Glass Icon

That feeling of the soft warm sand running through toes, you don’t need to be there to understand that feeling.  Right now, it is something many of us long for.  Sand and sun may well seem like the most simplistic of pleasures, but heat and sand are what makes one of the oldest materials that have ever been created: Glass.  A material that has been around nearly as long as the sand itself.  The simple idea of combining this marine powder with heat to create glass has been recorded back to before the Egyptians.  One of the most iconic pieces of glass is of course the perfume bottle, read more here in Glass Icon

One of the most iconic perfume bottles ever made is now a design Classic. Created in 1921 and by the time 1959 came around this design statement was so ingrained, it was added to the permanent collection at the New York Museum of Modern Art.  The artist Andy Warhol made it the subject of screenprints in the mid-1980s with his pop art, silk-screened images helping add even more to its iconic status.

Designed as a reaction to all the overly delicate, decorative bottles so fashionable at the time, this bottle could almost be called austere masculine minimal, but most of all elegant. A white label with black sans serif text completed its aesthetic with name and number.

There are several schools of thought on why this particular bottle is shaped as it is.  It was, in fact, created to look like a men’s hip flask, something that could look stunning yet was easy to carry around in a pocket or bag.  There are however a couple of other myths surrounding its design.  One was that it represented the head, neck, and body of a woman whilst others say that it was inspired by a leather traveling case, used by the creatives’ lover, Arthur “Boy” Capel. 

The original container had small, delicate, rounded shoulders and was sold only in the company’s boutiques to select clients. Yet this bottle has been updated and modified eight times according to the design aesthetic of the era. Ensuring it always stood for the height of modernity.

Pure, austere, and minimal. This is the famous bottle designed by mademoiselle Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel was the first-ever perfume for the house.

All this, and we haven’t even discussed the contents, this bottle an utter marker of modernity houses probably the most famous perfume in the world. Chanel No 5. who just happens to be celebrating its 100^th birthday this year.

With N°5, Gabrielle Chanel created a fragrance that changed the history of perfumery, which crossed from Russia to Paris in its own journey. She wanted a perfume that personified her spirit of freedom and chic, something that embodied her clothes her fashions, and her lifestyle. It was with these essences, as a result, that this great scent was born.

A compelling shock to the senses impossible to associate with one singular flower. Simply put an icon of the grandest statement utterly desirable to put on a dressing table, carry in a bag as a statement of style. The perfume itself is a fusion of ingredients, timeless, legendary, a powdery floral bouquet.

Composed using raw materials of the finest quality, that meld together with top notes of Neroli followed with floral notes of, May Rose and Jasmine also from Grasse. Aldehydes provide airy freshness and lend an abstract effect to the fragrance.

Shown most people in the world this bottle and they will instantly recognise it; so known, so loved, as a symbol of modern feminity. An international signifier of great taste and elegance. So iconic the bottle itself, it is just as famous as the sacred juice inside.

If you enjoyed Glass Icon, we will be sharing more information on Chanel No 5 over the next few months but find more about it Here or more on the brand of Chanel Here

If you would like to read more on perfume because you enjoyed Glass Icon then why not read from a selection of stories Here