Beautiful Rebel

Chanel’s latest perfume is born out of the spirit of liberation; Vanessa Craft rediscovers the woman who inspired it

Gabrielle ‘Coco’ Chanel believed that “people’s lives are an enigma”, and she certainly lived by that statement. Although her name is synonymous with iconography and an unparalleled fashion history, she changed the narrative of her past as frequently as the threads in her sewing machine. In recounting her story, the revolutionary designer often altered details about her past, such as her date of birth or the years she spent in an orphanage as a child. In early adulthood, she started using the name Coco—there are a variety of different stories out there as to why. What really mattered to Chanel, it seemed, was living in a way that she had designed. “I have chosen the woman I want to be and am,” she said.

This kind of self-aware rebellion is a compelling facet of a jewel of a life. Justine Picardie, author of Chanel: Her Life (Steidl, 2011), says she was capable of “remaking history like she remade the sleeves of a jacket, unfastening its seams and cutting its threads and then sewing it all back together again.” Indeed, Chanel reimagined not just her destiny but the way women could dress.

There’s magic to be mined here, so it’s no surprise that the venerable House of Chanel is launching a perfume this fall that was inspired by such a headstrong and passionate woman. Called Gabrielle Chanel Eau de Parfum, it’s essentially a fragrance for the woman who chooses her own path.