Inspirations on the runway: Chanel Fall 2013

Do you ever ask yourself what it’s like to live the life of a Kaiser? I have a close friend who often does. When I refer to the Kaiser, I’m talking about Karl Lagerfeld, of course. For the last 30 years, he made no secrets about his serious design on taking Chanel, the luxury fashion brand, to the highest possible level. And judging from what we’ve seen in the past decades, he’s done just that. Further evidence was exhibited on the runways at the grand palais in Paris this past Tuesday afternoon. The 79-year old fashion designer made clear that the Chanel brand is like no other. I think it’s safe to say that his plan has always been to make the house that Coco built even bigger than his own line, and the Frendi line for that matter.

So! Have you seen the Vogue video yet? It’s a must see, if you’re a Chanel fan. Models parading around an enormous globe, each one wearing colored mink cloche hats, heavy metal boots with chains (perhaps an inspiration from Peter Marino?), and traditional-like Chanel garbs with a strong sympathy to the punk movement. The entire look, although very elegant, had a streetwise quality to it. Nothing wrong with that, mind you. I was taken by the “high leather boots, jeans with tweed patches on the legs”, and the “new” little black dresses which I’ll never tire of. The commercial impact of Chanel is huge, no one can deny that, and even though the brand is not currently in every single corner of the world, the Kaiser is looking to change that. Real fast.