A Whiff of Elegance

Chanel introduces a glamorous new diamond line to its Nº5 collection of perfume-inspired fine jewellery.

- GORDON NG

For many, the first whiff of Chanel Nº5 is an introduction to a world of beauty, sophistication and elegance. The fragrance has a famous story, of course. Gabrielle Chanel, a believer in numerological superstition, used to hold her haute couture presentations on the fifth day of the fifth month of the year; when she created her first handbag, it was in the year 1955. And when it came to selecting the first fragrance for her maison, created by Ernest Beaux, she picked the fifth bottle and named it thus.

So it’s no surprise that the number five has tremendous significance at the house of Chanel. Considered a pinnacle of the maison’s codes, the number embodies the success and power of a modern woman as Gabrielle Chanel envisioned her, a woman who she once said must be “a part of what is to come”.