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Chanel At The Crossroads
By Timothy Hagy
On Friday, the French news media was abuzz after a terrorist plot against the state-owned railway was leaked. And while the SNCF is the centerpiece of the socialist government, Chanel is probably the heart and soul of Paris fashion. The threat to the distinguished House, while far less menacing, grows more evident with each passing season. Karl Lagerfeld does his best to give a fresh take on Mademoiselle, but just how many ways can a tweed suit be recycled? And the problem with idling is that you risk falling out of synch with a fast-rolling cyberage.
Friday's show, sent down an asphalt highway, seemed to be heading somewhere new anyway. In a tribute to androgynous dressing, the inspiration for the collection was a photo of Coco Chanel wearing a very masculine suit. And what a U-turn from last season! Try the black leather biker's pants, held up with suspenders, and worn with a pale key-lime-pie-colored top overlaid with black lace. Or another version that included a black vest flowering with a camellia brooch. And still yet, another set of denim-blue leather overhauls paired with a classic Chanel print top. And you begin to get the picture. Karl himself revved up the engine we'll just have to wait and see.
You begin to wonder what this look has in common with, say Madame Chiraq the quintessence of the Chanel woman in France,
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or for that matter, the increasingly Botoxed brows that fill the bleachers at each show. Karl is in many ways a futurist, and though he pointedly skips the Chanel focus group sessions in Deauville, he has begun to confront the same issue that other Houses such as Dior and Givenchy have struggled with - how to rejuvenate a venerable label.
There were also plenty of classic looks at today's show, including wonderful new takes on tweed pantsuits matched with black and white diamond sweater-tops and worn with working-class hats, or skirts built of layers of floating tulle and wrapped with heavy metal chains.
But when it was said and done, forward movement was the predominating theme. The label has reached a crossroads, and where it goes from here - we'll just have to wait and see.
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