Coco Chanel
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Coco Chanel was a French fashion designer who revolutionized women's fashion in the 20th century. She was known for her simple and elegant designs that were both comfortable and stylish. Chanel was also famous for her love of accessories, including costume jewelry.
Costume jewelry gained popularity in the early 20th century as an affordable alternative to expensive fine jewelry, due in part to the work of Coco Chanel.
Chanel believed that accessories were essential to complete a look, and she often layered multiple strands of pearls or wore oversized brooches to add interest to her outfits. Coco Chanel was one of the first fashion designers to incorporate costume jewelry into her designs, making it a fashionable accessory. She designed her own costume jewelry, often using materials like faux pearls, rhinestones, and enamel to create pieces that were both fashionable and affordable for women of all social classes..
In 1927 Chanel found Duke Fulco di Vedure for her own line of costume jewelry. Together they designed the iconic Chanel Maltese Cross motif. Filled with multi-color semiprecious stones and set upon a mismatched pair of white enamel bracelets. Chanel added them to her personal wardrobe and wore them constantly. They became commercially available in 1930 and have remained a mainstay of the Chanel jewelry collection since.
Following World War II, Chanel reopened in 1954 and resumed producing jewelry with Gripoix. Robert Goossens was well-known in the couture jewelry, having designed for Rochas, Balenciaga, and Elsa Schiaparelli, when Chanel turned to him to design her collection. He is best-known for designing a gold brooch with three pearls and a diamond which Chanel wore herself and replicated in her collection. Goossens continued designing for the Chanel brand, even after Coco Chanel passed away in 1971.
Early Chanel costume jewelry was not marked. In 1954 they began marking some jewelry with a round Chanel cartouche with three stars or a block mark stamped directly into the piece. This continued through the 1960s.
It wasn’t until the 1970s that Chanel costume jewelry was more consistently marked. A round mark was used with copyright and registered symbols flanking CHANEL in all caps along with made in France and the CC logo. Variations were used going into the 1980s, and some have the year the piece was produced as well.
Oval marks were used after the early 1980s, and some indicate the fashion season correlating to the piece such as “©CHANEL® 2 CC 3 MADE IN FRANCE,” in which the 2 and 3 indicate season 23. Others may have numbers and letters like “93 CC P” (made 1993 for the spring season), or “94 CC A” (made in 1994 for the fall season). Some Chanel jewelry was also produced in Italy beginning in the 1990s and it is marked as such.
When Lagerfeld joined Chanel in 1983, the brand’s familiar CC logo was also featured more and more prominently. Gold-plated metal and simulated baroque pearls were widely used in Chanel pieces during this era. Charm bracelets, large pendant earrings, and sautoir-length strands of faux pearls from the ‘80s and ‘90s are all popular with collectors as are pieces imitating the famous Chanel handbags twist-lock clasp.
Vintage Chanel jewelry is highly sought after by collectors today, with pieces ranging from classic pearl necklaces to bold, statement-making brooches. Chanel's influence on the world of fashion and accessories continues to be felt today, making her a true icon of style and sophistication.
Be warned that jewelry made with a Chanel mark in script was not designed or sold by this couture house. A company named Reinad, doing business as Chanel Novelty Co., made those pieces in America in 1941. Although the fashion house was closed during World War II, Coco Chanel aggressively protected her brand and made Reinad stop using the name. Chanel Novelty Co. pieces, which are limited in number due to the short production time, are interesting and collectible in their own right. They are not, however, true Chanel designs.
You may view available jewlery from this & other designers by searching for their name in our shop.