“My life didn’t please me, so I created my life.” ~ Coco Chanel
When we think of Coco Chanel, we think of the timeless class and elegance she brought into the fashion world while creating her own haute couture empire. It is very true that she left a mark on the fashion industry forever. But what many people might not know is that her wisdom extended into the realms of creativity and personal growth too.
From striving for individuality to daring to dream big, Coco’s wisdom continues to inspire millions and millions of people all over the world. And it is with great joy and admiration that I’ve created a collection of some of her most inspiring quotes compiled into 33 Life-Changing Lessons to Learn from Coco Chanel.
33 Life-Changing Lessons to Learn from Coco Chanel
“The age of a woman is not important: you can be wonderful in your 20’s, amazing in your 40’s and stay fabulous for the rest of your life.” ~ Coco Chanel
2. Decide not to be something but to be someone.
“How many cares one loses when one decides not to be something but to be someone.” ~ Coco Chanel
3. A candle burnt at both ends may shed a brighter light, but the darkness that follows is for a longer time.
“You cannot keep up a nightlife and amount to anything in the day. You cannot indulge in those foods and liquors that destroy the physique and still hope to have a physique that functions with the minimum of destruction to itself. A candle burnt at both ends may shed a brighter light, but the darkness that follows is for a longer time.”
4. Fashion has to do with ideas, the way we live, what is happening.
“Fashion is not something that exists in dresses only. Fashion is in the sky, in the street, fashion has to do with ideas, the way we live, what is happening.”
5. Women have always been the strong ones of the world.
“Women have always been the strong ones of the world. The men are always seeking from women a little pillow to put their heads down on. They are always longing for the mother who held them as infants.”
6. “Simplicity is the keynote of all true elegance.” ~ Coco Channel
7. Don’t spend time beating on a wall.
“Don’t spend time beating on a wall, hoping to transform it into a door. ” ~ Coco Chanel
8. The most courageous act is still to think for yourself.
“The most courageous act is still to think for yourself. Aloud.”
9. Be amusing.
“You live but once; you might as well be amusing.”
10. “A woman does not become interesting until she is over 40.” ~ Coco Chanel
11. Luxury is the opposite of vulgarity.
“Some people think luxury is the opposite of poverty. It is not. It is the opposite of vulgarity.”
12. Modesty, what elegance!
“Adornment, what a science! Beauty, what a weapon! Modesty, what elegance!” ~ Coco Chanel
13. Failure is inevitable.
“Success is most often achieved by those who don’t know that failure is inevitable.”
14. “A woman who cuts her hair is about to change her life.” ~ Coco Chanel
15. What other people think of you doesn’t matter at all.
“I don’t care what you think about me. I don’t think about you at all.” ~ Coco Chanel
16. “A woman with good shoes is never ugly.” ~ Coco Chanel
17. It’s best to be as pretty as possible for destiny.
“I don’t understand how a woman can leave the house without fixing herself up a little – if only out of politeness. And then, you never know, maybe that’s the day she has a date with destiny. And it’s best to be as pretty as possible for destiny.”
18. If you’re sad, add more lipstick and attack.
“If you are sad, If you are heartbroken, make yourself up, dress up, add more lipstick and attack.” ~ Coco Chanel
19. “The best color in the whole world is the one that looks good on you.” ~ Coco Chanel
20. Men are like children.
“As long as you know men are like children, you know everything!” ~ Coco Chanel
21. “A girl should be two things: classy and fabulous.” ~ Coco Chanel
22. There is no time for cut-and-dried monotony.
“There is no time for cut-and-dried monotony. There is time for work. And time for love. That leaves no other time.” ~ Coco Chanel
23. Women think of all colors except the absence of color.
“Women think of all colors except the absence of color. I have said that black has it all. White too. Their beauty is absolute. It is the perfect harmony.” ~ Coco Chanel
24. A woman is closest to being naked when she is well-dressed.
“I wanted to give a woman comfortable clothes that would flow with her body. A woman is closest to being naked when she is well-dressed.” ~ Coco Chanel
25. Only those with no memory insist on their originality.
“People laughed at the way I dressed, but that was the secret of my success. I didn’t look like anyone.” ~ Coco Chanel
27. Those who create are rare; those who cannot are numerous.
“Those who create are rare; those who cannot are numerous. Therefore, the latter are stronger.” ~ Coco Chanel
28. There is nothing more comfortable than a caterpillar and nothing more made for love than a butterfly.
“There is nothing more comfortable than a caterpillar and nothing more made for love than a butterfly. We need dresses that crawl and dresses that fly. Fashion is at once a captapillar and a butterfly, caterpillar by day, butterfly by night.” ~ Coco Chanel
“It’s not the appearance, it’s the essence. It’s not the money, it’s the education. It’s not the clothes, it’s the class.” ~ Coco Chanel
“Be classy. Anything but trashy.”
“Elegance comes from being as beautiful inside as outside.”
30. “If a man talks bad about all women, it usually means he was burned by one woman.” ~ Coco Chanel
31. There are rich people, and there are those who have money.
“There are rich people, and there are those who have money. They are not the same people.”
32. We are born with only one face.
“We are born with only one face, but laughing or crying, wisely or unwisely, eventually we form our own.”
“We are born with only one face, but laughing or crying, wisely or unwisely, eventually we form our own.”
33. “Before you leave the house, look in the mirror and take one thing off.” ~ Coco Chanel
“God knows I wanted love… but the moment I had to choose between the man I loved and my dresses… I chose the dresses”
“I am not young but I feel young. The day I feel old, I will go to bed and stay there. J’aime la vie! I feel that to live is a wonderful thing.”
“There are many more attempts to define happiness than unhappiness. It is because people know all too well what unhappiness is.”
“In 1919 I woke up famous. I’d never guessed it. If I’d known I was famous, I’d have stolen away and wept. I was stupid. I was supposed to be intelligent. I was sensitive and very dumb.”
“Everyone marries the Duke of Westminster. There are a lot of duchesses, but only one Coco Chanel.”
“Fashion has become a joke. The designers have forgotten that there are women inside the dresses. Most women dress for men and want to be admired. But they must also be able to move, to get into a car without bursting their seams! Clothes must have a natural shape.”
“As soon as you set foot on a yacht you belong to some man, not to yourself, and you die of boredom.”
“Guilt is perhaps the most painful companion of death.”
