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| Although Christian Dior enjoyed great success with his New Look, he did see some rebellion. Coco Chanel, in protest to Dior's ultra-feminine tight waist, reopened her fashion house, closed during World War II, with a straight and boxy silhouette. Her practical designs of quality, solid wool jersey fabrics won the approval of the working class as well as the wealthy. Chanel designs, perhaps more than any other, were extensively copied, and can be seen even today in the fashion world. Her famous quote "If there is no copying, how are you going to have fashion?" resonates true today.
Coco Chanel was an original. She designed exactly what she wanted, without regard for the norms of society. She was already radical in the 1920s, with her introduction of women's trousers. Her extensive use of knit fabrics brought new and innovative possibilities to fashion with straight and slim-fitting jumpers, pullover sweaters and turtlenecks. Coco designed fashions for herself, and if everyone in the world wanted to wear these things too, that was fine with her. Chanel rejected the tyranny of fashion, designing styles that worked for women with a focus on comfort and practicality. The legacy of Coco Chanel lives on in the fashions of today.
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| Jersey knit, silk covered buttons, silk bias trim. c. 1960. Museum of the Rockies Collection.
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| Corselette,
Waist Nipper. c. 1950. Museum of the Rockies Collection.
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