Chanel marks 100 years with short film

Alongside a cast of top models, Keira Knightley plays Gabrielle 'Coco' Chanel in a short film by creative director Karl Lagerfeld chronicling the opening of the Chanel boutique in 1913.

The year is 1913 and Gabrielle 'Coco' Chanel - played by British actress Keira Knightley - and her aunt Adrienne (Clotilde Hesme) have just set up shop in the well-heeled holiday town of Deauville in northern France.

Coco Chanel (Knightley) fits a hat upon hard-to-please society lady played by Amanda Harlech.

At the time, Chanel primarily specialised in minimalist hats, which were a stark contrast to the over-embellished styles that were the current rage.

"She has absolutely no taste," say a pair of local maids who pass by her shop window, clearly shocked by her pared-back design aesthetic.

But slowly and surely, Chanel starts building up a clientele of strong-minded, wealthy women who know exactly what they want. Cue guest appearances from Chanel's favourite people: model Stella Tennant plays noblewoman Lady Jane Grey and has her hats shipped to England; visionary actress Eve Lavallière is brought to life by Tallulah Harlech while her mother Lady Amanda Harlech (Karl Lagerfeld's muse) is a hard-to-please society lady.

Inspirational Coco CHANEL: From an Orphanage, to absolute Fashion Glory

FG10 came across 10 overwhelming facts about the Coco Chanel; we read them over and over again and all you could notice is one wave of inspiration. The determination, the creativity and innovative mind she carried are clearly the reason of why CHANEL still stands as one of the most prominent fashion brands the industry has ever known.

Chanel posing in her own perfume advertisement (1937)

It caught our eyes since we're in a time where emerging talents are struggling to find their way to the runway. Perhaps, these few facts will touch you and inspire you the way they did to us. Perhaps these facts will show you that passion and determination can take you anywhere, that there is never an "end", but continuous new beginnings that unveil at the threshold of every accomplishment. We hope these facts tell you that there is nothing as "I'm there"; instead, there's "I want to do more - this isn't just it..".

Ali MacGraw - star of "Love Story"

TEN Inspirational Facts about Coco Chanel

She was born in France in 1883 and was part of a big family, as one of five children.

When Coco was 12, her mother passed away from tuberculosis and her father left the family; she spent the next six years in an orphanage.

She became a licensed hat-maker and owned her first shop in 1910.

She introduced her first perfume, Chanel No. 5, in 1922, and it was one of the first perfumes ever to mix natural and artificial essences.

She invented the “Little Black Dress” in 1926, which French Vogue dubbed “Chanel’s Ford”, for its practicality and marketability.

She is credited with popularizing the concept of “costume jewelry” in the 1920s, creating seasonal jewelry that mixed fake pearls with real stones.

She introduced the idea of using jersey fabric to create clothing, which had prior been used only for men’s undergarments.

She and her brand are most well known for costume jewelry, two-tone shoes, quilted bags, and simple suits made of tweed or jersey.

Her classic Chanel suit became famous for its flattering cut, simple fabric, and specially weighted lining, to give it that perfect hang.

She died in 1971 at the Ritz Hotel in Paris at the age of 88.

Chanel Haute Couture Fall 2011

For Chanel Couture Fall 2011 fashion show, Lagerfeld also being an architect aswell as a designer, photographer and director transformed the catwalk into the Place Vendome. The collection walked you down memory lane, beginning with none other than Coco Chanel famous tweed and skirt suit designs.

Karl Lagerfeld made it clear Chanel Couture is all about the suit skirts and tweed jackets which later grew more Avant guarde. There is something quite romantic and mysterious about Chanel collection, perhaps it was the use of dark colours.

Well what can you say but that Karl Lagerfeld is a master when it comes to Fashion and never stops amazing the crowd.

Images sourced from Style