Blog, Interior Design, The Style Guide
Chanel interior inspiration
The Chanel Style Guide gives you the essential features of this iconic French brand to use for your home design. Treat this guide as an inspiration for your own home design and styling.
Chanel style for your home interior
In this first chapter of ‘The Style Code,’ we are talking about the luxurious, heritage brand. Chanel is based on the personal style of Gabrielle (Coco) Chanel who revolutionised fashion and design. It is an iconic brand, but because it’s such top-notch, can we think about Chanel for a home design? Yes, we can. Let me explain why.
Who is The Chanel style for?
Coco Chanel was extremely precise when building her style. It is the result and mix of her upbringing, and cultural inspirations. Let’s explore the essentials of Chanel’s Style.
The main features
First, let’s start with the composition. The main rule is – simplicity is based on a few clear and simple style elements.
– colours – black, white, beige, gold and red are the five basic Chanel colours. This is the colour canon of the brand.
– geometry and proportions to achieve harmony
– glamour elements that break the rigorous of the proportions – glitter of gold and mirror, wow factor of lacquered black elements
– a mix of materials -natural textiles – tweeds, soft textiles, high-end lacquered wood
5 powerful colours Chanel are used in her fashion, jewellery and bag designs:
- black – accentuates the essential, colour of elegance, symbol, feminity
- white – symbolises purity, catches the light and enhances the beauty
- beige – the colour of outdoor, warm sand and the beach Gives neutrality to black and white.
- red symbolises life (blood colour) and energy and courage.
- gold – loved by Chanel in Byzantine and baroque art
Decor features inspired by Chanel for your home design
Secondly, let’s look into features inspired by Chanel.
Inspired by Gabrielle Chanel’s working space at 31, rue Cambon in Paris, architects designing Chanel brand stores worldwide used many decorative motives from Mademoisells’ apartment.
Coco Channel had many obsessions one of them was screen dividers. She was collecting The Coromandel screen dividers finished with Chinese black lacquer.
She had tremendous admiration for craftsmanship and art; you could see that in her living spaces. She was collecting art and artisanal objects like furniture, mirrors, sculptures of lions, but also glass balls or gold wheat – talismans against bad luck.
Coromander Laquer antique screens. She apparently had thirty-two pieces and used them in every room and every apartment she owned. These antique wooden screens are covered with black Chinese lacquer with floral, landscape scenes. Very precious, extremely meticulous craftsmanship involving decorating the scenes with mother of pearls.
What to do to recreate or/and interpret this Chanel style?
- A minimalistic approach for your home colours – create the base with natural colours and choose one dominant colour – gold, black or red
- Lay the furniture proportionally – look for pairs of lamps, juxtaposed armchairs or sofas – create balance in the space
- Choose one dominant element in the space – a mantelpiece, or a wall feature.
Based on Chanel’s heritage, here are the elements you use in your own personal living space:
– screen dividers: practical and decorative element
– lamp shades : add harmony and cosy light
– period elements: such as period armchairs (Louis XV or Napoleon III ) mirrors (in gold frames), sconces, consoles
I hope you like this post. It is one of the series The Style Guide focused on fashion brands and their style for home design. Let me know in a comment if you have your favourite fashion brand you want me to explore on the blog.
Gosia
More about Chanel? Click below to read my blog post from Design Retail Space about Chanel’s stores.
