Chanel No.5 Eau Première 2015 edition: fragrance review

Chanel often comes to mind when we talk about festive occasion drenched in champagne, if only because of the reputation of aldehydes being fizzy and sparkling materials (the aldehyde sequence in No.5 is mostly citrusy and waxy, to be honest, though). 

 

Chanel's perfumer, Olivier Polge, taking the baton from his father Jacques, had stated clearly that the legendary perfume of Chanel No 5 Eau de Toilette has no age, yet the newer edition Chanel Eau Première No.5 from 2008 would "effortlessly outshine the original without denying its relevance." The choice of words was not random, it seems. Effortless seems to comprise the very essence (no pun intended) of the bright insouciance of the newer interpretation of the venerable classic.

However great Eau Première from 2008 was, nevertheless, the advancement of tastes meant that it wasn't really appreciated by mass consumers, but only by us, perfumephiles. Logical enough, it followed the well-known formula rather closely. Therefore in 2015, the company revamped it in No.5 Eau Première 2015, in the process liquefying it according to the IFRA regulations, which made an impact around 2012. 

One perfume lover once said, "No5 Eau Première is a gateway perfume to the aldehydic genre. This is a beautiful mix of soft, bright, fizzy, and powdery. Eau Première is Diet No5, about 60% the flavor but still highly pleasing." 

I find myself flirting with a bottle for a long time now because it brings on that girly, lovely, fizzy quality to the fore, most of all. It's not the aliphatic aldehydes' cluster of perfumery materials that made the older versions waxy and clean-soapy; it's the brightness of its facade that belies its being born with a silver spoon in its mouth. It reminds me of New Year's Day mornings sipping champagne and eating eggs Benedict at a posh hotel dining room after a night out dancing. It's festive, dazzlingly bright, ethereal, and with its hopes for the best risen to their apex. The balancing act of the fragrance lies in judging how the citrusy freshness extends and rejuvenates the rose in the heart; there's a delicate, wisp-like chord of citrus and rose. What has kept me then from owning a bottle? Poor performance, mostly, as I have mentioned in an article I wrote "Eau Couture for Chanel No.5 L'Eau". Yet it smells good and puts good-natured charm in one's mien. 

There's a time and place for that, too, and champagne bubbly for January of a new year could not meet with a more reliable ally. 

 

Careful: the 2008 edition had a tall architectural bottle resembling that of Elixir Sensuel, while the 2015 edition has the classic squared shouldered bottle of No.5. 

The One That I Want: Gisele Performs for Baz Luhrmann in Chanel No.5 Commercial

Every new commercial for Chanel No.5 is a small idyll and the reason isn't very hard to see: we're talking about the perfume industry's most sacred totem. The amount of ink and gigabytes spent to write about No.5 (and the whole Chanel mythos) is spilling forth and my cup filleth. But still I was left sort of mesmerized upon watching the latest Chanel No.5 video commercial, directed by Aussie maverick & iconoclast Baz Luhrmann (who might possibly never surpass his Romeo & Juliet 1990s film adaptation, but who's interesting and relevant all the same).

The credits come full circle as Luhrmann had directed the 2004 commercial starring a fledgingly scary-looking at the time (notice the eyes) Nicole Kidman as "a dancer" (but really a celebrity) who pushes away Rodrigo Santoro (then becoming famous through his participation in 300) in what was an almost bankrupting filming for the French brand of luxury goods. The couture gowns designed by Karl Lagerfeld, the jewelry, the body suit and high heel pumps, the chauffeured limos, the skyscraper views, the dancing routines, the red carpet exit, the Debussy music…

Luhrmann doesn't really cut down on budget for the new Chanel No.5 commercial for 2014 and again uses a well known male actor to his feminine heroine, the giga-super-model Gisele, this time Game of Thrones' Michel Huisman. In fact this is the first time that the heroine in those commercials doesn't shy away from a man, but seeks him out.
But what really stands out is the genius use of music, Lo Fang's extra slow (like, 5 times slower than normal) cover of The One That I Want, the famous Grease song that vindicated a generation or two.

Even though I was initially skeptical on the choice of Gisele standing as the face of this iconic French perfume, when it was first announced, this was mainly because she doesn't embody any of the cliches that we come to associate with either Chanel (brunette, small framed, very smart but quirky looking) or the French "chic" (lots of simple black & white, Cleopatra-cut bobs, red lipstick and a spattering of rather unhealthy habits). But seeing the film, I can't deny that apart from a couple rather "void" gros plans at her face on the surf board, I find myself convinced.

