September 22, 2015
Style Update: Week 1
This week I’d like to take a closer look at a new edition to our handbag selection. Recently, we acquired this beautiful Chanel shoulder bag featuring pewter vinyl, stitched with the iconic camellia flower design. Needless to say, I fell in love with it immediately. Not only because it is the most versatile type of neutral, a metallic, but also because the camellia stitching was so unique. It added a layer of textural and visual interest to the handbag that is not often seen in other design houses.
After looking into this piece further to write a blog for our website, I learned that this particular design was much more than a pretty flower to Mademoiselle Chanel. As it turns out, Coco Chanel’s greatest love interest, Boy Capel, once gave her a single bloom of the Camellia flower (see photo). From that day on, she fell in love with its beauty and it eventually became an iconic part of her design aesthetic.
The short blooming camellia or Chinese rose symbolizes both, her brief love affair with Boy, as he died tragically after they had only been together 9 years. As well as her everlasting love for him. This beloved blossom was the inspiration for numerous collections of ready to wear, handbags, cosmetics, and jewelry over the years and the eau de perfume Gardenia.
-Hannah Zadeh
STORE 5a S.A.