Don’t be fooled by her nose ring and semi-shaved head. Karl Lagerfeld and his latest muse, Alice Dellal (below), have at least a few things in common. They are both fashion originals with rebellious streaks who don’t give a hoot what anyone thinks about them. No surprise Le Karl has chosen the punk rocker/model (her sister is beloved shoe designer Charlotte Olympia!) to be the face of Chanel’s insurgent new line of bags.
Harder edges, sharper details, and unexpected elements of glamour (like embellished straps and off-kilter chains) make the latest Boy bags out of the Cruise Antibes collection totally to die for. And they take the emphasis off the interlocked C’s in a savvy manner. Yellow leather has never looked cooler and the combination of black and white is suddenly fresh again. It looks like “boy” is the new “girl!”. No, Alice isn’t a girl who conforms, and Boy goes against traditional notions of femininity, turning gender on its head. Be prepared to get inspired in March 2012, when the new ad campaign is released, shot by Karl himself.
First new Chanel I have been inspired to buy in a long time.