Of course I disagree with Lurhmann that Gisele embodies the multi-tasking character of Coco Chanel (a much more manipulative and sharply street-smart woman, what in Greek we call "καπάτσα"), but she looks good (in not only gorgeous-gams-and-hair way, but also convincing in her anxiousness during role playing). Additionally the fact that the director and scripting didn't get her to speak any lines is clever; why shatter the perfect image? It's all played through direction, something that shows very well in the 3-minute long film (shorter snippets of 30 and 60 seconds will play on TV screens during the countdown to Christmas).

Lurhmann, a man known for his grandiloquence, also makes use of some personal leitmotifs: the Queensboro bridge driving-through shot which he used in his Nicole Kidman commercial for No.5, his The Great Gatsby and now for the latest Chanel commercial, for one. To Baz it's a shot out of Fitzgerald's novel that suggests inner turnmoil, much like the Brooklyn bridge stands out in filming as a symbol of faith in industrialization (or even the unification of America, such as in Atlantis poem by Hart Crane).

 The commercial of Chanel No.5 featuring Gisele isn't as dreamy as the Audrey Tautou Chanel commercial (who unsurprisingly did embody French cuteness to a T), which had been directed by Jeanne Pierre Jeunet, but it's rather charming all the same. For instance, I absolutely love the clever association of "chills" in the lyrics to the water bubbles shown and the famed zing of aldehydes on the top perfume notes of this most classic floral aldehydic fragrance. And I also smile watching the very cute mother & daughter spraying a cloud of perfume in the air ritual]. The Chanel commercial, especially for something as timless and "old" is better mannered than Dior's latest J'Adore 2014 commercial (which basically told us off if we romanticize any sort of timelessness). Assuredly a step into the right direction after the catastrophe of sanctioning that Brad Pitt commercial (and patching things up last season with a Marilyn tape transcript). Well done Chanel!

Related reading on Perfume Shrine: 
The most incredible Chanel No.5 commercial ever is from 1982
Chanel No.5 Through the Years: Iconography and Advertising
Clips of old Chanel No.5 commercials
Collective PerfumeShrine Posts on Chanel No.5 (scroll)

Brazilian Supermodel Gisele the new face of Chanel No.5 perfume

Gisele Bundchen has been announced as the new face of Chanel No. 5 perfume.
According to WWD, the 33-year-old Brazilian model was shooting a video for the campaign this week in the Hamptons, New York, with film director Baz Luhrmann.
She was chosen for her 'natural beauty and modern femininity,' a Chanel spokesperson said.

The leap was natural since Gisele has been gracing the Chanel makeup advertisements and the line Les Beiges de Chanel for some time now. Nor was the elevated fee (Gisele is the highest paid model working at the moment) since it was already into consideration by the Parisian family-owned company.
Still, that's 3 spokes(wo)men in 3 years which makes it a record for the perennial Chanel masterclass.

The Intimate History of Chanel N°5

After the catastrophic Brad Pitt No.5 campaign (largely faulty due to the horrendous script), Chanel goes all damage control and employs Marilyn Monroe at their Inside Chanel microsite.

 

The“Marilyn and N°5” video is part two of a larger Inside Chanel campaign that is available at www.inside-chanel.com.

Tilar Mazzeo "The Secret of Chanel No.5": Fragrance Book Review

Partly a biography of Gabrielle Chanel (nicknamed Coco) and partly a biography of the famous perfume she co-authored, Chanel No. 5, Tilar Mazeo's book is one I knew about right when it was being authored, because I had been approached to assist with a couple of fragrance history questions. That might be why I was so inexplicably late in actually reviewing it, hesitant to deconstuct that beautiful narrative into info and personal opinions on style. Yet, because it is a book that is a real page-turner and which deserves a place in the library of perfume enthusiasts, I find myself thinking about it very often since its release and needing to relay my thoughts in black & white; much like the aesthetics of this iconic bottle dictate.

Cultural historian Tilar Mazzeo, after her best-selling The Widow Cliquot, has written a new book about Coco Chanel's legendary scent, The Secret of Chanel No. 5: The Intimate History of the World's Most Famous Perfume. In it, she skillfully interweaves facts about Chanel's life based on accredited biographers, such as Edmonde Charles Roux's biography Chanel and Her World, and musings recorded by memoir note-keeper perfumer Constantine Wériguine who kept a record of Ernest Beaux's souvenirs (Beaux being No.5' s illustrious perfumer). The inextricable struggle for survival of Coco, who went from orphanage in Aubazine to the cabaret and then on to the fashion atelier, aided by powerful men (Arthur "Boy" Capel, prince Dimitri and von Dincknlage among others) who loved her and aided her, and of her most famous creation, Chanel No.5 is fascinating to unravel.
I can guarantee you that you will be reaching for your bottle of Chanel No.5 every few chapters, in a desire to refresh your memory of what makes this fragrance truly an icon. If you're truly obsessive like myself, you will be putting all your vintages and concentrations imaginable from Eau de Cologne to Eau de Toilette, via Eau de Parfum, all the way to Extrait de Parfum in various dates on the desk and inhaling furtively to catch the secret of a commercial mega-success as recognisable today as Coca-Cola and Nike.

