Chanel presented its latest couture collection from inside a specially-made plane.
The French fashion house is legendary for its intricate pieces. Many design houses have chosen to scale back at the on-going Paris Haute Couture Fashion Week, but that wasn’t an option for creative director Karl Lagerfeld.
He opted to go one step further, by requesting a team create a jet for his fashion models to walk in. They strutted their stuff down the aisle of the structure, which took five days to build.
“I love flying,” Karl said backstage. “I don’t have to talk; everyone around me is watching screens. I can be alone. It’s perfect.”
The clothes were also inspired by the air hostesses of yesteryear, although not too literally. Chanel is a fashion label which creates well-made, chic pieces which are actually wearable, and the Spring/Summer 12 fashion collection was no different.
Dresses came in tweed and hit just above the knee, with flattering short sleeves. For those who prefer a longer-length there were floor-sweeping maxi dresses, some decorated with buttons and others in a chiffon-like fabric with beautiful cut leather jackets over the top. The coats were in lilac, and boasted wide necklines with turned-down collars.
“I didn’t want to make the airplane references too literal,” Karl explained, according to British newspaper The Telegraph. “If you look at what air hostesses really wore back in the 60s, it wasn’t that great and it was very uptight.”
Eveningwear was covered in intricate beading, while the well-known maxi suit also got a look in. This time round it came in different blue hues, from dark to light.
Bags, surprisingly, didn’t get a look in, with garments coming with large pockets instead.
“This is not a collection designed for marketing,” Karl said. “This is a collection for things that I like and ideas that interest me.”
