So this is why a classic black Chanel jacket costs so, so many dollars. (And why I’ll never own one). This two-minute video is made by Chanel and filmed in Paris. It’s the story of the iconic little black jacket – how it comes to life from sketching to cutting, sewing to steaming.
When designer Karl Lagerfield speaks of the Chanel jacket, he says: “It is one of the symbols that defines the style of Chanel. There are things that never go out of fashion, jeans, a white blouse, and a Chanel jacket.”
Now… DIY anyone?
Comments
69 Comments so far
Wow that is a work of art. I could watch that lady sew all day.
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Lucy, I love this post – I’ve been missing your fashion posts!
If only I could afford a Chanel jacket… maybe one day! For this season my one staple item I want (NEED) is a black leather jacket from Kookai. They should come in stock now that it’s autumn *squeal* I’m going to team it with my bright skirts!
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AMAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAZING! My gosh I would sell my soul for a Chanel jacket.
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Chanel was a Nazi, and for that reason, I would never buy anything Chanel branded.
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Coco Chanel is long gone, I don’t think anyone associated with Chanel (in 2012) is a Nazi. However Pearl, Karl Largerfeld is German so you could always extend the ‘guilty by association’ argument to include him.
I don’t suppose you’d buy anything branded Dior or John Galliano……
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It really irritates me when people say that I shouldn’t buy $2000 shoes, $5000 jackets and $800 t-shirts because I don’t “need” them and that that money should be donated to charity.
When was the last time you decided to forego chocolate and donate that $6 to charity instead? The last time I checked, chocolate was never a necessity. It’s pretty much the pot calling the kettle black.
And instead of buying branded shampoo, how about you buy generic brand and donate that $10 to charity? And I’m sure you didn’t need that new iPhone/iPad. I’m sure charities would love to have had your $600.
Practice what you preach before you start dissing my personal spending habits.
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Love your user name
And yes you are very correct.
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You can spend what you like and I don’t necessarily think you should not buy $2000 shoes because you could buy $100 shoes and give the rest to charity…I just don’t see why you would want $2000 shoes. They don’t hold value to me; but obviously they do for you.
But this is coming from a uni student who earns $300 a week, buys fair trade chocolate and donates regularly to charity.
I think if you have worked hard for what you have, then you deserve to spend your money as you desire. I like to use mine to help others, but by that same token I’m not going to stop saving for a house deposit or stop buying the occasional luxury item and give all of my money to charity. I’ve worked hard for it, so should use it in a way that makes me happy.
[Edit: having read some posts below on the longevity of some designer pieces, I've come to appreciate the value more. Seems like investing on a few staple pieces is a good idea; though the seasonal stuff seems like a waste]
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I would stop buying things made in china where it is child slavery. Save money for quality and well earnt. Go to the Op shops where the rich live as they wear once and then throw out. You will find great designer wear without the price tag.
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That is such a great tip re: the op shops!
I agree with the things made in China, too…it quite puts me off Kmart. It’s all well and good that they sell jeans for $19, but all of their stuff is made in China. I don’t necessarily want to buy things that aren’t made in China (because people there need income) but I want them to be paid fairly for their work and have decent work conditions. If that means spending extra on the final product, I’m happy to do that. Unfortunately, most people prefer to get everything on the absolute cheap…
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“I would stop buying things made in china where it is child slavery”
Easier said than done – unfortunately almost *everything* is made in China these days, including some reasonably high-end stuff (Country Road, Sportscraft, etc).
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Spend your money on whatever you damn well like. I couldn’t give a toss, it’s your money. We all make decisions based on our own circumstances and it’s not really up to anyone else to start imposing their standards/beliefs on others.
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The lady doth protest too much?????
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How much does something like that actually cost? Could I ever afford such a thing?
The craftsmanship looks beautiful. I just loved watching her hands at work…
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Around $3000 to $6000 for a ready to wear, around ten times that for haute couture apparently…
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Faaarck me! $30,000 for a jacket. So far out of my stratosphere, I would choke.
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No. Not thirty thousand, surely? Thirty thousand? THIRTY THOUSAND?!?!
$3000 is unattainably expensive, but if it were made anything like this… I could appreciate that much. But Thirty. Thousand???
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I think the are aiming for unattainable with couture? If everyone could get it, the status wouldn’t be there.
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Apparently a starting price of $30000. That’s why so few people actually buy it.
cf: http://www.smh.com.au/lifestyle/fashion/who-wears-paris-haute-couture-very-few-apparently-20100709-1041u.html
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I love Chanel. I would love to own one of their jackets *sigh*.
