No. 5 has been the fragrance of choice for many celebrities over the years, the most iconic being Marilyn Monroe, who famously stated that she wore nothing to bed except for the scent. Fast forward to the present, and Victoria Beckham, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, Eva Mendes, Nicole Kidman, Jessica Alba, Claudia Schiffer, and Celine Dion are all reportedly fans. French women can’t get enough of it either. Legendary actress Catherine Deneuve once loaned her prowess as the face of the fragrance; a covetable role which has, just this year, been passed onto the incredibly chic Marion Cotillard ahead of the perfume’s 100th birthday in 2021.
Its impressive fanbase aside, Chanel No. 5’s status is also reflective of the perfume’s quality; a highly sophisticated blend of the aforementioned aldehydes and florals – including rose, ylang-ylang, jasmine, lily-of-the-valley, and iris – layered over a warm, woody base of vetiver, sandalwood, vanilla, amber, and patchouli. Perhaps its sheer volume of ingredients is why, whenever I loan it to my friends when we meet out for cocktails or go out dancing, that it smells completely different on each and every one of us.
Chanel No. 5 has grown since its initial conception in 1921. What started as a single fragrance is now a collection of perfumes, all with the No. 5 moniker, but each their own personality. There’s the original Chanel No. 5 Parfum and the Chanel No. 5 Eau de Parfum, but in 2016, the brand introduced Chanel No. 5 L’Eau Eau de Toilette. I also own L’Eau, and if you were to ask me to sum it up in a word, it would be “fresh”. It’s distinctly lighter than Chanel No. 5, which is to be expected of an EdT, but its crisp citrus composition ensures it feels less decadent than its predecessor. Typically, this is the scent you’ll find in my handbag, while the classic Chanel No. 5 sits on my shelf, ready to be the final flourish in my morning ritual, or the last step before I leave the house for more glamorous surroundings after dark.
