Exploring the Brands

Instead of exploring all 10 brands before choosing one I have decided to narrow it down to my favourite three and explore them slightly so I can choose one for the project and base my final shoots and research around the particular brand. I have decided to do it this way because I'm stuck with what brand to choose and which direction to go in.


Chanel
Coco Chanel; History

So great is Coco Chanel's legacy that fans make pilgrimages to her Paris apartment (although she also lived in the Paris Ritz for 30 years), which is preserved as she left it and endlessly referenced for style - as is every image of her and every tiny thing she ever designed. From her use of monochrome to her oversized 'costume' pearls and cuffs, everything is still sublimely, continuously referenced. As she herself once said: "Fashion fades, only style remains the same."
http://www.vogue.co.uk/person/coco-chanel

During the 1920s, Coco Chanel became the first designer to create loose women's jerseys, traditionally used for men's underwear, creating a relaxed style for women ignoring the stiff corseted look of the time. They soon became very popular with clients, a post-war generation of women for whom the corseted restricted clothing seemed old-fashioned and impractical.

LABEL OVERVIEW

Chanel is one of today’s best known and most highly sought-after fashion brands, and has been one practically since it was founded by Coco (Gabrielle) Chanel in 1909. Her big break hit when she opened a small shop in Paris in 1910 where she sold her hats. And by 1913, after asserting disdain for resort wear, she launched sportswear: Her take was simpler—flannel blazers, jersey sweaters, and women in trousers, all of which were decidedly against twentieth-century culture memes. Chanel was trendsetting before there were trends. Her post–World War I look gained attention, as she brought on modernism in fashion through beaded dresses in the twenties, the infamous little black dress, as well as a two- or thee-piece suit, which is still a signature Chanel look. By 1921 she introduced Chanel No. 5, and was once quoted as saying "A woman who doesn't wear perfume has no future." No. 5 went on to become one of the best-selling fragrances of all time. After a period away from Paris, Chanel returned after the Second World War in the fifties, a time when Christian Dior was touted as Paris's premiere couturier. However, Chanel rose again with the launch of her chain-link belt and quilted leather bags—today with the interlocking C's—reestablishing Chanel as the definition of classy glamour with an edge. Coco passed in 1971, but the brand continued, even launching their first ready-to-wear collection in 1978. Yet without a lead designer to be the face of the brand, the house struggled to maintain its enchanting reputation for luxury. That is, until Karl Lagerfeld joined in 1983 to revive it to its elite status, which he did with added glamour and sexiness. Today, Chanel stands out in just about every category—couture, ready-to-wear, accessories, jewelry, shoes, and fragrances. What began as a no-nonsense approach to fashion, designed to let women be comfortable while looking dignified, has been translated into classic, tailored style, especially in ready-to-wear, where the traditional tweed Chanel suit with a nipped-at-the-waist cardigan jacket remains one of the most popular—and most copied—fashion staples. Evening gowns tend to have an understated sex appeal and a bit of whimsy, and appear in luxurious fabrics with lots of embellishments. Yet, there is always an undeniable element of the house's founder. "A girl should be two things: classy and fabulous," Coco Chanel once said. Fitting, since that's the absolute embodiment of the label even a century after it was founded.

