Dear Reader:
Even a brief visit to a museum tells the story of the close relationship between artists and flowers. In fact, the memory of some painters has become entwined with the blooms they admired. We will forever associate Vincent Van Gogh with the sunflower, Georgia O’Keeffe with the poppy and Claude Monet with the water-lily.
But, painters are not the only creative people to draw inspiration from the garden. French designer and business woman, Gabrielle Chanel, loved the beautiful, short-blooming camellia or Chinese rose. Nearly 50 years after her death, it is still one of the most instantly recognizable emblems in all of Chanel’s accessories, clothing and jewelry.
How did the camellia become such an integral part of one of the most successful fashion houses in the world? It is thought that the Madame became entranced with the flower after reading Alexandre Dumas’ ‘La Dame aux Camélias’ (The Lady with the Camellias) as a young girl. The heroine of the story always wore a camellia. The flower’s symbolic value was also important to the designer. In Eastern culture, the white camellia represents purity and longevity. Coco also appreciated the fact that the camellia is without scent, and, as such, didn’t interfere with the perfection of her signature scent, and my favorite perfume, Chanel No 5.
I’ve always loved fashion and recognized designers as the artists they are. I do not live a haute couture lifestyle, but my admiration for Chanel’s style aesthetic has influenced my fashion and style choices throughout my life. She believed in simplicity, elegance and comfort. She was the first designer to suggest that women dress with their daily routines in mind. She radically promoted the notion that woman should, first and foremost, dress to please themselves.
Chanel loved the ease of black and white punctuated with stripes and loads of faux pearls. With the stroke of her pen and the scissors that famously dangled around her neck, she transformed men’s wear into elegant, feminine clothes for the modern woman. She also gave us the little black dress (LBD) back in 1926.
If you too admire Chanel’s aesthetic, but not the price tag, I recommend these lovely Target (TGFT!) finds:
- little black evening dress
- black and white stripe day dress
- collarless jacket
- floral pop-over blouse
- floral statement necklace
- and, pearls, of course
If you are not lucky enough to have a garden full of camellias, like me, you can also purchase a lovely bouquet of artificial camellias.
I cannot deny the beauty of the white camellia, but I reserve my greatest affection for pink roses. And in the spirit of Coco Chanel, my favorite flower inspired me to create a pink shed and then…from the pink shed.
What’s your favorite flower, dear reader?
I didn’t know all this about Chanel and white camellias. Fun facts and cute style recommendations!
TY Beth!
I remember you being a fan of classic clothing like Talbot’s. I did not realize we had Chanel to thank for the wearing clothing that moves with the body and allows us to go about our day. Target does a lot to bring the look of high fashion to their clothing lines, to make it accessible to everyone.
We too have a white camellia growing in the garden, but your blooms look super-sized. My favorite flower constantly changes with the seasons. I couldn’t possible pick one.
Glad you’ve got a white camellia, too! Camellias love Carmel, so we’ve many to admire. I love many flowers, too, but the small pink roses on the archway to our garden are my favorite. They smell lovely and they are my perfect shade of pink. But, I truly admire white flowers. I find them to be so dramatic. P.S. So excited for your “two-faced Tessa” page…how fun!!!!
Mine would have to be the Morning Glory – not only for the color (blue/purple) but also because they get up at sunrise like the rest of us
what time does the sun rise…retired people forget?!