As I have been delving deeper into my research, I have stumbled upon some surprising facts.
In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, fashion was a significant matter that people cared for (as it is today, of course). During that time, many new fashion houses, such as Elsa Schiaparelli and Balenciaga, opened up in Paris. However, during World War II, numerous fashion houses closed due to the invasion in Paris. The Vichy Regime, the French government that combined with the Axis powers, marketed the model of the mother and wife, the strong, muscular young woman. This type of physique was more appropriate with the new political standard. Simultaneously, Germany was taking over a large part of France's high fashion, and was thinking about moving French haute couture to Vienna and Berlin, which were not even fashion cities! Unsurprisingly, Jews were prohibited from the clothing industry. Throughout the occupation, the primary way a woman put herself on display was by wearing a hat. This couldn't scream Coco Chanel any more since she started her fashion line with hats!
Many would assume that Chanel learned how to sew in a formal Parisian school. However, that is not the case. Following her mother's death, Chanel's father who worked as a peddler, put her in an orphanage. She was brought up by nuns that taught her how to sew...I couldn't be more grateful to these nuns for giving Chanel the skills that shaped her influential accomplishments in fashion. This goes to show that anyone can be a star if they work hard and believe.
