Chanel's flower - Camellia

Have you notice that there always a white little flower appeared in the Chanel's clothes or accessories? Do you know what kind of flower it is? It is Coco Chanel favourite flower -Camellia.





In the twenties, Proust, a Dumas enthusiast and ardent admirer of La Traviata, flaunted a camellia at the Salon de Guermantes, at a time when elegant young men sported carnations or gardenias on their lapels. Before long, it became the emblem of a new generation of dandies who casually pinned a camellia on their jackets. Coco Chanel, very much inspired by masculine clothes, borrowed the flower from these men. She was enchanted by its perfect, almost geometric roundness. What was it that gave her the idea of pinning a single white camellia on her black dress for the first time? Was it perhaps a bouquet of camellias she received from the Duke of Westminster or another of her admirers? We will never know.





The camellia possessed the added advantage of not competing with her favourite perfume – camellias are scentless. This is why it was replaced by the very fragrant gardenia in her perfume creations. But one thing is certain: she was instantly captivated by the contrast of white on black, the effects of light and shades she favoured throughout her career.

The immaculate glow of a camellia against dark hair. A 1961 creation.

A bewitching web of camellias, from the 2000 Haute Couture Spring-Summer fashion show.

As you can see, not only Coco Chanel got inspiration from the camellia, but also Karl Lagerfeld. Camellia became a signature of Chanel.

Detail of golden camellias, embroidered on a dress. 2005 S/S Haute Couture collection.

A subtle, sinuous lace sheath entirely encrusted with camellias. Photo Karl Lagerfekd for 2002 S/S Chanel Haute Couture.

Coco Chanel believed that beauty is nearly always born from radical simplicity. The camellia, with its minimalist lines, well-defined voluptuous curves and almost Art Nouveau design was destined to appeal to her as an aesthete and as an avant-garde designer. She loved white and made it one of her signature colors because it evoked harmony, pure light, perfect and sensual beauty, restrained emotions, asceticism but also sumptuous simplicity.

The elegance and style of the incomparable Marie-Helene Amaud. A white camellia is the perfect foil for timeless black. September 1959.

The camellia printed on a knitted check fabric, 2005 Autumn-Winter Pret-a-Porter.

Punctuating a perfect line: the camellia highlights a pale pink suit from 1963. Published in Vogue France, September 1963.


The camellia became Coco’s symbol, her icon, one of the recurring elements of her style. Howeverr, Mademoiselle did not merely use it as an accessory in its natural form. As always when drawn to a particular shape, color or garment, she truly made it her own, and interpreted it in unexpected ways in her designs.





SOURCES FROM BOOK - Chanel Collections and Creations by Thames & Hudson.