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aaahh one of those jackets is definitley on my one-day wish list….
along with a perfect little chanel 4.0 purse….
and black loubiton pumps
and a burberry trench coat
and an hermes birkin bag..
and….oh god.
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Louboutin, you mean?
/end pedant mode
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Goodness me, did you know what she meant? Was there really any need to correct the poster?
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Even the pattern makers & dressmakers look chic!
Love it, want it, but having 3 daughters I must have 3, black, white, tweed.
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I can wear a Chanel jacket without feeling like Patsy from AbFab…let them kiss my buttons!
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This film is my version of porn!
I am a firm believer in buying less but buying quality. My husband bought me a Chanel bag in Paris about 3 years ago. It is the only black evening bag I will ever need or want and I have no doubt I will still be using it when i’m 80 (unless my daughters have stolen it).
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For a start, I do not look like the house model they tried the jacket on – try two of her and then you’re getting the gist of curvy lil me! However I am now inspired and as my mum is a pretty decent sewer (back in her day made her own clothes, wedding dress/beaded Chanel-ish going away outfit etc), I’m gonna show her this video and see if she can make a knock off Chanel-ish jacket for me
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My mum was a dressmaker. She worked at George’s in Melbourne when she was younger. I was a reluctant sewer as a kid, but got talked into a short sewing course as a young adult and can now sew. Together with my mum I’ve made flower girl dresses for my girls and have made evening wear for myself by myself. I haven’t sewed for a while, but I think I could with the right pattern, could attempt a Chanel style jacket. I’ve always wanted one, with a matching skirt.
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but where in this video are the little Chinese girls that make the bulk of the Chanel jackets?
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My thoughts exactly. I was going to say the reason they are expensive is because these women are Italian and not Chinese (who do the same job).
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Couture is always made in house by the fashion houses in Paris/Milan etc.
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I thought they were made in Italy?
I think you’re looking for the knockoffs, they are made in “Paris”. That is, Paris, a suburb somewhere deep in China…
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I own a Chanel bag which says it is made in Paris. Coco Chanel was French. I know it’s authentic because I bought it from directly from a Chanel boutique.
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It’s ok, the jackets and bags are made in different places!
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Are all the Chanel staff obliged to wear black, too? I couldn’t last a day there with my colourful wardrobe…
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While the jacket is lovely and the skills used to make the initial pattern are very clever and take years to learn, we have to realise not every jacket is made that way. That was just the sample.
Sure a black or navy jacket is a classic, but you don’t have to spend thousands on one to get the same result
I sew a lot of my clothes and to be honest, I don’t want the jacket, I want the sewing machine she was using. The way it skimmed over the pins without snapping the needle impressed me the most
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LOL… I so get this Lou. Too funny.. made my afternoon
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Thanks Amanda. Nothing worse than “needle snap” when you’re motoring away at the machine
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My sewing machine can do that. Cant they all?
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NOooooo – couture jackets have hand stitching! The shaping in the shoulders, and collars etc. have the hand stitching in the interfacing to create shape. There is so much more to it than what the video shows.
http://www.kimiko1.com/dressdiaries/ElzbthnPeascod/index.html
(not really the right link but it shows good photos of what goes on underneath a quality shaped garment. No sewing machine can do that.)
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I wish my old Singer would do that. Unfortunately it’s all stop and go as I remove pins and try to make sure I don’t get any puckering.
I think the commercial machines are fantastic. But I can’t afford one just like I can’t afford the jacket.
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You might like this link, apparently a DIY Chanel takes 70 odd hours! That includes the seventeen hours to set in the sleeves. Mein gott!
http://www.burdastyle.com/blog/a-classic-french-jacket-70-hours-to-the-dream
I have trouble sewing an apron. I have a long way to go.
http://the-accidental-housewife.blogspot.com.au/
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I found a link on an article for DIY couture jackets but I think MM thought I was spruiking because it was a commercial blog…
Anyway, it said it takes seventy hours to make from scratch, including seventeen hours just to inset the sleeves. Crazy! I do NOT have the patience for that.
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Oh, they put it back in =) Thanks MM!
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I noticed that too. Impressive.
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I know! I was oohing over that too…Imagine, not having to stop and pull your pins out…
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Um isn’t that how most clothes are made, isn’t it just that cheaper clothes are made by people earning a pittance and there are more of them made. I’ve bought jackets from target that have lining as well – woopdey doo! Let’s not kid ourselves you are paying for a brand.
