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Karl Lagerfeld Dishes On Coco Chanel's 2 Big Mistakes

First Posted: 11/11/2010 11:56 am Updated: 05/25/2011 6:10 pm

Although Karl Lagerfeld offered profundities such as "I am a cocktail," and "I have no idea of what it means to take yourself seriously," at the International Herald Tribune's Luxury Heritage conference on Tuesday, the designer did have a bit more to say.

Vogue UK reports that he chatted a bit about Coco Chanel herself. Karl remarked, "Coco did a lot but not as much as people think or as much she herself taught at the end of her career." He also dished on a pair of mistakes Chanel made late in her game:

"The first was when she said 'Not one man I have spoken to likes a woman in mini skirts'. I think no one dared to tell this 86-year-old lady that miniskirts are great and really sexy," he says. "Number two was when she decided blue jeans were horrible. This was the fashion of the world at that partuclar moment -- it was the Sixties. No one wanted to be told by an old lady that miniskirts and jeans weren't chic. The result was that she lost her power and in the end no one cared about what she did."

Oh, Karl. It's never too late for some Chanel denim bellbottoms!

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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
Recessionista
Since 2008 author of The Recessionista® Blog + H
02:23 PM on 12/12/2010
Lagerfeld, get REAL, she was staying true to the Chanel look, that she developed. Also, you should not point figures at a woman who was an icon and a GENIUS. Whether Chanel was 16 or 86, she knew what she liked, and what she thought looked fashionable.
12:30 PM on 11/13/2010
Everything he said was true though...
01:18 PM on 11/12/2010
Well, this boils down to two views on fashion: feed the fickle trends to stay "current," or stay loyal to your design aesthetic and become "dated." Coco always had a rather strict design aesthetic (those tweed suits, black/white/cream color palette, pearls swinging, etc.), and jeans and mini-skirts were completely tasteless to her. Sure, she lost the "trendy" generation during the 1960s, but her design house and legend lives on. Even when Karl Lagerfeld chooses to be cheeky!
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
shutterbabe
“We can't stop here, this is bat country!”
10:56 AM on 11/12/2010
" My friends, there are no friends."
-Coco Chanel-
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
ChaiKat
Just trying to keep what little I have.
10:37 AM on 11/12/2010
Karl, please do get over yourself.
10:31 AM on 11/12/2010
Bitter, party of one.
imonlyhereforthelaughs
Politicians...they ruin everything.
10:23 AM on 11/12/2010
Picking on the dead. Pretty easy, since they can't fight back.

And what a sissy slap-fight that would be, huh?
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HUFFPOST COMMUNITY MODERATOR
usamade
09:48 AM on 11/12/2010
Jealous much Karl? Coco Chanel was a goddess.
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
right Alice
11:04 AM on 11/12/2010
And who made Chanel relevant again?
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
LisaO8
You're gonna need a bigger boat.
08:42 AM on 11/12/2010
Karl, your comments sounded rather catty! You seem to be quite full of yourself - Chanel will always be the epitome of classy/chic - you my boy, not so much...
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tttony
Genius Christ
08:16 AM on 11/12/2010
Was he dishing or dissing? I mean she's passed on, right? Do you really need to talk about what you think were the mistakes in a truly notable career?
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
right Alice
11:05 AM on 11/12/2010
His two points were valid.
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tttony
Genius Christ
11:47 AM on 11/12/2010
So is showing class by not criticizing someone who isn't around anymore.
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
Lisa Shields
Poet & Advocate For Special Needs Children
07:09 AM on 11/12/2010
So an 80 year old man is commenting on an 86 year old woman's fashion leanings.
Karl dear?
Never fall that much in love with your own words....
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
Siebenstein
Vegan, not a Murderer
05:23 AM on 11/12/2010
What is he talking , or confabulating about?
Chanel is still a highly regarded idol by young designers and has timeless class.
Is he trying to elevate his own brand over that of Chanel to influence his legacy?
This user has chosen to opt out of the Badges program
02:36 AM on 11/12/2010
hard to take the fashion world seriously when its nobility look like this.
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
charles116
01:34 AM on 11/12/2010
At the time she said that, I would agree with her.

Blue jeans for gal were the current sculpted on the body thing a Megan Fox might wear with stilettos heels. And to be honest, only young gals with great legs should wear mini skirts.

Example: Snooki in a mini could start a stampede to Fire Island.
11:20 PM on 11/11/2010
At first glance of the photo I thought "Why is Ronnie Wood wearing those funny glasses and that hat? And what kind of bling is that around his neck??

I also quickly surmised he was looking better, so there's that.