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Perfume Shrine had found a comprehensive video for showing the delicate technique of baudruchage (the coiling of the silk thread around the neck),barbichage and brossage (the following steps into securing the neck and seperating the ends of the thread) at Chanel. It was posted here, if you missed it..jpg)
However, there is another page on Notcot.com devoted to this exact process with funny captions step by step and very comprehensive photos. You can see the Chanel parfum sealing clicking here. But there is also a very interesting page on the same site comparing the Chanel bottle with Place Vendôme in the 1er arrondissement itself via Google maps, confirming the myth that Coco might have chosen it to echo the shape of the famous square in her bottle, as a reference to the Ritz where she stayed.
It's always fun to prove -or disprove- perfume lore, isn't it?
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This made me think of the reversing process, I wish someone could post a video on Youtube with the title "The ultimate guide for how to open perfume bottles from Chanel and Guerlain".
ReplyDeleteThat's a wonderful idea, you know, dear L! I think there's something to it.
ReplyDeleteHave you had trouble yourself?
When I opened the Chanel bottle I broke away the seal, cut the string and removed the entire membrane (or whatever you call that), but I have no idea whether this is the correct way. As for the only Guerlain parfum bottle I own (Mitsouko), I have not dared to open it yet. I did ask on POL, and got the answer that one has to cut the wire, but I have seen photos on Ebay where people has opened the bottle but had not cut the wire (at least it seems so), so I am still debating with myself whether I should just cut it and try to disentangle the wire using say a crochet hook. Do you have any suggestions?
ReplyDeleteI can perfectly imagine Gabrielle (Coco) Chanel being intrigued by the architecture of Paris. It's so "her". It's about luxury and the breath of the eternal.
ReplyDeleteI managed to open my Fidji vintage pure perfume by only cutting one of the silken strings that beautifully bound it and i am not sure if i should take off the rest of the strings (which stand off in a weird way now) and the seal. I guess there isn't such a thing as a "correct" way... it depends on how you like it. On my CM bottle i preferred everything to come off.
lillie
I think it's better to remove the -admitedly adorable- wax seal on the Chanels because if the climate is warm it tends to sort of melt in your hand and smear the label and we wouldn't want to do that, would we? Cutting the thread delicately with a pair of manicure sciccors works a treat. I don't know how it could be opened without at least loosening the thread considerably and if it becomes too loose it doesn't look nice, so...
ReplyDeleteI think the Ebay pics might be re-threaded wire around the neck. I might be wrong.
Great point, dear N! Yes, Gabrielle/Coco would be!
ReplyDeleteIndeed I don't think there is one universal way of doing it. Depends on the brand, the bottle, the style of the seal etc.
I have heard of someone re-coiling the threads using a little warm parafin, so that they sort of stick together again when the parafin cools, but I really haven't tried it.
I think removing the seal in the Chanels is best in the climate I live due to it softening and smudging in the heat.
Did you decide to do it for the same reasons as stated above?
Though melting probably won't be a big problem at my place, it does sound like it could be messy, I'm glad that I did the right thing. Well, I guess I have to cut the wire then, but this time I will remember to take a photo before I start to cut anything. Maybe it was just the paraffin trick I saw on Ebay.
ReplyDeleteYes, I imagine wax is not that prone to melting at your place. The heat of the fingers though does make for smudges, I find. The seals are adorable, of course. You can keep them in a little pill box!
ReplyDeleteAnother idea that struck me just now: I think you can keep the wire after loosening and cutting and maybe re-threading around neck in a way that doesn't affect the cap (I realize you need tiny child's fingers to do this!) so you can still open and use?