Chanel

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Saturday Question: What Brand Has The Best Atomizer?

While talking about oil-based perfumes last week, we confirmed once again that most respondents preferred spraying their perfumes. So, this week’s SQ is about spray atomizers (and some ranting).

Saturday Question on Undina's Looking Glass

Saturday Question #232:

What Brand Has The Best Atomizer?

Do you even think in these categories? If yes, what aspects of that distribution mechanism are the most important to you? Fineness of the mist? Spray distribution? Pressure sensitivity? Durability? Leak/evaporation prevention? Design? Something else?

My Answer

For a long time I didn’t even think about this part of the perfume bottle: as long as it worked, I didn’t notice anything else. Later, I started paying more attention to aesthetics and started noticing that some atomizers complemented the design of the bottle (think about Mugler‘s Angel). And then I bought my first bottle of Chanel. I still remember that first “Wow!” moment of realization of how incredibly smooth was the action, how amazingly fine was the burst of Coco from that beautiful bottle and how well-made the atomizer looked.

Chanel Coco

I am sure that my collection has many other perfumes with good atomizers. But all these years, every time I used one of my favorite Chanel perfumes, I would again and again mentally pay tribute to this iconic brand for the pleasure I felt gently pressing the nozzle and getting an evenly distributed finest mist exactly where I planned to apply it.

So, until very recently, I would have answered “Chanel” without thinking twice. What has changed? I gave up and bought a limited edition bottle of No 5 L’Eau. On the positive side: I like this perfume and will enjoy wearing it. And a friend got it for me in the duty-free in Paris, so the price was quite right. On the negative side… First of all, while that egg-shaped bottle (I’m not sure whose idea was that it’s a “drop”!) is pleasing to look at, it is extremely awkward when you try opening it. I even thought that my bottle was defective, or that I clever enough to solve the puzzle that held that cap in place. Nope. It was just hard to grip the cap firmly enough to apply the necessary force. I managed to do it eventually, but since then I struggle with it every time. But what upset me even more was the atomizer. It is not bad by any measure. It works. It doesn’t leak. It distributes perfume evenly without spewing. But it doesn’t have that…  je ne sais quoi, so to speak, that made Chanel atomizers special. And it is sad because I don’t think it happened for any good reason but in the name of greed – in order for some executive to smugly report up-the-chain that they saved 25 cents per bottle without anyone even noticing the difference. I noticed. So, while for now I’ll keep the highest spot for my older Chanel bottles (as recent as Paris – Venise they were still superb), I will start taking notice of how my other favorites’ pumps work.

Chanel No5 L'EAU

And I welcome your thoughts on which brands deserve praise.

What Brand Has The Best Atomizer?

Coromandel and Cuir de Russie extraits by CHANEL
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Coromandel and Cuir de Russie extraits by CHANEL

Hi there ULGers, With the unsubstantiated but persistent rumors of the exclusif extraits being DCd I’ve started to panic. Late last week I popped into my nearest CHANEL Beauty store and got a porcelain each of Coromandel and Cuir de Russie. At the time I also swiped them. One on each forearm. Can we talk about a blissful afternoon and evening of greedily huffing at both arms…

Yes I am aware of how spendy they are and also aware that I’ll probably never have courage to open them. Already I have unopened 1932, Gardenia, Jersey and No 22 extraits. You’re right, I never smell them because of it BUT the joy I get from taking out those boxes and dreaming about wearing them is very satisfying. Honestly, my need to open another bottle of perfume is not so strong, especially as some of my REALLY important loves are just evaporating away and getting just a couple of wears a year. Some of my older Guerlain bottles like Vega, Moscou and Cuir Beluga are definitely wasting away.

Coromandel and Cuir de Russie extraits by CHANEL

Coromandel and Cuir de Russie extraits by CHANEL

If you want to see note lists etc here is the link to CHANEL USA. The extraits are 15ml and currently US$305, so $20/ml. It’s expensive but not so outrageously so compared to a lot of the schlock that’s being hustled for much more.

