A Number
All of Chanel’s stories start with a number. On February 2, 1955, Chanel created the accessory that would become the most mythical of all time. Like the famous Number 5 or Number 19, Chanel assigned her creations not with a name but rather a date marking forevermore their initial entry into fashion history.
A Material
A multitude of juxtaposed and quilted rhombuses, plump and fluffy, are what first meet when viewing the 2.55 bag. It’s a sophisticated texture for a sensual approach to the material. Chanel’s emblematic padded quilting, often imitated but never replicated, is inspired by menswear, especially waistcoats worn by the stablemen that worked in Coco’s go-to racetracks. The doubled garnet, for its part, evokes the color of her orphanage uniform. Like Proust’s madeleines, the 2.55 is sure to awaken repressed memories. Unique and therefore authentic, this is the spirit of Chanel: a “territory of secrets, a space reserved for the backstage of memory “. Avant-garde, Chanel imagined it to have several interior pockets and to appear in three styles: small, medium, and large.
A Strap
Indistinguishable from the bag, the shoulder strap is a revolution in and of itself. Created by Chanel after a growing discontent with having to always carry bags by hand – back then all bags had a wallet or clutch shape to them, it responded to Coco’s original desire to make fashion something simple and practical. A gold chain simply braided with leather frees up the woman’s body – namely her hands – while preserving her charm and elegance. Didn’t she once say herself: “there’s no other beauty than the liberty of the body? ” This freedom was considered by Chanel to be first and foremost a spiritual one, as emphasized by the mischievously famous clasp dubbed “Mademoiselle “.
An Icon
Timeless. The 2.55 has become a “component of Chanel’s iconography, recognizable at first sight “. Brought back to center stage by Karl Lagerfeld in the 80s, the 2.55 is adorned with the classic double Cs that it brazenly exhibits on the original clasp. C for Chanel, C for Couture; “King Karl ” never ceases to reinvent Chanel. The latest reinterpretation of the 2.55 for the Summer 2013 collection continues to render hommage to the original. The braided leather chain lives on, timeless. The new PVC style, green apple-colored or transparent, brings us back to our childhoods in such a way that it can only be an homage.
“Chanel built her own fashion following her needs like Crusoe built his cabana”, says Paul Morand. Chanel’s creations were meant to make a woman’s life better. Recently interviewed by the BBC, Karl Lagerfeld declared “We create a product nobody needs but people want”. Could this be a contradiction? On the contrary. Lagerfeld is according to Charles-Roux “a great composer who works towards variations on […] a theme that’s named Chanel”. He’s been able to achieve what Chanel first tried to start: replacing need with desire. The 2.55 is and always will be Chanel’s definitive “must have”, a pure dream for every self-respecting woman.
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