Coco's Beginnings: Gabrielle Bonheur Chanel was born in France in 1883. When her mother died of illness when she was twelve, her father abandoned her and his brothers and sisters. She was taken in by nuns in an orphanage where she learned to sew. The black and white clothing of the nuns inspired her creations, notably the “Little Black Dress/LBD”. Learning to sew was her means of escape. Without the life-changing tragedies of her childhood, Chanel might never have learned to sew. After leaving the orphanage, she decided to start selling linens, but when that failed, she began singing, acting and dancing. She adopted the name "Coco" during a brief career as a café and cabaret singer. She met a young businessman, Arthur Milliner, who helped her open a hat shop in Paris in 1910. In this essay, I will describe how Coco Chanel paved the way for women's fashion and her influences that made still an integral part of fashion today. Chanel Chanel: She was rebellious and had the most radical ideas of her time. She completely rejected the constraints of corsets. She paved the way for other women in the fashion world, which was primarily made up of men dressing women. “The most courageous act is still to think for yourself. Out loud. » Women's fashion was initially led and dominated by men. Men design women's clothing based on the female stereotype that the "ideal woman" is curated and must be of almost no size. Women were almost prisoners of their own clothing as they were confined to corsets. Coco promoted freedom and liberation, and the ability to express oneself through fashion and clothing. Some say Coco brought liberation to women through her clothing, considering her childhood was the opposite of...... middle of paper ...... This was reflected in her rebellious, revolutionary designs and emblematic. Chanel was the only fashion designer to make Time magazine's list of the most influential people of the 20th century. By completing this Research Topic, I now realize that Chanel is all around me, from my wardrobe to the clothes in the store. Her legacy will never end, her name is forever etched in women's fashion because she did what no one else ever thought to do. As I read all my sources and did all the research necessary for this essay, I couldn't help but wonder what fashion would look like today without Chanel. Would women still be confined to the walls of corsets? Is the fashion industry still predominantly male? In reality, Chanel saved women in many ways, whether she wanted to or not. She is truly the icon, symbol and idol of fashion par excellence...