Coromandel

Patchouli, thick and rich and sparkling golden like it’s been scrubbed of everything earthy and 1970s. It’s still patchouli but this is classy stuff. There are other bit players that help create the whole but what really matters is the amber that has been cooled and aerated by orris. So what I smell is patchouli/orris/amber that misses a lot of the vanillic sweetness and holds just a tiny little bit feral, like microscopic underpinnings. What happens is it makes this whole, utterly perfect scent that has been blended into submission just a fraction rebellious. It’s so clever and beautiful. That single swipe in the early afternoon was still pumping soft wisps at lunch next day before I showered.

Cuir de Russie

So while I was very horsey in my youth and rode, mucked out, collected horse apples and groomed them for years. My parents sent me to riding classes every weekend and made the farm owners send me to help do all the dirty work so I’d stop wanting a horse of my own. They needn’t have worried. Once I changed schools my Saturdays were for sport.
Anyway, Cuir de Russie is funny. It smells like a brand new pair of patent leather shoes AND it smells like a tack room. It is this super weird blend of two worlds and it lures me in every time. Obviously if you love Beast Mode leathers then this safe as houses baby will bore you to tears. Here’s the thing though, sometimes I want to smell understated but still fragrant enough that I remember my perfumista-hood. Leather and lightly tropical white flowers, kind of aftershave-y. NO, that’s not right, kind of SHAVE CREAMY but subtle, low key and beautiful. The vanilla and rose don’t play big parts for me but right down the dying breaths I can tell they have been playing all along.

While I’m not currently in a position to buy these, in the near future more discretionary funds will be available and I’m hoping CHANEL holds off long enough for me to get there and at least get Coromandel and Cuir de Russie. Oh, and Bois des Iles.

So which CHANEL extrait would you throw money on the counter for?
Portia xx

 

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Saturday Question: Are You Tempted by Chanel No 5 L’Eau Drop Bottle?

On June 13, Chanel is releasing a new limited edition of their Chanel No 5 flanker – Chanel No 5 L’Eau. It’ll be available in their boutiques and on chanel.com. I’m not sure why they decided to call it “Drop”: it looks rather like an egg, but that’s how it is referenced on the Chanel site. And “a drop of perfume” sounds a lot better than… you got it. It holds the same No 5 L’eau from 2016 (or at least they claim so: who knows how many reformulations it went through in the years passed). It will be available in one size, 50 ml, and the US price is $155. You might be more than positive that it will sold out, and even if it gets to one of the retailers, it won’t survive long enough to wait for some site-wide promotion.

 

Saturday Question on Undina's Looking Glass

 

Saturday Question #218:

Are You Tempted by Chanel No 5 L’Eau Drop Bottle?

Do you like this perfume? Do you have it in your collection? Are you contemplating the purchase of this limited edition bottle?

My Answer

I tried just a tiny sample of No 5 L’Eau (that’s how I requested it from a perfumista friend since I didn’t expect to like it and didn’t want to waste her perfume), and unexpectedly I liked it. It wasn’t love-love to send me buying that perfume immediately, but I was considering a purchase if I happen to come across it at a Duty-free store. It haven’t happened yet.

This bottle looks appealing to me. If it weren’t for my “low-buy” this year, I would have tried to buy it. I am arguing with myself and still not sure if I want to make an exception. We’ll see.

How about you?

 

Are You Tempted by Chanel No 5 L’Eau Drop Bottle?

Cuir de Russie EdP CHANEL Les Exclusifs
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Cuir de Russie EdP CHANEL Les Exclusifs

Hi there Crew, CHANEL Cuir de Russie EdP was released in 2016. It’s a modern riff on Ernest Beaux’s 1924 leather & smoke bomb. A soapy reinterpretation of even the 2007 EdT. It’s still better than most things produced today, in my completely subjective opinion but a far cry from the original. What was a lion is now a perfectly trained, gorgeous house cat. My bottle was bought on a FaceBook Sale Doc from a person who was devastated at the change from EdT to EdP and couldn’t get rid of this bottle fast enough.

Cuir de Russie EdP CHANEL Les Exclusifs

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Orange blossom Mandarin Orange Bergamot
Heart: Ylang-Ylang Jasmine Tobacco Rose
Base: Leather Birch Resins

You’ll notice how little has been used from the bottle. It’s strange because I love this soft focus soapy leather. TBH every time I think leather it’s 1980s Trussardi, Cuir d’Ange or Gentry Jockey Club. So strange also because I have to go find them and Cuir de Russie is on my grab tray, right next to the desk.

