Chanel has a full cosmetics line as well as brushes. They're the most accessible Chanel products, available online or from Chanel makeup counters, most commonly found in department stores. Their
top-rated products include their mascaras, lip-glosses and nail polishes.
The Inimitable Mascara delivers volume, separation, length
and curl upon application thanks to its unique formula and brush design.
Long time best selling lip gloss, Levres Scintillantes
Glossimer, is available in over 30 shades and offers comfort and lasting colour
in it’s moisturising formula.
Incredibly popular in recent years, Le Vernis Nail Colour’s
are available in both classic and fashion-forward colours.
Chanel launches seasonal collections for spring, summer,
fall and winter.
On the Chanel website, makeup artist Lisa Eldridge can be found demonstrating how to achieve particular looks with products or offering general tips on application. Since June 2011, she has worked with Chanel to create over 40 unique videos per year for their site.
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| Lisa Eldridge for Chanel |
Here are some of Chanel's product advertisements, as found in magazines. I find these advertisements for Chanel to be very chic and classy, perfectly reflecting the style of Chanel. Each model presents the products in beautiful head and shoulder poses. They’re very simple and elegant adverts.
A brief history of Chanel | Fashion | The Guardian. 2015. A brief history of Chanel | Fashion | The Guardian. [ONLINE] Available at:http://www.theguardian.com/fashion/fashion-blog/2012/feb/20/brief-history-of-chanel. [Accessed 05 May 2015].
Chanel Cosmetics. 2015. Chanel Cosmetics. [ONLINE] Available at:http://makeup.lovetoknow.com/Chanel. [Accessed 05 May 2015].
