Chanel’s Scottish collection goes down a storm

Chanel Metiers d’Art 2012 In the courtyard of Linlithgow Palace in Scotland, 350guests huddled together for warmth on wooden benches, swathed in Chanel-issued blankets and sipping from draughts of whiskey, to witness ‘Paris-Edimbourg’ Chanel’s latest Metiers d’Art collection. It is essentially a pre-fall collection, shown once a year to celebrate the exquisite craftsmanship of the small ateliers owned by Chanel.  The location changes annually- last year’s theme was 'Paris–Bombay'- but this year it was the historic birthplace of Mary Queen of Scots who became Queen Consort of France and eventually lost her head to Elizabeth I of England when she was decapitated for treason.
 Lagerfeld was inspired by Gabriel ‘Coco’ Chanel’s love of the Scottish highlands in for this collection. Coco spent much of the 1920s on the Scottish estates owned by the Duke of Westminster. In fact, borrowing from her lover’s highland hideaway closet inspired her to design perhaps her most iconic creation, the tweed suit. Lagerfeld revamped the staple Chanel skirt suit in ‘Paris-Edimbourg’ with exaggerated dandy-ish pussy-bow neck ties held in place with medieval brooches, dense tartan layering and court-jester inspired checked stockings, accessorized with sporran bags and whiskey flasks rattling around the hip.

The collection was adorable and inspired, romantic and accessible. It worked on every level, and Karl deserved every bit of his rapturous applause.