Chanel Les Exclusifs

 

 

Chanel Les Exclusifs (Click photo to enlarge)

Identical bottles. Individual influences. Chanel Les Exclusifs is a collection of 14 fragrances first created by Ernest Beaux, Mademoiselle Chanel’s exclusive perfume creator to present day by Jacques Polge.

Each fragrance reinventing a moment in the life of Gabrielle Chanel’s life. A home, her atelier, her country side walks. 14 unisex fragrances. Which scent inspires you?

Chanel Les Exclusifs (Click photo to enlarge)

• Cuir de Russie. An imperial fragrance inspired by old Russia
• Coromandel inspired by the exquisite Chinese lacquer screens in Gabrielle Chanel’s rooms
• Jersey, a scent of freedom named after the fabric Gabrielle boldly used in her designs
• Bel Respiro, fresh open air of the French countryside.
• Beige, a colour beloved by Chanel for the simplicity it evokes
• 28 la Pausa, the woody country smell of Chanel’s country home
• 31 Rue Cambon, the couture fragrance named for the location of her atelier.
• 1932, the brilliance of a constellation of diamonds
• Sycomore, woody and noble
• Gardenia, the closest flower to Chanel’s beloved Camellia flower
• Eau de Cologne, simple and refreshing • No 22, created in 1922, graceful powdery florals
• Bois des Iles, an invitation to travel
• No 18, inspired by the Chanel boutique at 18, place Vendome, rich and full of surprises.
• Misia, an ode. Misia Sert and Coco Chanel shared a unique friendship. A rare complicity also because it was marked by curiosity.

Chanel Les Exclusifs Parfums (Click photo to enlarge)

Soon we will review each of these beautiful scents, starting next month….

by Jean Amr

 

The Bird Cage clock by Chanel is an ode to captive beauty

The Bird Cage clock by Chanel is an ode to captive beauty Chanel’s The Bird Cage clock is an extraordinary objet d’art created for the last years Biennale des Antiquaires in Paris. Before her death in 1971, French fashion designer Gabrielle Chanel made a wish: “May my legend prosper and thrive. I wish it a long and happy life.” And if Chanel’s Café Society collection, to be unveiled at the Biennale des Antiquaires in Paris last autumm , is any indication of her ongoing influence from beyond the grave, she must be a very happy soul indeed. The 87 high jewellery pieces that comprice the Café Society collection from Chanel celebrate the early 20^th century bohemian movement, of which Gabrielle Chanel was a leading force. In addition to the one-of-a-kind jewels are some wonderful Café Society high jewellery watches and an extraordinary clock, christened “The Bird Cage”. Sheltered in a white gold cage, two stylised cockatoos share their love for eternity.

Chanel’s Birdcage combines expertise in watchmaking and jewellery featuring a cockatoo sculpture made with mother-of-pearl marquetry and stone-setting. Chanel’s white gold Birdcage clock featuring two cockatoos entwined amongst pink camelias features 61.5ct of brilliant-cut diamonds, sculpted moonstone, sculpted pink quartz, rock crystal and gray and white mother-of-pearl. (Click photo to enlarge).

Moving away from the crisp, cosmopolitan lines of avant-garde geometry that characterise the high jewellery collection, “The Bird Cage” is an ode to romance, femininity and Coco Chanel’s love of Oriental exoticism. Inspired by a miniature jewellery birdcage housing two lovebirds, which she kept on a coffee table at her 31 rue Cambon apartment, this exceptional piece highlights many of the maison’s areas of expertise, including sculpture, gem-setting and mother-of-pearl marquetry.

The sculpture of the two birds is so detailed that even the pectoral feathers seem to breathe with life. The birds are perched on a branch of pink flowers, which on closer inspection reveal themselves as pink camellias sculpted from rose quartz, Coco Chanel’s favorite flower. The materials used to create this unique piece range from white gold, used for the cage; brilliant-cut diamonds to highlight the crests, feathers and tails of the birds and the centre of the flowers; sculpted moonstone, pink quartz and rock crystal for the birds and flowers; and grey and white mother-of-pearl for the pedestal of the cage. At the base of the branch, a pink camellia-framed clock with a diamond bezel marks the passing hours and minutes, which seem to be frozen for eternity in this splendid refuge.

For some an amazing item, for others, ‘super kitch for the very rich’…

by Jean Amr