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My grandmother still wears the Chanel jacket she bought when she was 21. More than 5 decades later it looks as good as new, thought it has been worn literally thousands of times. As a bonus, although it is used, it is also worth far more today than the price she paid back then. Couldn’t say that about a jacket from Target.
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& thats where the value is, I had a dear old aunt who wore her pink Chanel suit from 25-85, it always looked pristine & timeless.
You dont get that from Target, or even Country Road
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The way it is cut and the attention to detail are the ‘ woop de doo’ I studied tailoring at school and there is a significant difference in a truly well made item. Having said that I’d pay more money for a bespoke suit than a designer jacket. Different strokes for different folks
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I think this is amazing – making something out of nothing. I’m especially in awe of the people who make and sew these things day after day (my sewing skills are rudimentary). And, of course, the materials are high quality. I don’t know what this says about consumerism except that people obviously appreciate the time, effort and skill that goes into these garments enough to keep buying them.
Though I wouldn’t mind getting those skills for myself and making my own clothes! ^_^
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Ummm…….am I only the only cynic that thinks that this is a corporate marketing video? It’s highly unlikely that this is how a chanel item, other than the initial sample, is manufactured.
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Well whilst of course the way a fahion house’s garments are constructed is inevitably going to be incorporated into their marketing strategy, all of the Chanel pieces are made in this way. The authenticity and the attention to detail are what has built the Chanel brand into the most powerful in the fashion industry.
And it’s not manufacturing. It’s a craft, and it’s art.
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Gorgeous – reminds me of a video I saw about how a Hermes Birkin bag is made…
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Hhhhmmmm, interesting $4 to $6 k on a jacket or feeding a starving family or educating a poverty stricken child for their entire life. No matter how much work goes is into it I know what I prefer. A jacket is a jacket like any other jacket I guess…..
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I have one Birkin Bag, one Kelly bag and one Longchamps Pilage. The Kelly was passed down from my mother. I expect in a few years I will have to replace my Pilage, but otherwise I won’t be buying another bag, ever. I have one Burberry trenchcoat, and again, I won’t be buying another coat again. I have a Chanel jacket and a Ralph Lauren blazer, and that’s it. The Hermes, Chanel and Burberry will all be passed on to another generation, and hopefully another after that. I generally buy one very expensive fashion item every few years, and a handful of high-quality basics. I spend less on fashion than my friends, who mostly shop at stores like Target and Sportsgirl. Often the more expensive option is the most economical.
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I like your thinking!
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Re: the Kelly & Birkin bags – instead of buying those, I think I could probably buy a new bag every year for the rest of my life & still spend less.
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The Kelly was the only fashion bag my mother ever owned, a gift from from her parents on her 18th. It is one of 3 I own, and as I don’t need 3 bags, it will go to my niece when she turns 18. It looks as good as new, despite being used daily for decades, so hopefully it will continue to be used for many generations. The Birkin I’ll keep for as long as I’m around, and then it will either go to another relative or friend or be auctioned for charity. The Kelly has already paid for itself many times over, the Birkin will as well. The Pilage has lasted me 7 years so far, and I expect it will last at least another 3 or so. I bought it on sale overseas, so it didn’t cost much more than a leather bag from Target.
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Please adopt me as your niece. I am house trained….
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I don’t think the point she’s making is about expense, it’s about longevity. Investing in pieces like this and passing them down generations means contributing less to landfill, in the long run. I can’t afford those bags but I appreciate their value in that sense.
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But why would you want to buy a different bag every year if you have one or two gorgeous ones?
I also have a Burberry coat. I’ll probably never buy another one because I won’t need to. A friend of mine has just replaced the one she bought 30 years ago. I have a few expensive bags because, in the words of the advert, I’m worth it. I’ll probably buy one more fantastic bag and then I’ll take it into my coffin with me!
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Gorgeous gorgeous gorgeous gorgeous gorgeous!!!!!!!!! Oh what lovely gifts to pass down to your children. This makes me so happy to read!
xxxxx
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Oh come off it! Do you donate the equivilent amount of $$$ to charity instead of buying a piece of clothing when you need it?
Besides, the people who can afford these clothes often do donate large amounts to charity – even if it is for appearances.
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The price makes sense when you see the work that goes into them.
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Exactly – all hand made in good quality materials. If all our clothes were hand made by people who got paid a fair rate, everything would be that expensive.
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And don’t forget the amount of them made. You’re unlikely to spend that much on something and see every Tom, Dick and Harry carting it around!
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Love!
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x a thousand
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