http://nymag.com/thecut/fashion/designers/chanel/

http://www.lifetimetv.co.uk/biography/biography-coco-chanel

CHANEL CATWALK S/S MOOD BOARD

CHANEL ADVERTISING MOODBOARD

CHANEL EDITORIAL MOOD BOARD

I created three different mood board from online images of Chanel which contained editorial, advertising and catwalk looks so I can get an overall feel of the looks and what Chanel produces for shows, magazines and ads. The first mood board I created was based on S/S catwalk make-up and overall looks, I think creating theses mood board have helped give me an idea of the look and what Chanel creates. For S/S the colours tend to be cool or bright colours so I will have to create a theme throughout, the next mood board is for advertising and I took some spreads from magazines and ads for Chanel make-up. This gives me and idea of the make-up, layout, colours, location and themes Chanel have previously used for advertising. My final mood board is editorial which I selected photos of editorial spreads and make-up. Chanel's editorial can range from edgy urban to elegant spreads and the make-up can be quite diverse depending on the theme. For the editorial looks i'm looking to create a double page spread containing two images and writing. I think this had helped me get a visual idea of Chanel and what I would be inspired to create from the brand and how I can adapt it into my own shoots. I chose Chanel as one of my favourites as it a long term classic brand and has so much history and products to explore and there looks vary. Iv'e only ever had one Chanel lipstick and also Chanel No7 perfume, so I don't have too much previous experience on the brand and is known to be quite expensive so if I chose this brand I would be exploring something new. 

Givenchy

Hubert de Givenchy; History

WHO'S WHO

Hubert de Givenchy

• 11 NOVEMBER 2011
 
• Connie Roff

"His are the only clothes in which I am myself. He is far more than a couturier, he is a creator of

Hubert de Givenchy © Rex Features
Picture credit: Rex Features
http://www.vogue.co.uk/spy/biographies
/hubert-de-givenchy-biography

personality," Hubert de Givenchy's muse Audrey Hepburn said of the designer.

Loved by some of the most iconic stars of the 20th Century - from Grace Kelly, Elizabeth Taylor, Jackie Kennedy and Wallis Simpson, to his most famous muse Audrey Hepburn - Givenchy's name and legacy have been synonymous with Parisian chic for more than 50 years. Givenchy sold his label in 1988, and retired seven years later, only to watch his former business go from strength to strength under some of the industry's most exciting designers; from John Galliano, to Alexander McQueen, to Riccardo Tisci. Givenchy, now in his Eighties, is almost entirely absent from the fashion spotlight, only emerging to comment on momentous fashion occasions like the royal wedding.

In 1927, he was born Hubert James Taffin de Givenchy to an aristocratic family in the French city of Beauvais. The family's nobility stemmed from his father's side from the 18th Century, and artistic professions ran through his mother's hereditary line. Having lost his father in 1930, he was raised largely by his mother and maternal grandmother from whom he inherited his passion for fabrics. Inspired, Givenchy left his hometown at the age of 17 for the vibrant opportunities of Paris.

Upon moving to Paris in 1944, Givenchy enrolled at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts. He began his career as an apprentice of Jacques Fath in 1945, and continued to learn the art of the couturier over the following years from Robert Piguet, Lucien Lelong and legendary Italian designer Elsa Schiaparelli.
In 1952, he established his couture house, la Maison Givenchy, launching his debut Separates collection of light floor-length skirts and stunning blouses including the feted Bettina Blouse, named after model of the day Bettina Graziani. Two years later in 1954, Givenchy became the first couturier to present a luxury ready-to-wear line. 

Now in his Eighties, Givenchy - who lives in a country estate Le Jonchet just outside of Paris - has all but removed himself from the fashion world, emerging only occasionally for brief interviews or rare public talks, like the one he gave at the Oxford Union in July 2010. He does occasionally comment on key fashion moments, and earlier this year described Kate Middleton's choice of former Givenchy designer Alexander McQueen's label for her wedding dress as "a lovely thought, a nice tribute" following McQueen's untimely death in February 2010.

http://www.vogue.co.uk/spy/biographies/hubert-de-givenchy-biography

GIVENCHY CATWALK S/S MOOD BOARD

GIVECNHY ADVERTSING MOOD BOARD

GIVENCHY EDITORIAL MOOD BOARD 

Again with Givenchy I created three mood boards which represented the looks for advertising, catwalk and editorial. I think searching the internet and creating mood boards has definitely given me and idea of what the brand creates and its sort of style. This will definitely help with narrowing down the brands to a final one. For some reason Givenchy uses black and white quite often even for previous spring summer looks as Chanel have gone for light pastel colours this year and the previous year it was bold bright colours. Givenchys advertising is quite similar, I realised when searching for the ads the layout of the page and the composition of the model/product is quite similar each time. There looks for editorial and the catwalk make-up is quite diverse and the looks created are really cool and quite different than other brands which I like. I do not have anything Givenchy as the brand is quite expensive so if I chose this brand it would be exploring a whole new area for me. 



