The doorman held the large glass door open and greeted me as I stepped inside. 

“Bonjour. Merci mon ami,” I said as I walked into the first floor of Boston’s Chanel flagship store. 

Everything hit me at once.

The beautiful handbags in front of me, the dazzling jewelry. Where do I start?  

I want it all!

This was just the first floor.

Everything reminded me of Mademoiselle Chanel. This was her world. recreated inside the Boston flagship store on Newbury Street. Long strands of faux pearls dangled from the ceiling in a beautiful display of one of Chanel’s iconic symbols.

I walked to the stairs and caught my breath.  It was mirrored almost exactly as it is in the Rue Cambon store in Paris where Chanel would show her latest collections.

The second floor is reminiscent of Mademoiselle’s Paris apartment. Coromandel screens with interlocking C’s stand tall behind a roll arm sofa upholstered in beige suede that looks as if it was taken out of the Rue Cambon apartment.

The entire store is done in the Chanel motif. The color scheme is black, gold, ivory and beige. Architect and designer Peter Marino, who has designed Chanel boutiques for over 20 years, told Architectural Digest he “went for a residential look” for the Boston store.  He fully embraced the Chanel ideal with an eye toward Boston style. “Boston is a conservative town. I thought they’d want quiet luxury, nothing trendy or loud.”

But of course he had to add glamour.  It is Chanel after all.

A rhinestone stag, designed by local artist Marc Swanson, reminds you of Mademoiselle’s two bronze deer and a gold-plated wheat sheaf is a symbol of abundance and good fortune. Marino says “the store is like a work of couture.”

For me, the store is a chance to step into the world of Chanel.  It’s like looking at her apartment and her life. And until I travel back to Paris and go into 31 Rue Cambon, it’s the closest look I’ll get.

I’ll take it. For now.

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