Classic Chanel updates its fragrance menu with four re-launches and six new fragrances in their Les Exclusifs line, available only at Chanel boutiques.
The re-launch of regal Bois des Iles appeals to women with a taste for exotic lands including aromas of sandalwood, ginger, vanilla, jasmine, and rose. This stately fragrance goes well with a velvet brocade gown and gold crown—or at least the attitude. Encore for Gardénia, which makes the most of this unique flower by understating it with vanilla—it is a gardenia scent, but more dynamic and drier than others. Floral no 22, classically feminine, pure, and virginal, suggests a time when bridal gowns were adorned with handmade lace and wood stairs creaked under your shoes. The last re-launch is Cuir de Russie, or “Russian leather.” Open the bottle and sail away on notes of citrus, bergamot, incense, and balsam, reminiscent of Anna Karenina’s Russia. Press your face to the window and breathe deeply of the wood of the carriage door, the leather harnesses, and the incense that permeates the cushions. The Chanel re-launches are nostalgia in a bottle.
Pick some of these future classics to add to your fragrance wardrobe: Coromandel is another exotically inspired fragrance and a prime candidate for a signature, lifelong fragrance for women of elegance. This fragrance is strong, yet kind, standing firm on notes of woods and patchouli, then sanded down with a hint of sweet vanilla. For a departure toward grassy meadows: 31 rue Cambón is sharp, yet fresh; definitely fun. Then, 28 la Pausa picks up the trail with an honest, clean scent of citrus, lily, grass, and yes, graphite. It speaks to the schoolgirl in us all, who knows the allure of chewing pencils, making flower chains, and playing barefoot in the grass! Appropriately, it softens to a whisper by the end of the day. Next up is no 18, fruity and woodsy at once. Ever been camping in Vermont when the berries are ripe? Now you can! Bel Respiro is a modern scent for the woman with plans and goals: a splash of femininity with an assertion of power. Show this side of yourself in the combination of florals and grasses. Finally, Eau de Cologne is a burst of joyful citrus and open-air breeze—the essence of spring and new possibilities. A “field” trip to the grass, woods, and flowers ensconced in these bottles is in order!
Les Exclusifs, $175, only at Chanel boutiques.
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