In conjunction with its haute couture show in January, Chanel launched its newest high jewellery collection, Coco Avant Chanel. While most international jewellery houses typically release just one high jewellery collection a year, Chanel defies convention by launching two, during the haute couture weeks in January and July.

Coco Avant Chanel follows the codes established by the founder of the maison, Gabrielle Chanel: the audacious and revolutionary designer who broke women free of their corsets and introduced them to the luxe comfort of trousers, tweed and jersey.

The collection takes the house back in time, when Gabrielle was better known as Coco, and when she would sew by day and ask by song at night to the cavalrymen, Qui a vu Coco au Trocadero?  Back then, too, she marched to the beat of her own drum, favouring certain styles and motifs that would go on to influence her lifetime of work. 

In Coco Avant Chanel, these themes are explored with the artistic brushstroke of precious stones, each of the 11 suites dedicated to the women who influenced Coco before 1920.

Here, we decode the collection’s inspirations and highlight our top pieces.