Among the merits of Tilar Mazzeo's book is its fast-paced rhythm which makes it a real page-turner; its wealth of documentation, amply showcased in the Notes section, where yours truly appears twice, no less; in the careful style of language that is engaging and joyful to read; and in the small astonishing facts that appear throughout. Several facts will make perfume enthustiasts perk up their ears and take note, like the notion that Beaux didn't create the first draft for No.5 on command of his patron, nor did he just employ his former recipe for Rallet No.1 which was a Russian Court favourite, before the Bolshevik Revolution which cost Ernest Beaux his stay in the mother land. Beaux was actually questioning prisoners in a location in the remote Archangel port of northest Russia when he noticed the scent of icebergs, wishing to capture this elusive, fleeting odour into a fragrance that could be worn on skin. It will be also interesting to see how Chanel herself was No.5's worst enemy, as she had signed away most of the rights to her fragrance early on to the Wertheimer brothers, and how she spent over 50 years fighting to get it back or destroy it. Indeed if one thing becomes apparent to the knowledgable reader who knew some of these secrets is how the meticulous care and consistent savvy business decisions of the Wertheimers, like smuggling jasmine concrete from Grasse fields to New Jersey laboratories during Nazi-occupied France in WWII, and putting the perfume for sale in Army sale points, have resulted in making Chanel No.5 the legend that it is to this day: the world's best known perfume!

If there is a "flaw" in The Secret of No.5 it is that the author intent on merging the designer with her famous masterpiece narrates the story as if every past deed in Coco's life bears a significance in the creation of the perfume by perfumer Ernest Beaux. It did not, as Beaux was certainly busy composing several first and second and upteenth drafts of his sperm idea years before he met Coco Chanel. But in retrospect everything falls into place and it is this which probably make the author choose this type of narrative style. The composition resonated with Chanel because it embodied everything she and her past stood for: a true classic yet perenially modern; the smell of "Boy" Capel who stood for cleanliness and safety, of fresh laundry & scrubbed skin reminiscent of the Cistercian orpahanage in Aubazine and the fervor of the demi-mondaines, young cabaret performers & societal fringe-living, less-respected women who wore heavy, sweet jasmine and musk scents; a bridge between the risqué and the lady-like, all in an emballage that spoke of Spartan deco restraint and mucho class. So much class and desirability in fact, that GIs were standing in line to get the goods back home during WWII and even Marilyn Monroe publicly proclaimed she loved it without being paid one dime to say she did.
In that regard it reminds me a bit of the cultural approach led by Jennifer Craik in The Face of Fashion: Cultural Studies in Fashion, another recommended read.

Bottom line: The Secret of Chanel No.5, despite its relative lack of pictures (there are a handful but not many), is a perfume book that will not tire or confuse less seasoned/less knowledgable perfume enthusiasts and, at the same time, it will not disappoint those who are more immersed in the aficion. Can I say it is recommended without appearing prejudiced?

The Secret of Chanel No. 5: The Intimate History of the World's Most Famous Perfume
By Tilar Mazzeo
Hardcover, 304 pages
Harper
List Price: $25.99

Disclosure: I bought the book with my own money, even though I was offered an advanced copy at the time of writing.

I want to be loved by you

I am overdue for an article submission so no big post today, but for your delectation some old commercials for Chanel No.5 that haven't circulated much.
Soon I will come back with an expanded historical review on No.5.
There is also an article concerning Chanel NO.5 in The Telegraph by renowned journalist Kate Shapland, which has a wonderful illustration by Richard Gray. You can read it here.



The first American commercial with Carol Bouquet by Ridley Scott:



And the French version by Bettina Rheims:
(She's saying:
You hate me, right?
Say it! Say it that you hate me.
Its a disturbing fealing, really disturbing.
Because I want you! I want you so much that I think I'm going to die...



Ah...cultural differences.

