PARIS, Mar 2, 2001 / FW/ --- Coco Chanel began her career as a fashion designer in 1909.

She was one of the most powerful figure in the women's liberation movement after World War I.

All over the western world, women were fighting for equality and the right to vote. One means of expressing this new freedom was through appearance and dress.

Curls, frills and flounces were out. Short haircuts, tubular flat-chested silhouettes and simplification in design were in.

Coco Chanel maintained that couturiers were not artists, they were furnishers. She believed that women should dress simply and comfortably.

The first time she put her theory into practice was during World War I. French women could not take over the jobs of the fighting men and still wear ornate fashion and hobble skirts.

In her small shop, Chanel offered an alternative style of dress: men's pullover sweaters, sailor jackets, and straight skirts. The new working costume was a success and so was Chanel.

Chanel was often inspired by the everyday clothes worn by working people around her, borrowing from a mechanic's blouse, a ditchdigger's scarf, and the white collar and cuffs of a waitress for ideas.

The first designer to use wool jersey in women's wear, Chanel revolutionized the textile industry. Originally, the fabric had been produced to use in men's underwear, but men found it too "scratchy." However, the jersey appealed to Chanel who found it perfect for the kind of comfortable and understated apparel she had in mind.

She was also the first to make costume jewelry socially acceptable. She popularized the use of "fake" jewe;s by lavishly using rope upon rope of imitation pearls and other other fake stones to enhance her simple, understated clothes. The simplicity of her designs made them easy to copy in the factory and she is credited with being the designer who had the greatest effect on the early development of American mass production.

Until her retirement in 1939, Chanel was the one of the world's most influential pre-war designers. Her retirement was not permanent, however.

In 1953 she was prompted into a comeback by her distaste to postwar fashion. In opposition to the cinch-waisted, full-skirted styles being presented by Dior and other designers, she reintroduced her simple, comfortable shapes.

By 1959, her famous Chanel Suit had become the "uniform" of well dressed women all over the world.

Chanel died in 1971 at the age of 88, but under the talented designer Philipppe Guiborge, her business continued producing clothes which reflect the classic look of Chanel.

The famous numbered Chanel fragrances also continue to be produced, including the legendary No.5, named by Chanel for her lucky number.

In 1977, the management of Chanel departed from Chanel's preference for numbers and introduced Cristalle.

In 1983, Karl Lagerfeld took over the House of Chanel as Artistic Director.