Today I was thinking to wear leather. With it being shoulder season I knew it had to do warm and cold time. The sunshine is absolutely gorgeous right now in Sydney but once you’re in shade it feels bitterly cold. Yes, I know. Sydneysiders are wimps because we have the mildest weather. Still, we also try and wear Polo shirts year round, on their own. So you see the conundrum. I did have my ever present Gap hoodie with me though just in case there was also breeze.

How does CHANEL Cuir de Russie EdP smell? It opens with aldehydes and an orange blossom so reminiscent of fatty soap I smile. There are flowers but it’s a bouquet, nothing rises above to make itself know. There is no star turn. Even the leather is not a huge stand out. There but part of what is a reserved, elegant wash of fragrance. I don’t understand why iris isn’t noted, it sure does smell like there is some here puffing up the rest. It’s like all the sharp corners and interesting combative parts of the original Cuir de Russie have been shorn away. Beautiful, low key, lightly sparkling fragrance with a hint of well loved leather goods and some smooth resins. I can’t even tell you what the resins are, amber and maybe some elemi?

Totally unisex and utterly inoffensive. The lasting power is very good though. I keep smelling this gorgeous wash for hours, there will probably still be a whisper when I wake. I’m going to respritz for bed and sail away on a cloud of Cuir de Russie.

Are you a fan?
Portia xx

 

CHANEL Les Eaux De Chanel
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CHANEL Les Eaux De Chanel

Hiya ULG crew, Time got away from me this week. I had even gone and purchased the newest Eaux, Paris – Paris, so we could chat about it. Yesterday got hijacked by Jin though and a whole bunch of stuff didn’t get done. This is not a complaint. Jin did overnight overtime both Saturday and Sunday this weekend. That’s two EXTRA 12 hour shifts for the week. Basically he worked 7 days straight. He got an ADO on Monday, yesterday. So though we had seen glimpses of each other over the weekend it wasn’t real time. Given yesterday we took it and did stuff together. We went to the Dr, had some bloodwork done, checked a problem and fixed it temporarily at the new investment apartment, did some shopping, cut up a slew of veggies and cooked pork and then sat companionably together producing and eating Vietnamese Rolls while watching TV. Then when he hit the hay I wrote my TRIVIA Q&A for the week and after finishing was completely bushed.

Though all this happened yesterday. It meant today I had to do the apartment cleaning and other stuff usually done on a Monday. Fortunately it’s raining so hard laundry is out of the question. Hopefully there will be some sunshine later in the week for that.

Here we are. I’m not going to lie. There’s a window of about 20 minutes before i have to start putting my make up on for work tonight. Instead of writing about Paris – Paris today I offer you this picture.

Are you wearing Les Eaux De Chanel if you are in the Northern Hemisphere? Did you even try them?

My take is that the bottles are gorgeous, the fragrances beautiful (if fleeting) and the whole concept is kept extremely affordable for a luxury/aspirational brand. It’s still not cheap but coming from CHANEL I was pleasantly surprised at the price point.

Have Les Eaux De Chanel made their way into your heart or collection?
Portia xx

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Saturday Question: Do You Keep Any Perfume Records? (And My 2021 Year Round-up Entertaining Statistics)

A couple of weeks ago, in another SQ post, Jyotsna suggested this question. And I decided it was a good idea to combine it with my yearly statistics post.

 

Saturday Question on Undina's Looking Glass

 

Saturday Question #98:

Do You Keep Any Perfume Records?

Do you have a spreadsheet of your entire collection? Or maybe you’re tracking them somewhere online, as a wardrobe in one of the perfume forums? Do you record what you wear or test? Or, maybe, what you buy?

If yes, how meticulous are you? If no, do you have a desire/urge to do it?

My Answer

As many of you probably know already, I record everything related to my perfume hobby in a database. If anyone hasn’t seen it yet and is curious, in my 2017 Year Round-up post I told more about that database and shared some screenshots. Data that I record there allows me to run these yearly calculations to share with my readers. I try to record what I wear or test daily (in the last year’s statistics post, I provided an infographic that explains wear vs test concept), but some days I don’t get to the home computer where I have that database, so then later I would try to catch up for several days, if I remember what it was.