Chanel No.5 Through the Years

The renewed interest in Chanel No.5, due to the new advertising campaign with Audrey Tautou, reaffirms what has been a shared secret: "The powers that be at Chanel claim that a product bearing its name (be it in the form of scent, soap or bath oil) is sold every six seconds". And that the production, shot before the unfolding of the current economic crisis spared no costs: "A crew of 25 people reportedly worked on it for three weeks last May, filming everywhere from Paris to Limoges and, of course, Turkey". [source: Independent]

The new commercial {presented here} is a more haunting version with a nod to traditional values compared to the all dancing, outright-glamour-and-paparazzi-escaping of the one with Nikole Kidman some years ago. Shot by Baz Lurhman the fiary tale "I'm a dancer" routine was a modern, upbeat version ~with more thigh shown~ of the Roman Holiday scenario: VIP who finds true love at the side of a mere mortal, if you recall your Audrey Hepburn collection correctly. Funnily enough, Kidman looks nothing like Audrey Hepburn in her super-tall frame and attenuated blonde features, although Tautou does bear a passing resemblance thanks to the immense doe-eyes of both brunettes.
The current No.5 commercial reprises the romantic scenario "feminine classique" with a nod to the story-telling fantasy unconventional style of the OVNI, aka an anything-goes-style in which a sense of parody might be injected or the fantasy materializes. The latest Jean Pierre Jeunet commercial for Chanel No.5 uses angle-shots, photography and editing style which err on the side of romanticism, rather than the parody he had exhibited in Delicatessen or the follow-the-pale-faced-gamine-with-doe-eyes of Amélie. The invocation of the bottle in the reflections of lights from the window panes of the Orient Express train however, the warm saturation of colours, the bird's eye angle at the end showing the protagonists hugging while the interlocking CCs are left to shine on the mosaics through the fade-out are all masterful choices of film direction. The final shot reminds me of the bird'eyes shot of the fateful couple shot by Francis Ford Coppola in his Dracula (a film full of intertextuality in itself).

Chanel always paid a lot of attention to how they presented No.5 to the world and I took the initiative to present a little retrospective through the years a propos the latest:

The first illustration for No.5 featured famous illustrator's Georges Goursat/Sem stylised silhouette of a flapper, the fashion for liberated women being to embrace the new fragrance; the flowing dress in typical 20s flapper style, the bobbed hair, the ecstatic hands in the air. This was not an advertisement nevertheless (Sem was known for satirizing Chanel in his previous attempts) but an acknowledgement of the popularity of the new scent to its intented audience: the fashion-conscious and the hip.

© ADAGP

Next Coco Chanel herself posed at the Ritz Hotel suite where she stayed to photographer François Kollard in 1937, the grandeur of the suite and the majestic fireplace echoing the luxury of the fragrance.

The tradition of pampering connected to No.5 persisted through the years through advertisements which hinted at the rapture and sense of luxury which its use provoked.


Marilyn Monroe ~although never chosen by Chanel herself as a spokeswoman for the fragrance~ became the best ambassadress and advertising vehicle of the brand in 1960. She revealed in an interview which asked her what she wore during her schedule that Chanel No.5 was her choice of bed attire. A indelible memory was scratched in the flummoxes of people's minds to this day and No.5 became legendary to people who had never thought of perfume before! Certainly not in those terms!

Ali Mc Graw and her more down-to-earth strong beauty took the torch in 1966 when she posed with her dark features as the face of Chanel No.5. The choice showed the emphasis which Chanel placed on their American audiences even then.


The 70s were scattered with print and TV ads of classically beautiful Catherine Deneuve (once upon a time face of Marianne, the French national emblem), the one who has been more closely related into people's minds with No.5. Ironically Deneueve was opting for Yves Saint Laurent for her clothes and for Guerlain for her perfumes! It doesn't matter: think of Chanel No.5 and some old ad depicting Catherine Deneuve is certain to pop up in your mind.


Unknown beauties were continuing to feature in advertisements or Chanel No.5 but the glamour and joie de vivre were always featured when the famous number was brought forth.


The last French face to front Chanel No.5 in the late 70s (in memorable Ridley Scott directed commercials) and all through the 80s, was Carole Bouquet. The French actress wasn't the most talented one to come out of the country but her beauty and chic radiated through the pages in classy sexiness.


It was the bottle itself which took center stage in the pop images reminiscent of the Andy Warhol technique before the Nicole Kidman contract in 1985. Actually Warhol never made any reproductions of the No.5 bottle: it was a gesture of homage.

Estella Warren, swimmer, model and actress, was the early 2000s face for Chanel No.5 in what was an unforgetable campaign of commercials filmed by Luc Besson reprising the Little Red Riding Hood fairy tale in a most imaginative and creative melange. The print ads were visually striking, but not the same thing at all.


