Little People, Big Dreams: Coco Chanel; Maria Isabel Sánchez Vegara, illustrated by Ana Albero24/3/2022
As a child, Gabrielle Chanel lived in an orphanage and loved sewing with a needle and thread. With a head full of dreams she imagined patterns and shapes and the wonderful things she could create. Sewing by day and singing by night, her loving audience affectionately named her Coco. And soon Coco Chanel was making hats and dresses and was on the road to becoming the most famous fashion designer in the world…
Coco Chanel was one of the most famous fashion designers to have ever lived and her ideas and designs would change the world of fashion forever. Her rise from orphan to fashion house superstar and international style icon is lovingly retold in this charming biography that any child with dreams of setting up their own fashion house should read. The Chanel brand is as strong as ever and doesn’t show signs of slowing down anytime soon. All of this created and built from the ground up by a girl who was viewed as strange by the nuns at the orphanage and whose early clothing designs were deemed as too different. Coco always stood out, while the other girls at the orphanage had long, braided hair hers was cut short, they wore plain black skirts and tops and she wore a stripy coloured one. This continued into her design work which would challenge, shock and shake up the fashion industry and the mademoiselles of Paris.
A revolutionary in the fashion industry, Coco showed women that the clothes they wore could be comfortable and stylish. At a time when restrictive and rather uncomfortable clothing were seen as stylish, Coco offered an alternative. Her straight and shorter clothing allowed women to feel freer and she even went as far as suggesting women wear trousers - shock horror! Although not everyone embraced her new clothes, Coco was a person who new what she wanted, worked hard and eventually achieved the success that her creativity deserved.
There were many times in Coco’s life when it would have been easier to conform and fit in but greatness rarely comes from those who are willing to follow the crowd, especially when they and their ideas are born to stand out. Throughout her life, Coco stayed true to what she believed, her designs and would show the world that sequins and corsets were not the only way to dress stylishly. The story is told in short and simple sentences and is delightfully illustrated with bright and bold artwork. At the back of the book there is a short overview of her life which includes key facts and dates and a historical timeline featuring photographs. Recommended for 5+.
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