Fashion designer Coco Chanel passed away on January 10, 1971. She was 87 years old. Chanel, born Gabrielle Bonheur Chanel in 1883, was a pioneering French fashion designer. She is best known for creating the Chanel brand which revolutionized the international fashion industry. She first became known through her hat designs, which she debuted in 1910, then clothing and perfume lines in the 1920s. Her designs brought new levels of freedom and sophistication to women's fashion and she became an international icon. Her enduring legacy will remain a part of the fashion industry in the decades, and in the hearts, of those whom she inspired.