MAC
M·A·C was established in Toronto when makeup artist and photographer, Frank Toskan and beauty salon owner, Frank Angelo brainstormed a makeup line. Frustrated because of the lack of colours that would shoot well with photography; their aim was to develop a studio line makeup line that would fulfill their professional needs. M·A·C was homegrown in Canada – literally. The two entrepreneurs cooked up the cosmetics in their kitchen and sold them from the hair salon. Their first customers: fellow makeup artists, models, photographers…then came stylists and editors. With every colour, and every magazine credit, word-of-mouth popularity grew. In March 1984, the duo officially launched the line from a single counter in a department store in Toronto. 

The company took the industry by storm, offering a wide range of products that managed to blend street savvy with glamorous style and panache. Behind the counter, the M·A·C approach was notably different. It was the first brand in cosmetic history to invest in the training and education of its staff as well as the customer’s point-of-sale experience. Rather than driving sales through traditional advertising, gifts-with-purchase promotions and heavy sampling, M·A·C relied on the integrity of its carefully formulated product line. Adding to the image was a touch of outrageousness. A company that honored individuality and self-expression above all else, this leaning inevitably brought a brilliant sense of drag and theatre into the sleek M·A·C stores and department store counters.

In 1998 Estée Lauder acquired the remaining shares of the company, and John Demsey was named president of M·A·C. Under his leadership, the link between fashion, beauty and culture has been strengthened, allowing M·A·C to stay on the edge. Mr. Demsey has also spearheaded M·A·C’s participation at prestigious film festivals worldwide and in support of the M·A·C AIDS Fund has also encouraged the sponsorship of pop music concert tours for such Viva Glam spokespeople as Mary J. Blige and Missy Elliott. In addition, he has been instrumental in collaborating with celebrities such as Linda Evangelista, Liza Minnelli, Pamela Anderson, Catherine Deneuve and more, to endorse the M·A·C Viva Glam and Beauty Icon programs. 
http://www.maccosmetics.jobs/mac/our-history.html
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Mac on the other hand is slightly different to brands such as Chanel and Givenchy. MAC hasn't been around along as the other two brands and is only a Make-up brand. Chanel and Givenchy sell other products such as perfume and also garments and accessories which makes the brand larger itself and not just selling make-up. When seeing a runway show by Chanel it would be there garments and in a runway show for MAC it would just be using there makeup products on the models. For me it doesn't effect it too much however if doing a full body editorial you can base the make-up on a MAC look however the garments would be harder to select if choosing to create a full body final image as with Chanel and Givenchy. 

          MAC MAKE-UP CATWALK S/S MOOD BOARD

MAC ADVERTISING MOOD BOARD

MAC EDITORIAL MOOD BOARD

Macs whole discovery was colour and as you can see in there advertisements and editorial shoots colour is there thing. I found it quite hard to find catwalk looks with MAC because other brands catwalk shows use MAC on there models for there look. So potentially for MAC I would be using there make-up and style however for another brand designer. I think I would prefer to create a whole look for one brand, as much as I love MAC and use a lot of its make-up I want to create a whole look using the brands vibe, style, clothing, designer and its complete fashion inspiration. I think for face shots and creating a really different bright coloured look it would be great however I want to find the fashion side of it also and create a complete look for close up shots and full body. Mac also work with a lot of celebrities and creating there own individual line and advertising it such as Miley Cyrus, Rihanna, Sharon Osborne and also Barbie and Maleficent. Mac for advertising is great because they have so many different looks and they create a range of styles and moods for different products and lines. Mac is one of my personal favourite brands and can be affordable for many.