In 2021, compared to 2020, I wore fewer perfumes (178 vs 210) from fewer brands (79 vs 96) on fewer occasions (291 vs 367). It means that for 2.5 months during 2021 I didn’t wear perfumes. It doesn’t mean that I was completely scentless on those days: if not to count several occasions when I wasn’t feeling well because of the vaccination shots, I used those days to test perfumes new to me or re-test those that I’ve previously tested. But even testing went down in 2021 (compared to 2020): I tested/re-tested 180 perfumes (327) from 68 brands (126).

My traditional Top 10 brands worn chart has the same 7 brands that keep re-appearing in my yearly posts for the last 9 years in slightly different order: Ormonde Jayne, Guerlain, Amouage, Tom Ford, Jo Malone, Chanel and Serge Lutens. The remaining three brands are new on that chart: Puredistance, Olfactive Studio and Masque Milano.

My Stats Year 2021

Nose Prose just did a post on the first week of the project she runs this month: to wear different perfume for each day. When I first read about it, I was almost surprised: how else? I’m so used to my routine of not repeating the same perfume for months, that I forgot that many people, even perfumistas, often rotate through some small subset of perfumes (and I’m not even talking about Brigitte who might wear the same perfume for weeks). This year, out of 178 perfumes that I wore 110 made their appearance just once. And perfume that I wore most often, Ormonde Jayne Ta’if, I wore only 6 times (plus 3 times I wore Ta’if Elixir).

The only aspect where I “improved” is the number of 2021 releases that I tested – 38 vs 22 (2020) vs 16 (2019). The list of my Top 5 new releases for 2021 is in the previous SQ post.

 

Now it’s your turn.

 

Do You Keep Any Perfume Records?

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Saturday Question: What Are Your Top 5 Perfumes of 2021?

So, we’re in 2022. I think, by now we all learned to be rather cautious than optimistic about the year to unfold. But at the same time, in the beginning of something new (even though in this case it’s quite arbitrary, just a number accepted by a majority as an identifier for the span of time we find ourselves in), it is both customary and easy(ier?) to let yourself to be hopeful. So, let’s hope that the next 12 months will be kinder to those who had it hard in 2021 and at least not worse for those who didn’t suffer from that year much.

That was about life in general. Perfume-wise, in my opinion, 2021 wasn’t that bad. Yes, on the downside, some perfume events had been cancelled, and many of us had less opportunities to sniff something new both locally and while traveling. But at the same time, it felt like we finally got our wish: in 2021, not everyone and their uncle has launched a new perfume brand; and existing brands seemingly slowed down with new releases. And while we still had a lot more new releases than it’s feasible to test and review, somehow it felt less overwhelming (or maybe I just got used to it?).

So, I thought it might be interesting to share our “best of 2021” perfume finds.

Saturday Question #97:

What Are Your Top 5 Perfumes of 2021?

If you tried enough 2021 releases to come up with 5 that you liked, please share those. But if no, you do not have to limit yourself with just new launches: your top 5 might be of new for you perfumes that you tried in 2021 for the first time and liked. Or it can be 5 perfumes that you finally got into your collection in 2021. And if none of these apply (if you were on a strict “no buy” or just didn’t like anything), just give us your top 5 favorites that you wore in 2021.

My Answer

I plan to look into all of my 2021 numbers soon for my traditional Entertaining Statistics post, but I already looked it up and know that I tested 38 perfumes released in 2021 from 29 brands. And among those that I tested, there are enough perfumes that fit this week’s question. And I can even rank them.

#5: Chanel Paris – Edimbourg

While I don’t think I’ll buy Paris – Edimbourg for myself, I liked it, especially on my vSO. So, one day, after he finishes the samples I passed on him, he might get a bottle of it under a Christmas Tree.

#4: Eris Parfums Green Spell

What can I say? I love green perfumes. I’ll finish the sample I’ve got and then will probably get a 10 ml travel spray.

#3: Teo Cabanel Rendez Vous

Randez Vous was my favorite from the Teo Cabanel’s new line. I can see a small bottle in my future.

