The Iconic Breton Shirt – Chanel, Gaultier and the Rise of the French Stripes

The Iconic Breton Shirt Chanel Gaultier the Rise of French Stripes Gaultier Mariniere Designs

When we think of sailors and fashion, the first thing that comes to mind is the blue stripes. And probably two designers with a very special passion for the so-called Breton stripes: Coco Chanel who loved the Breton stripes, or also Jean Paul Gaultier who frequently incorporated seafarer’s elements into his designs.

The blue and white striped shirt has become a staple which has been used by countless designers and brands. It is such a classic, but we rarely look into the history of these classics – which is sometimes more and sometimes less obvious. I re-discovered it on a recent trip to Sweden, during a visit of the Maritime Museum in Gothenburg which had a temporary exhibition called “Oceanista – Fashion & the Sea”.

You can also watch my video here:

The blue-and-white-striped shirt is often called “Breton stripes” – a hint at its origins. The striped shirt was introduced as part of the French Navy’s uniform in 1858. For a long time, there had been no official uniform for seafarers. Hence, we can say that this French naval uniform was one of the first, if not the first formalized uniforms for seafarers. And because this is a military context, there were certain rules for the striped shirts: There had to be 21 white stripes alternating with 20-21 blue stripes. There is a myth that the number of stripes represented the victories of Napoleon, but this really is just a myth. The number depended on the length of the actual shirt.^[1]

The Iconic Breton Shirt Chanel Gaultier the Rise of French Stripes Mariniere — Marinière by Orcival, M/S Museet for Søfart/Sjöfarts Museet Akvariet, picture taken by the author at the exhibition “Oceanista” in Gothenburg, 2015.

Stripes were used also for visibility reasons – if a man was over board, it was easier to identify them in the water. Furthermore, the shirt identified “ordinary” sailors from those ranking higher up in the navy hierarchy. Up until that time, stripes had not been common in fashion. Most likely because they were associated with subordinate rules, servants for example, shame or social outcasts, such as clowns or prostitutes, and in the 19^th century also with prisons. Only later, and probably also because of the contribution of the seafarer’s uniforms which made stripes something respected, even aspirational, stripes became a fashion staple.^[2]

Why is it called the “Breton shirt”? “Breton” hints at the Bretagne, Brittany, a region in Western France. Many of the sailors of the French navy came from Brittany and, therefore, the shirt is often associated with them. Until today, the striped shirt is used as a common sailor’s undershirt. The term “Breton shirt” is rather used outside of France. In France, the stripes are actually known as “marinière” or “tricot rayé”, which literally means striped shirt.^[3]

The colour blue is obvious – it is the colour of the ocean but it was also practical. Originally, the colour was made from the indigo plant which came to Europe via America and India where slave labour was exploited and facilitated a “cheaper” production of the otherwise expensive dye. The production of natural indigo dye is very labour-intensive – from growing and harvesting the plant, to producing the dye and eventually dying the fabric. The “cheaper” indigo produced by slave labour in the colonies made the colour and dye more available and also wider used. In the 19^th century, blue became the universal colour for navies – which is also due to the British Royal Navy of the expanding British empire.^[4]

It is difficult to determine who made the first Breton shirt, but there is one name which is inextricably linked to the production of the shirt for the French Navy. The French company Orcival started to supply the French Navy with the shirts in the 1940s. In 2017, the MoMa New York called Orcival the “genuine manufacturer” of the Marinière. Since the 1960s, Orcival has catered to private consumers as well and they still focus on this market today. Their original navy shirts, and other products, can be bought directly via them.^[5]

The Iconic Breton Shirt Chanel Gaultier the Rise of French Stripes Chanel Breton Shirt — Coco Chanel in a Breton Shirt in the 1930s, public domain via Wikimedia Commons.

Outside of its naval context, the shirt soon became popular also in fashion. This was also due to Coco Chanel. You may have seen this famous picture of her wearing a top with Breton stripes and high-waisted pants in the 1930s. We have to put this in the context of the time – this was very daring, as wearing pants as a woman was still nothing ordinary and accepted as yet. Secondly, she used a men’s uniform and adapted it to her, and therefore women’s, daily needs. Chanel, an ardent fighter of the corset, probably thought that if the Breton shirt was practical for sailors, it also allowed women more freedom of movement.