And then there was she who was at the height of her Hollywood career after worthy choices following an infamous divorce from Tom Cruise: Nicole Kidman had arrived and securing a contract to front Chanel No.5 was its apotheosis.

Please look at Perfume Shrine posts on Chanel No.5 commercial short-films through the years, clicking this link: Advertising Series part 1, I don't want to set the world on Fire.

She Spoke about Perfume in a Very Unconventional Way

The Chanel commercial we have been waiting and commenting on previously is finally here, the magic enfolding aboard the Orient Express en route to Istanbul. Directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet, starring French actress Audrey Tautou and mole model Travis Davenport on the soundtrack of Billie Holiday's "Im a fool to want you".
Please be sure to check out the official link of Chanel as well as it presents the back-story and the details on the making of as well as commentary by Taurou and Jeunet.



According to the director Jean-Pierre Jeunet:
"I've always loved night trains and their magic: its the perfect opportunity to create an encounter in suspended time. I really liked the idea of a woman meeting a man. They both think about each other, but continue on with their own lives, left with the regret that they didn't make contact with the other person. I love to play with destiny and coincidences... I knew that the story would revolve around the mesmerizing effect of the scent in the womans wake. We had to give voice to the intangible."

Excellently done and we will return with another Chanel post with commentary very soon!! In the meantime, you can read more on Chanel on Perfume Shrine following this link.


Clip originally uploaded by ROPtv on Youtube

I Don't Want to Set the World on Fire

Chanel makes some of the most stunning commercials for perfume.
Some of them are revered and well known to a greater or lesser degree, most of which we have already discussed here on the Shrine. Some are rather strange and compelling in their weirdness, some are unexpected modern little gems.
However I recently came across three truly exceptional and rare Chanel commercials and I want to share them with you on these pages, one by one. They are different, witty, visually and conceptually imaginative and they pose their own train of thought.

From 1982 with the infamous shadow of an airplane gliding up the Transamerica building in San Francisco comes the first one for Chanel No.5. That image must have made quite an impression in its day, long prior to days of terror, prompting Chandler Burr to reference it in his review of Rose Barbare: "sweeps over you like the silent, massive shadow of an Airbus A340, a tactile component that makes you narrow your eyes".
This Chanel No.5 commercial, taking its message one surreal step further than the 1979 Ridley Scott predecessor, is set to a cover of The Ink Spots hit "I don't want to set the world on fire" in a half minute that urges us to think out of the box.



Charles and Catherine share the fantasy of one of the greatest commercials ever made. From the merging master editing which takes the scheme of a French garden to fall on the black and white keys of a piano, them in turn giving way to the straight lines of train tracks and to urban skyscrapers' windows, it uses that wonderful perspective which makes the eye travel deeper and further into the background; prompting us to seek beneath the obvious, beneath the visual restrictions of reality into the unchartered vistas of the imagination and the power of olfaction that makes us dream.
And which question could be more personal than what is your perfume!
In my heart I have but one desire...

Clip originally uploaded by louisadeck on youtube

Behind the Knee...

A commercial NOT to be missed! An old, rare (never seen it linked before) clip for Chanel No.5 with Catherine Deneuve seducing us through the screen, talking about her man and how they indulge each other.
Click here to watch La Deneuve!

You've probably never seen it because they mispelled the Chanel name...

Next week we will tackle an exciting niche line flying under the radar, review vintage treasures and have lots of surprises to come too. Stay tuned!

Pic of 1970s ad via Okadi

Secrets of the Trade

There is a well-kept secret in the fragrance industry: A secret Perfume Shrine has been privy to, but not sworn to secrecy and if she doesn't reveal sources, all is well. So, my sweeties, today I will reveal it to you!
Yes, yes, I know you will cast unbelieving and imploring puppy eyes to the Shrine and ultimately want to say "Nah...Helg is having a bitchy day, that's all!". But no, I swear to you that this comes from inside info and is very credible.

We have talked time and again how it is my personal opinion based on several little factoids from observation and discussions that people when judging a fragrance rely as much on their eyes as they do on their noses, if not more. What I mean: there is the undeniable brand recognition which even though is often pooh-poohed, it usually does feature right there in the factors that contribute in making a decision to even sample a fragrance in the first place. The latest discussion I initiated on Perfume of Life on this produced interesting results. It sounds like a trusted house, a brand which produces perfumes that are simpatico to one's sensibilities or which has a interesting reputation is more likely to get customers to sample their other products as well. Of course this is not exactly inventing the wheel: it applies in so many other markets as well. But it is especially applicable in perfumery, it seems. If one consolidates a brand well enough, then customer interest will be forever piqued. This is what happened with Serge Lutens and his olfactory seraglio of lovelies. Even the less lovelies are not wont for desire to sample. Every new Serge is a thirst to be quenched! The same applies to Chanel. And in so many more ways than one.