#2: Serge Lutens La Dompteuse Encagée

Since I reviewed La Dompteuse Encagee, I had a chance to test it in Hawaii and confirmed that I enjoy it in hot/tropical weather. But since, at least under those conditions, it is less tenacious than I would like it to be, it seems that I will “need” a bottle of it.

#1: Puredistance No. 12

I consider Puredistance to be “my brand”: I had a couple of “loves” from them over the years, and most of the rest perfumes were strong “likes.” But each of their last three releases, Gold, Rubikona and now No. 12 (why haven’t I wrote about it yet?!), was making it almost impossible for me to choose my #1 perfume from this brand. But for 2021, No. 12 is my uncontested No. 1.

Puredistance No.12

What Are Your Top 5 Perfumes of 2021?

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What I Wore Wednesday: Perfume Advent Calendar 2021, Week 1

The first week of December is behind us (I can’t believe it!), and here’s what my Perfume Advent Calendar helped me to choose for each day:

Day 1: Mona di Orio Vanille Les Nombres d’Or
My perfect vanilla perfume. Boozy, sweet (but not too sweet), resinous. It was symbolic that I randomly picked this one for the first day of wearing my favorite perfumes while working from home because that was one of the perfumes that I couldn’t wear to the office for a long time because my manager complained that it induced his headache (I don’t think so: I’m sure it was stress and weather, but since he was a nice guy, I stopped wearing Mdo’s Vanille to work).

Rusty and Mona di Orio Vanille
Day 2: Amouage Memoir Woman
Such a regal perfume! I enjoyed wearing it for the whole day and then could smell some remaining traces on my pillowcase for the next couple of days. Rusty, on the other hand, wasn’t amused by the fact that I used his daytime office space for my Perfume Advent Calendar and then added a strongly smelling bottle on top to take a picture.

Rusty and Amouage Memoir
Day 3: Chanel Coromandel EdT
One day when I finish this decant, I might check out the current then EdP. But for now I’m content: it’s a great perfume for colder days, not that many of which we have here.

Rusty and Chanel Coromandel
Day 4: Naomi Goodsir Or du Serail
Last year I published my story for this perfume: Better than a New-Car Scent. Beautifully complex composition that brings me joy every time I wear it. That day Rusty didn’t want to cooperate.

Naomi Goodsir Or Du Serail
Day 5: Serge Lutens Chergui
My December wouldn’t be right without Chergui. I’m sure this perfume doesn’t require an introduction, but if you weren’t around three years ago, you might find entertaining my post Almost Newcomb’s Paradox about mysteriously multiplying boxes.

Serge Lutens Chergui
Day 6: Mugler Angel Taste of Fagrance
This was one of the days in December when I didn’t leave it to the fate: I “pre-loaded” the bag #6 with this perfume’s name because I knew that I would be publishing our joint blogging Scent Semantics post, in which I pared this fragrance with the word “Angelic.”

Rusty and Mugler Taste of Fragrance
Day 7: Chanel Coco
My bottle is 11 years old (and back then I bought it new from Nordstrom), so I should have enough of this perfume for the next 10 years. But I still wonder: how much is today’s version different from what I smell here?

Rusty and Chanel Coco

And if you didn’t see enough pictures of Rusty, a reminder that I’m doing the Advent CaTendar on my Instagram account (@undina_ba) – a count up to Rusty’s 13th Birthday on Christmas Eve Day.

 

Images: my own

Sycomore by CHANEL
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Sycomore by CHANEL

Hey Crew. CHANEL is one of the worlds most iconic brands. The marketing team is second to none. It’s hard to stay current and afloat in the world of fashion. Let alone doing it in the 21st century. With the historic stories of Gabrielle Chanel and her personal and political choices, any other brand would have been cancelled or censured. For more information read Hal Vaughan’s book Sleeping With The Enemy: Coco Chanel’s Secret War. She wasn’t alone according to this article. There has been some extra hype with No 5 turning 100 years old in 2021 and the release of the homewares inspired collectable Factory 5 Collection. They also manage to pump out some impressive fragrance in their Les Exclusif line. If you’re new to the perfume craving they are a good place to smell some beautifully crafted fragrance, accessible in most large department stores.