She wore the shirt herself, and nautical themes had a big impact on her designs as well. Maybe not in the literal sense – we rarely see the Breton stripes themselves in her own designs. There are some articles which claim that she incorporated stripes in her early designs in 1917. However, the research for this article could not confirm that. The influence is visible on a subtler level.

In addition to her iconic use of black and white, Chanel often worked with the contrast of white and red. Famously, Chanel said that the only true colour in addition to white and black was red. A typical colour combination for navy uniforms of the 19^th century was navy blue, white and red. She also worked a lot with exactly these colours. As she spent a lot of time by the seaside – in Deauville and Southern France, this is for sure no coincidence. And we could even take it a step further and say that her iconic suits also sometimes referenced naval uniforms – with their colour schemes, buttons, patterns or cuts. But rather than colour schemes and striped patterns, we can say that probably the biggest influence from the naval uniforms was the silhouettes and garments allowing more freedom of movement.

The Iconic Breton Shirt Chanel Gaultier the Rise of French Stripes Chanel Knot Heels — Chanel Heels with a Sailor’s Knot, early 20th century, Museet for Søfart/Sjöfarts Museet Akvariet, picture taken by the author at the exhibition “Oceanista” in Gothenburg, 2015.

Until today, the brand Chanel keeps incorporating these elements into their collections. Needless to say, it has its cruise collections but there are nautical themes across the collections and periods. One really nice example is a shoes from the Lagerfeld era with a knotted heel, referencing the ropes on sailing boats.^[6]

Chanel was not the only famous person for a passion for the Breton shirt – Jean Cocteau, Pablo Picasso, Brigitte Bardot, Audrey Hepburn, the list goes on. Probably because it is just a very easy and comfortable classic.

Jean Paul Gaultier wearing his beloved blue and white stripes.

When I think of sailors in fashion, in a sexier and daring way, I immediately think of Jean Paul Gaultier. Since his childhood, the designer has been fascinated with sailors who soon became part of the his brand-DNA. His mother used to dress him in sailor’s jumpers. According to him, these striped garments will never go out of style and he loves the architectural and graphic aspect of stripes. Maybe exactly for the reason that he identifies with the outcasts of the pasts?^[7]

Movie Poster for Querelle, 1982.

The sailor theme in Gaultier’s work goes further than mere childhood memories and a passion for graphic elements. A major inspiration for the designer was Rainer Werner Fassbinder’s movie “Querelle” from 1982, which is based on a novel by French author Jean Genet (Who is also one of Gaultier’s favourite authors, alongside Jean Cocteau, another fan of the striped shirt). The movie about the sailor Georges Querelles eroticized the sailor and fetishized his top. Since then, the sailors have become an expression of hyper-sexuality of homosexuals – for the designer but also in general.^[8]

Gaultier has incorporated the stripes in many different variations throughout his career – for menswear and womenswear, for ready-to-wear and couture. He also used them for various costumes for the theater and movies and also combined them with feathers, pearls or tattoos. The latter are yet another reference to sailors, as they were among the first groups associated with the body artworks.^[9]

Special thanks to the Sjöfarts Museet Akvariet in Gothenburg for the private guided tour and the supply of the press materials. Also thanks to the M/S Museet for Søfart in Helsingør for the permission to use the pictures taken during the exhibition visit.

Disclaimer

This article is based on the personal, views, experiences and research of the author, no fees were received by the organisations and people mentioned above. All information as of the date of publishing/updating.

Footnotes

[1] M/S Museet for Søfart 2021, no page indications, Orcival Official Website, Sjöfarts Museet Akvariet 2025.

[2-3] ibid.

[4] M/S Museet for Søfart 2021, no page indications

[5] Orcival Official Website 2025.

[6] M/S Museet for Søfart 2021, no page indications, Sjöfarts Museet Akvariet 2025.

[7] Kunsthalle München 2015, p. 62, M/S Museet for Søfart 2021, no page indications, Sjöfarts Museet Akvariet 2025.

[8-9] ibid.

Sources

Kunsthalle München, Jean Paul Gaultier, From the Sidewalk to the Catwalk, exhibition catalog, 2015.

M/S Museet for Søfart, Oceanista – Fashion & the Sea, exhibition catalog, Helsingør, 2021.

Orcival Official Website, last accessed on 6 August 2025.

Sjöfarts Museet Akvariet Gothenburg, Oceanista – Fashion & the Sea, private guided tour, June 2025.

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