Coco Chanel herself had the wonderful knack of knowing how to provide what women wanted, yet did not know they wanted it just yet. This is a quality that marks the successful enterpreneur from the unsuccessful one and it is -completely coincidentally I am sure- the secret of the marketability of Tom Ford and everything he touches (ewww).
But to revert to Chanel. The brand has a solid, unshakable seal of approval. It's the Homeric καλος κιαγαθος (=beautiful and virtuous): no woman -or man, for that matter- who wears Chanel could be accused of commiting a serious faux pas in the eyes of good taste. It's the brand with the highest visibility of all luxury brands, the one which most people recognise at a glance, the one who has safe-guarded its pedigree best of all and the one who has been faked most; which only serves to prove that people desire it desperately.
Chanel No.5 is so iconic that it has stayed in the top 5 of perfume bestsellers in France for years (to be slightly nudged off its pedestral by Angel in recent years) and it features among the top 10 or at least top 15 in almost every market it is available. It is this which has earned No.5 the moniker le monstre (=the monster; against which everything is compared to in terms of sales), because of its immense marketability. The thing practically sells itself.
And yet (and here is the catch), when participating in blind tests, the fragrance does especially poor! This is something that has been discussed in the corridors of Firmenich, Givaudan, International Flavors and Fragrances and the rest of those hidden pillars of capitalism for some time now. But the average customer does not frequent those places, ergo he/she is unaware of those facts. What is left is hearsay and their own nose. And so often the former is commenting deafeningly louder than the subleties of the latter.

And yet there are people who object with their nose more than their eyes. You might call it whatever you like, but it's there, it's tangible and it's a share of the market that is breathing and kicking and yielding bucks in the pocket. So not to be patronised. I came across this fascinating recount:

"i'll eventually figure out the note in perfumes like that, but right now i'm calling it "french". there are fragrances that smell french to me, it's a sharp powdery/sweet note that makes me think of grannies. maybe when i'm a granny i'll decide to smell like that.

i've tried chanel 5 on me so many times, always hoping for a different result. even in the dry down, i hate it. and i hear these young celebrities bragging about wearing it, and i think, "there's no way you actually like how that smells. you're wearing it for the name". it's been one of the most popular fragrances since it's release and i can't figure out why".

~from If Only it Were Fiction blog

Don't get me wrong: I like Chanel No.5. In fact I own some and have been enjoying it for years. It was first given to me at the tender age of 14: "every girl should try out Chanel No.5" the fairy-godmother told me. I even keep some in extrait de parfum form. But is it the be all and end all of fragrances? Probably not.

I thought you might want to be privy to this secret as well. Let's call it our secret handshake ;-)

Eddie: Sweetie, what are you drinking?
Patsy: Oh this? Chanel No. 5.

~from Absolutely Fabulous

Pic from Chanel 2001-2002 campaign courtesy of Elegant Lifestyle

Optical Scentsibilities: the Hug

What better way to show affection, protectiveness and love than a hug? In that spirit, the pose of a woman hugging a perfume bottle has been used a lot in advertising and it is our study subject for today.

A hug can be maternal and protective of a precious entity, signifying tenderness. As in Fidji by Guy Laroche.


And the Mother and Child by G.Klimt.



A hug can also signify daydreaming, and in it the freedom to be what one trully is. As in Caron's tender and contemplative Fleur de Rocaille.



Or in this art print in 60s style.



A hug can also be slightly provocative, sensually tantalising and promising escapades of an amorous sort. As in this ad of Senso by Ungaro featuring Nastassja Kinski from the 1980s.

Or in this famous illustration by Mel Ramos Hunts for the Best (1981), where the model suggestivelly embraces the topmost of the ketchup bottle.

Additionaly there is the semi-hug, a way of displaying the fragrance bottle than actually bringing it close to one's bosom, which can mean that it is prized loot; like in this ad for Covet by Sarah Jessica Parker. If you had followed Perfume Shrine, you will remember the wonderfully witty commercial for the scent, directed by J.P Goude.

It can also signify contemplation of the value of what its true essence means to you, like once again in the exotic shores of Fidji. The perfume becomes you, as the tagline said: "Every woman is an isle. Fidji is her perfume".

