If Marie Antoinette Wore Chanel: The 2013 Resort Collection

The runway at Versailles. Photo AP.

Met Museum Image. Robe à la française, ca. 1765

The Chanel Resort 2013 collection is sort of a fusion of the pop cultural elements associated with Marie Antoinette the icon (think the pastel wigs), 18th century design and a splash of -"If Marie were alive today how would she wear Chanel?". The model's gave off a sort of punk aristocratic vibe in their tennis shoes and pink hair. The show had no shortage of the theatrical and decadence! Marie herself would have been proud. The runway was indeed the palace Versailles and the backdrop the Louis XIV garden and fountain no less.  Karl looked like he was right at home. Karl is no novice when it comes to this era's designs! Let's face it his high crisp white collar and array of ties are a modern  chic take on the 1700's man's attire seen below.  Not to mention the fan we sometimes see him accessorize with!

Met Museum of Art Image.

As a lover of vintage fashion and history, I enjoyed his take on 18th century silhouettes and attention to detail.  There are a couple gowns, I think are particularly interesting and a jacket with  embellishment fit for a queen, see images below.

There are also some of the traditional Chanel nubby textiles reworked into great jackets. The embroidered bodices on the dresses are particularly indicative of the period, although again he has cleaned them up and minimized their overpowering aesthetic. The attention to detail most likely indicates that, although he did an amazing non boring take on the 18th century, he studied the embroidery.  Two books to examine for inspiration are: 18th Century Embroidery Techniques by Gale Marsh and Seventeenth and Eighteenth Century Fashion in Detail by Avril Hart and Susan North.

Photo: Yannis Vlamos / GoRunway.com

             Colonial Williamsburg Collection, Gown, 1745

Photo: Yannis Vlamos / GoRunway.com

  Met Museum of Art Archive. Rococo Jacket.

The Chanel Fashion show is not the first time Versailles has hosted a fashion icon. The exhibit held on July-October of 2008, housed throughout the palace called XVIII Century Back in Fashion Lagerfeld, McQueen, Westwood, Lacroix among other icons that were inspired by the era.  Also on display were some of the clothing of Marie Antoinette and a dress from Sofia Coppola's film. Maybe this experience and the her shoes inspired Karl Lagerfeld to take on Marie and the 18th century. One thing is for sure 18th century vintage and fashions inspired by the era are hot. Check out Dior's Fashion Film Secret Garden filmed inside Versailles.

Poster from the exhibit. Projectlena.com

VINTAGE STORES WITH 18TH CENTURY GOODS:

http://pastperfectvintage.com

http://www.vintagetextile.com