Sycomore by CHANEL EdP (2016)

Sycamore by CHANEL

Parfumo gives these featured accords:
Aldehydes, Spices, Pink pepper, Sandalwood, Tobacco, Violet, Vetiver, Juniper, Cypress

Grassy greenness, the sweet shiver of pink pepper, the warm enveloping and silky smooth pairing of tobacco and sandalwood are all front and centre at the opening of Sycomore EdP. Less brilliant and sparkling than its EdT predecessor but warmer and more wearable by far. This feels more luxurious without the razza mattaz, showbiz style entrance. Don’t get me wrong, I love the EdT but there is a place in my heart for the EdP. Also, as more proof I own this small bottle of EdP and it wasn’t even on my list as an EdT.

The heart becomes a lightly spiced fresh hewn wood. Not a chest thumping, crackly, modern niche experience of woods. Here there is air between the notes. You aren’t in the sawmill, or even the lumberyard. It’s more like you’ve had a wood delivery at home and you can smell it as you enter and leave the house. I don’t know what it is but I also smell wood polish, like those lovely waxes that feed and nourish your wood table.

Dry down gets woodsier and woodsier as it fades over hours. Interestingly people around me can smell this long after I become nose blind. A perfect scent for those times you need to be softly fragrant for long periods of time.

Sycamore by CHANEL EdP

Sycomore is a modern, unisex fragrance. No matter that it was originally created in 1930. I never smelled the Ernest Beaux version but Jacques Polge and Christopher Sheldrake have done a beautiful job of revamping the EdT.

Have you spent time with any of the CHANEL Sycomores?
Portia x

(EDIT: I spelled Sycomore as SycAmore through the whole post and then was pulled up. It is in fact SycOmore. Fixed now)

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Saturday Question: Are You Tempted by the Chanel Factory 5 Collection?

To mark the centennial anniversary of THE perfume, Chanel produced seventeen new N°5-scented bath and body products with black and white utilitarian packaging inspired by everyday objects – refill stand-up pouch, tea tin, water bottle, gouache tubes, paint can and so forth. All these are limited edition, some are available online, some in pop-up boutiques only, some are already sold out. Which brings us to today’s question.

 

Saturday Question on Undina's Looking Glass

 

Saturday Question #71:

Are You Tempted by the Chanel Factory 5 Collection?

Have you bought any of the objects? Do you plan to? Are you tempted?

Bonus questions: Do you have N°5 in your collection already? Do you like it?

My Answer

For years I tried Chanel No 5 again and again hoping I would “grow up” to like it. I still don’t. I learned to appreciate it, and I even enjoy smelling it from others. But whenever I try it on my skin, I end up slightly disappointed that it keeps leaving me cold. I tried both modern and vintage versions, EdT and EdP, the original one and all the flankers. I kind of could wear No 5 L’Eau, but I do not love it.

Chanel No5

And still, I’m tempted by this extremely strange collection. Luckily for me, the item that I wanted the most – the tea tin – isn’t available online, and none of the designated boutiques that are supposed to carry this collection is around where I live (I was surprised that not all Chanel boutiques got it!). Paint can is also not available. So, I’m looking at the soap in a tin, but for a small tin $45 seems too much (I don’t really care for the soap, I’m attracted to the tin). From the practical side, shower gel is the best product for me: using in the shower the scent that I do not mind but do not wear as perfume is perfect (otherwise the scent gets to mundane, and I somehow value perfume less), and it is still available online. But for me a dish soap bottle is one of the least attractive objects in that collection.

And then I started thinking… Maybe I should buy a bottle of actual perfume? It’s a new redesigned and, if I understand it correctly, limited edition bottle. And maybe – just maybe, I have absolutely no knowledge that it is or even could be the case – since it’s a special and limited edition, they’ve used a better quality ingredients (it’s wishful thinking, I know). So, should I finally get No 5 or L’Eau into my collection?

Of course, if I keep thinking for two long, the decision will be made for me: I expect the collection to sell out soon. Will I regret missing this collection? I wish it was No 19 or Coco – I would have pounced already, on the first day of the release. But on the other hand, No 5 is such an iconic perfume…

 

Are You Tempted by the Chanel Factory 5 Collection?

 

Image: from the brand’s site