It can be your true essence itself, the magical elixir that transforms the woman into a plummed bird such as the Coco ads with Vanessa Paradis as a paradise bird (ingenious). Thus hugging the bottle is embracing the last frontier of imagination...



And finally, when something is as iconic and a mythos of its own, like Chanel No.5 is, it simply demands to be carried on the bosom as the insignia of excellence and the true arbiter of taste. Gigantic in its message as well as its physical size, it becomes bigger than life, fit to be hugged by only another living myth: Catherine Deneuve.

Which one is your favourite hug?

Pics from okadi, parfumdepub, ebay, allposters.com and art.com

Perfume advertising: Chanel No.5 and multimedia technology

The issue of perfume advertisements arises from time to time, with mixed results. Usually it has to do with the shock value of something or the sheer ingenuity of advertisers who come up with catchy phrases and images to embed an idea in our minds for ever. Although print ads have their merits and I will devote entries on them in the future, I think it has been already done so I have been trying to expand into the multimedia world of TV and theater commercials. In the interest of accomplishing that I have compiled a great annex of commercials on my main info site, Perfume Shrine and it will appear soon on-line (patience!). But first I wanted to discuss the matter here, so the next few entries will be devoted to the analysis of perfume advertising with the provision of commercial clips. I have of course decided to edit and not present all the clips; I just chose the most memorable ones and those which serve the purpose of illustrating my points.

Perfume commercials and their study shows the evolution not only of the deviousness in advertising or the images that capture each generation’s fantasy, but also the emergence of different aesthetic values based on the zeitgeist and the artistic contribution of celebrated individuals in their respective fields. This aspect is fascinating, aggrandizing the subconscious and examining how tastes differ between various cultures. Naturally, the sources of perfume advertising stem from two main sources, the US and Europe, so the contrasting and comparing is in most cases done between the two. Contemplating the schism between the two cultures over years of advertising, one realises that it is not that great after all, at least in this particular field, since people have been influenced by one another. Of course there are also examples of marked differences both in cultural sensitivities and in chronological advancement, especially since the AIDS epidemic which almost eliminated public displays of eroticism in the media, as well as the trend for “clean” perfumes and the newly fanged “celebrity perfume” which influenced advertising on its own by grafting the center of the commercial from the fantastical and fictional to the famous individual who represents a specific association already in the consumer’s mind. Nevertheless, each commercial stands on its own and has its merits and its flaws.


The first series of clips I was interested in exploring was Chanel’s for her iconic Chanel #5 perfume. It is a prime example that exhibits the evolution of aesthetics and advertising admirably, while all the while transpiring the message of a perfume imbued in fantasy, rather than reality. Chanel #5 has always been -also- a miracle of marketing. From the tales of Coco Chanel herself who supposedly sprayed the perfume in theaters and shops to garner attention and public awareness and who also gave small batches to her most exclusive clients, this perfume has stood the test of time not only on the merits of its mesmerizing jus, but also because the choice of bottle, packaging, colour coordination and overall presentation has been impeccable over the years. The first clip I found on this one comes from a UK ad in 1970. A haphazard meeting of a man and a woman in an art gallery. From the quite awkward event, characters dressed in the wide pants of the era (and yes, the lady is wearing them as well, as a symbol of emancipation) to the makeup and the stylized coif, the images progress in a cinematic flash back of the lady preparing for her day carelessly applying some Chanel #5 while chatting on the phone, her Afgan dog on the white sofa that matches her outfit; while at the end, it’s Chanel #5 that has provided the trigger for the romantic tête-à-tête in the sunset, when the lady is wearing a gown (so we know romantic time is coming) and her hair in an updo. The notion behind it is devious in that it insinuates that Chanel#5 is both sophisticated enough for an art gallery setting for a modern smart lady of means but also for more intimate moments.


Next comes the classic image provided by the artistry of british director Ridley Scott in 1979. The whole concept is exquisite: the woman is lying on the pool, with a seductive and dreamy voice-over: “I am made of blue sky and golden light and I will feel this way for ever”. The image of the airplane soaring in the blue sky, casting the shadow of a shark in the pool momentarily and then the man across swimming to her, aggresively one might say, while she languorously drinks up the sunshine, bronzed and made-up vividly in red and grey blue, has been embedded to the subconscious of anyone involved in perfume; even Chandler Burr's who used this image for another perfume review recently in his column. This proves the artistry and cunning of the concept. “Share the fantasy” the tagline ends and it is indeed a fantasy that transpires through watching the clip. Chanel #5 is again the perfume of indulgence and luxury (private pools being a scarce commodity back then), the escape to other worlds for people in the UK and colder climates, who dreamed to be in a tropical paradise and yearned for a setting of this kind

