LBC: Little Black Chanel

Do you have a go-to item that you always wear for important occasions? Something no-fuss that you naturally gravitate towards when you’re getting ready for that big meeting, or moment.  For some, it’s a little black dress. For me, it’s my LBC: my little black Chanel jacket.

Although I love every item in my closet, there are very few items  that I would actually CRY over if I lost them.  As someone who religiously subscribed to the Carrie Bradshaw school of thought for more than a few years (her famous line still resonates, “I like my money right where I can see it, hanging in my closet”) much of my wardrobe is self-funded, and hard-earned. Additionally, my careful closet curating has made special items just that much more sentimental to me.  Of course there’s family heirlooms, but typically those aren’t worn as regularly.

During the summer of 2005, right before I graduated college, I was offered an internship at the Chanel boutique in San Francisco. Although it was a short internship, I can safely say that I learned more about myself, and my career aspirations in that summer, than I did during the majority of college. (sorry Mom and Dad!) Everyday, on the way to Chanel, I would fantasize that San Francisco was actually New York City (a game I’ve been playing in my head since I was six years old) and that I had a high-powered, glamorous fashion industry job. I would pop in my earphones as I jumped off the BART train,  blast “Freedom” by George Michael, and supermodel-power walk the four blocks to Chanel. No lie.

I would  take my lunch break in Union Square, and eat $5 street vendor hot dogs while basking in the sun.  When my ex-boyfriend of three years broke up with me on one such lunch break, I calmly marched into the nearest Macy’s bathroom, cried for exactly one minute, and told myself that this was precisely why I would never give up my career for a boy.

I returned to Chanel that day stronger, and more determined than ever to pursue my Fashion PR dreams. I’m not even exaggerating when I say that Chanel got me through my breakup; it empowered me in a way that I had never experienced before. In short, I loved every minute of my experience at the French fashion house, perhaps even more than I loved the fabulous employee discount that I received at the end of my internship. What did I want to commemorate my upcoming graduation, my parents asked? Something practical, like a Chanel jacket, was my obvious reply. But you know what? It’s still one of the best decisions that I ever made.

*THE APPAREL*

Dress: H & M [similar variations here and here]

Jacket: Chanel

*THE ACCESSORIES*

Sunglasses: Bulgari

iPhone 5 Case: Toola

Booties: Forever 21 [sold out, but similar here]

*THE JEWELRY*

Necklace: Tiffany & Co.

Pearls: Chanel

Watch: Kate Spade

Ring: David Yurman

*THE PHOTOGRAPHER*

Taylor Cole Photography

“I’ll never forget that afternoon, coming down the rue Cambon – my last afternoon in Paris for five years…I was so depressed – leaving Chanel, leaving Europe, leaving all the world of…of my world.”

*Diana Vreeland, “D.V.”

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