Behind The Scenes : Visionaries See Some Dandy Looks Come Out of Chanel at Sneak Peek in Newport

Black and gold hardware and quilted leather may be customary Chanel, but a sneak preview of the Paris house’s fall and winter collection was anything but traditional. The ladies lunching at the Visionaries board of directors’ annual membership meeting at Le Meridien Hotel in Newport Beach recently got a taste of wild Karl Lagerfeld’s latest flavor.

To raunchy raps and pulsating beats, the Chanel Boutique in South Coast Plaza, Costa Mesa, presented a 30-minute parade of things to come that expanded the themes Lagerfeld toyed with last year. Store director Roger Martin illustrated the point by noting that there were only four suits in the collection, compared to 47 jackets.

And jackets of all cuts and fits there will be.

There are signature Chanel tweeds in burnt orange and black with white and in navy, red or black sequins. Jackets reach three-quarter length and crop upward to a bolero cut. The dandy look, so hot for fall, dominates with velvet car coats, corselet silhouettes, cinched-waist styles and Spencer and Renaissance jackets.

Dandyish details also include the tails of French cuff white shirts worn on the outside, as well as slim pants tucked into boots that hit the knee or the thigh, many standing on Louis XV heels. Among the more unconventional pairings were tall riding boots shown with modish knee-length skirts and long, asymmetrical crepe georgette skirts. The riding theme extends to hunting hats, in multicolored tweeds and quilted velvets, that look more fitting for the field than cosmopolitan streets.

Humor is much of what Lagerfeld’s approach to Chanel has been about in the past few seasons. Long faux fur sticks out stiffly from hats and oversize bags; the white logo is emblazoned on the sunglass lenses, and dog tags are imprinted with the legendary name. The signature black-and-gold chain is belted at the neck like a cat choker, and the white gardenia has been transformed into black leather. Even the appearance this spring of men’s-inspired Chanel briefs are a jovial nod to a world where rules can be twisted.