The next clip in the chronological series is also made by Ridley Scott, in 1980, who here again uses the elements of the luxuriant vacation spot, the blue waters and the sparseness of composition. All the while the old song “Sea of love” plays in the background. Carole Bouquet, then face of Chanel #5, is decked out in classic austere black, with a wide rim straw hat, also black, and a black one-piece swimsuit. Très chic in her red lipstic, an exclamation point on the white canvas of her skin and an invitation to sexuality. A close-up on her shoes reveals the brand name Chanel, while her white earrings also bear the logo of the brand, so as the viewer never mixes this up with anything else. The setting seems to be a private house in Cote d’Azur or Capri, all Mediterranean colours (of which Scott is very fond of, for those who know). A well suited man comes down a boat (which is odd, but maybe we could bypass it, as it might want to convey an image of authority and financial power) and as Carole leans back her big hat providing an exquisite “cadre” for the shot, they kiss. It’s only at the last shot that we realize that the pool is also shaped in the shape of Chanel #5 bottle. The exact same tagline of “Share the fantasy” (spoken in the french accents of Carole) finds its master in this admirable clip.


Following is a clip from the French director Luc Besson and eerie, wonderful music from by Danny Elfman (Tim Burton’s sidekick; this is from the film Edward Scissorhands). This one is actually my favourite of all the Chanel #5 commercials to date, if only because it brilliantly plays on the Little Red Riding Hood tale and the eroticism and naughtiness associated with it psychologically. Estella Warren dressed up in red and shoed in red dancing shoes enters playfully and mock-innocently the big vault where #5 is kept, the walls all quilted as a nod to the famous Chanel bags; from the plethora of bottles she picks one, lovingly holding it for a sec and luxuriously applies some drops on her neck. Picks up the bottle and places it in her straw basket lined in plaid cloth, to further drive in the point of the tale; while the unmistakable form of a wolf comes from the corridors following the thief Estelle, who finally dons her red cape and hood and opens the vault to the great city that lies beyond, Paris, the Tour d’Eiffel on the background, majestic, lighted up in the night. She makes an authoritative gesture to shush the wolf, who obeys, undoubtedly enslaved by the magical feminine fumes emanating from her. She goes out into Paris, the great unknown, city of wonder, ready for a greater adventure, while the male wolf is wailing into the night. What a masterpiece, what use of imagination….I am trully enslaved! I actually bought again some Chanel #5after this, I have to admit (Is my perfumista card revoked after this admission to superficial lure?). This is the power of advertising: It not only lures you to consider something as desirable and necessary when it might not be; it can be so cunning as to make you buy something as an endorsement to the great sense of style the brand possesses, as if you become a conspirator, an accomplish to a tale of mystery and naughtiness. Ah…these are the great ones! There is another splendid version of the tale, again by Besson, but I have kept that one on my extensive list for further viewing, for those interested.


The latest commercial for Chanel#5 is testament to both what great filmmaking can do and what the limitations of fantasy might be. Directed by Aussie director Baz Lurhman, starring Nicole Kidman as the undisputed protagonist of our collective consiousness, decked from head to toe in Karl Lagerfeld couture for Chanel, and brilliantly set to the completely magical score of Clair de Lune by Debussy, it runs a whole two minutes and looks more like a regular film than a perfume commercial, earning it the tagline of costliest commercial to date. I won’t try to recount the plot here, as it would spoil the climax, suggice to say that Nicole plays the role of a dancer who disappeared and is chased by the paparazzi, meeting an unsuspecting dashing male in the taxi she enters to escape them. Everything in the film speaks of romance, memories, the imprint of an ill-fated love affair, the luxury and grandeur of someone who is obviously at the top of the world, as is indeed the building on which Nicole and her lover consummate their affair. Everything has to do with catching the moment and making it last for an eternity and this particular angle is not only prime for catching an advertiser’s eye but also the consumer’s who wishes to impart lasting impressions via the most ephemeral of adornments, perfume. In a nutshell the dream of immortality, if only in the memory of a loved one. However this commercial, when contrasted with the previous one, shows a lack of naughtiness (despite the effort on Nicole’s part to convey it with her body language and face expressions on occasion) and less imagination applied, because the situations although majestic and in the sphere of the super-famous do seem tangible and rooted in reality. This I think is the only "flaw" (if one might be so bold as to use such a term) of this last commercial and the reason it is not my absolute favourite in the Chanel #5 series; nevertheless it is always a joy to watch and not to be missed.