Chanel 2.55

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The Chanel 2.55, redesign by Karl Lagerfeld

The Chanel 2.55 (also Flap Bag 2.55 or just 2.55 ) is a handbag that has been produced by the Chanel fashion house since 1955 and, partly in a modified form, until today. The bag was named after its release date in February 1955. In addition to the Birkin Bag and the Kelly Bag from Hermès, the 2.55 is one of the fashion icons among handbags (so-called arm candy - pieces of sugar for the arm).

history

Coco Chanel is said to have thought about practical shoulder bags with shoulder straps as early as the 1920s. However, the 2.55 did not come onto the market until February 1955, after Coco Chanel resumed her work as a fashion designer after the war in 1954. The bag has been named after this date of publication.

Until then, elegant women's handbags were usually equipped with a short handle and were carried by hand or on the forearm. Bags with shoulder straps, on the other hand, were used for more common purposes and were mostly used by men, e.g. B. Soldiers, used. The women's handbag with shoulder straps meant that the modern woman who carried the bag had her hands free and did not run the risk of losing the bag, as it didn't have to be put down and picked up again all the time. When the 2.55 was re-launched in 1955, it was considered a sensation. While this original design was aimed at functionality, the Chanel 2.55 has now become the epitome of the luxury item that is not bought for its practical design, but is supposed to decorate the wearer as an expensive accessory . There are many legends about what Coco Chanel could have used as inspiration for her design. Colors and materials are associated with Chanel's growing up in a children's home run by nuns - the colors are supposed to be reminiscent of either the nuns' habit or Chanel's own school uniform, the chain as a strap on chains to which the nuns had attached their keys . The clothing of jockeys is said to have served as a model for the diamond pattern, just as the shoulder strap is said to go back to the fact that Chanel hung her binoculars on a similar strap when attending horse races.

The bag was redesigned by Karl Lagerfeld in the 1980s. Since then, there have been two versions (“Classic Flap Pocket” is the new development by Lagerfeld and “Re-Issue” is the original form launched in 2005 for the 50th anniversary). Every year around 30 new models appear in different sizes, shapes, colors and materials, sales prices start at around 3,000 EUR (in 2013). There are models made from all types of leather, but also from denim , tweed , terry cloth , decorated with all imaginable decorations. The most expensive and luxurious 2.55 was produced in 2008 - made of white crocodile skin with a diamond-set white gold clasp. Only 13 of this model were produced.

design

Typical elements of the Chanel 2.55 are the basic rectangular shape, the double flap and a small pocket with a crescent-shaped top edge (also known as “Mona Lisa's smile”) on the back. In terms of construction, the double flap is created by a “pocket in a pocket”. A zipped compartment is attached to the inside of the outer flap, the Chanel logo from the intertwined initials is embroidered into the inner flap, and there are three bellow pockets inside the bag. The upper material of the bag is quilted in a diamond shape ( mattelassé quilted pattern). The bag is carried on two metal chains interwoven with leather straps, which are connected to the bag by four eyelets on the top.

The diamond pattern with quilted seams as well as the use of metal chains as straps and handles have now developed into independent, typical features of the Chanel bag collections, which have been used again and again on a wide variety of models since the introduction of the 2.55 until today.

The original design was initially only available in brown and black leather in 1955, combined with a wine-red lining. The so-called “Mademoiselle” lock was used as a lock, a pocket lock with a rotating bolt preventing the flap from opening.

The new development by Karl Lagerfeld from the 1980s can be recognized at first glance through the use of a different lock. Instead of the “Mademoiselle” lock, Lagerfeld uses a lock that quotes Coco Chanel's intricate initials, the Chanel logo. Lagerfeld varied the original model in numerous colors, sizes and materials. Even if he does without some of the typical elements of the original design, the bags still have a high recognition value.

Manufacturing

The 2.55 is still partly made by hand to this day. Around 180 individual work steps are required from the pattern to the finished bag. Bag makers at Chanel are only allowed to make the model after at least five years of professional experience. The numerous forgeries of Chanel 2.55 bags are particularly noticeable due to the poor workmanship. A real Chanel bag has a symmetrical arrangement of the stitching and the seams of the attached half-moon pocket on the back merge into the lines of the bag body without interruption. The leather lining sits smoothly and without creases in the cover.

value

The Chanel 2.55 is sold from around 3000 euros original price, elaborate decorations and luxurious materials can also lead to a much higher price. Older specimens, if they are in good condition, also achieve resale prices that are many times higher than the original price.

reception

In addition to the numerous references to the design of the 2.55 in the Chanel bag collections, there are also other designers who take up style elements of the 2.55 in their designs, such as Marc Jacobs , who also equipped his Stam Bag with diamond-shaped stitching and a metal chain as a shoulder strap. The reference even goes so far that shortly after the first appearance of the Stam Bag, Jacobs brought a Classic Stam Bag onto the market, a reinterpretation of the original Stam Bag, which is now offered in a new version every season. As with the Chanel 2.55 , the model known as Classic is in reality not the original model, but the versatile designer playground.

literature

  • Sue Huey / Susie Draffan: BAG . London, 2009, pp. 40ff.
  • Abigail Rutherford: Warman's Handbags. Field Guide . Iola, 2009, p. 426.
  • Stephanie Pedersen: Handbags: What Every Woman Should Know. Cincinnati, 2006, ISBN 0-7153-2495-0 .
  • Janet Wallach: Chanel: Her Style and Her Life . London, 1999, ISBN 1-84000-202-6 .

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Tamsin Blanchard: Green is the New Black: How to Save the World in Style. Hachette UK, 2013, p.
  2. ↑ a b c http://inside.chanel.com/de/timeline/1955_255-bag, accessed January 3, 2014
  3. ↑ a b c d e http://www.shoplemonde.de/2012/06/27/chanel-2-55-dokumentation-einer-tasche/ accessed January 3, 2014
  4. ↑ a b c d e Sue Huey / Susie Draffan: BAG . London, 2009, pp. 38ff, 146.
  5. ↑ a b c http://luxus.welt.de/fashion/taschen/taschenklassiker-chanel-flap-bag-255, accessed January 3, 2014
  6. ↑ a b c d http://www.elle.de/taschen-ikonen-chanel-2-55-134296.html accessed January 3, 2013
  7. ↑ a b c d e http://stylefrizz.com/200712/short-history-of-the-famous-chanel-255-bag/ accessed January 3, 2014
  8. ↑ a b - ( Memento of the original from January 3, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. accessed January 3, 2014 @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.purseblog.com
  9. ↑ https://www.lollipuff.com/blog/94/a-basic-authentication-guide-chanel-255-classic-double-flap accessed January 3, 2014