A Chic Paris Lockdown – Day 9 – Channel Chanel

 April 28, 2020

  “Have a Closet Like Coco” is the title for Day 9 in Fiona Ferris’s book, 30 More Chic Days. Fiona writes that Coco Chanel can give us a few pointers for living the chic life of our dreams.  Coco created a unique, specific style vision for herself and she lived according to that vision. What the rest of the world was doing and wearing was not important to her. Coco’s style was comfortable, distinctive and timeless. Her color palette was flattering and consistent.  She created a style that suited her preferences and her lifestyle and stuck with it throughout her life.

What can we learn from Coco Chanel with regards to personal style and clothing?

1. Know your colors and dress in them. Go to a department store or a color specialist and spend some time evaluating which colors are the most flattering for your complexion.  Listen to the advice of the specialist and consider their opinions.  I got my colors “done” last Spring at RedLeopard in London (www.redleapord.co.uk). It took Annie (the specialist) a little while to convince me that I was a Spring (rather than the Winter as I had thought I was.)  Fast forward a year and I look so much better. (Pre-RedLeopard, I use to look in the mirror and think, “Gosh, I look tired.” Which, of course, I usually am but do I have to look it? It turned out that I was wearing the wrong shades – not over-the-top wrong but just enough wrong to make my skin look washed out.)  Post-RedLeopard, the colors around my face now work with me.  I did some judicious shirts and sweaters acquisition over the following 6-8 months (not too many as I had the “France filter” – as in what could I fit in a large suitcase for at least two years in Paris?) Luckily, I managed to hit several outlet stores at just the right time to stock up on Spring and Summer tops.

2. Buy certain things like underwear, footwear and coats for quality.  Expect to spend more for them and to take care of them in the years to come. With cotton short-sleeved and long-sleeved shirts and shorts, on the other hand,  the most important thing is that they are in the best colors for you. But don’t spend a lot of money. Cotton shirts will wear out and fade after a few summers even with really good care. Expect that you will need to let them go and purchase new shirts every so often.

3. Have a few pieces that are uniquely, distinctively you.  As an example, I have a crazy velvet evening cape that is trimmed in long, black, iridescent rooster feathers. (I found it at a consignment store decades ago.) It may not be the evening wrap of choice for many, but I love it. I wear it to any formal or semi-formal event that I can. I adore swanning about in it and it always starts conversations. I especially love that I leave a feather or two at every event (my cape is ever-so-slightly molting!) The point is to find a wonderful signature piece that makes you feel marvelous and enjoy it to the fullest.

4. Keep a style file that reflects your tastes and nurtures your creativity. It’s a tool that can help you live your own distinctive, fun, chic life!