Chanel No. 5

Blazer: Century Vintage, Dress: H&M, Shoes: Jessica Simpson, Bag: ShoeDazzle, Belt: Target (Photos: Shelby E. Anderson)

I attended a presentation and exhibit this evening honoring legendary designer, Coco Chanel at The Mint Museum. The theme of tonight was "Chanel: Designs for the Modern Woman". That theme inspired this outfit. When I think of Chanel I think of structured, menswear-inspired jackets, the LBD (little black dress), lace details, and strands of pearls. So...I threw all of that together and then added a hint of leopard print to spice it up. I didn't know much about Chanel as a person until a few years ago when LMN (Lifetime Movie Network) came out with a movie chronicling her life. What an amazing, incredible, and inspiring woman. Her mother passed when she was a young child and after that her father left her and her 5 siblings. She ended up growing up in an orphanage (in/around Paris, France) and learning how to sew. That skill lead to her first job and ultimately to designing and making hats for Parisian actresses and socialites. Her line of fashionable hats lead to designing clothing and creating perfume (which is of course,  are the two things her brand is best known for today). Chanel pushed the limits of fashion at the time, wearing and urging other women to wear pants and suits for fashion as opposed to utility. She never let go of femininity though. She is well knows for her suits, tailored beautifully to the curves of a woman's body,  and pairing the elegant combination of black and white; detailing with lace, accessorizing with hats, flowers, and oodles and oodles of pearls! Chanel was a fighter, innovator, fierce business woman, free-spirit, scandalous public figure (mistress of married men and lovers with a German Nazi spy), and creative genius. She truly changed the way women of her (and our) day dress and carry themselves.  I think it is safe to say that she lived out one of her famous quoted statements to perfection: "A girl must be two things: classy and fabulous".