Chanel No. 5 Reinvented Once Again As A Limited-Edition Collectible

Chanel N°5 has been one of the most famous fragrances in the world for over a century, yet the powdery floral perfume manages to keep us on our toes. There have been many iterations of it over the decades, mirroring its creator, Coco Chanel, by constantly reinventing itself, yet staying true to its DNA. The latest version is Chanel N°5 L’Eau Drop, which presents the forever scent in a new, limited-edition collectible format.

Fittingly, the perfume is dubbed “Just A Drop.” Its fleeting nature is the ultimate product drop, and the silhouette of the strikingly sleek, slightly futuristic bottle resembles a drop. Like Chanel N°5 in all its variations, it looks, feels and smells simultaneously cutting-edge yet classic, an aromatic juxtaposition.

It isn’t the original Chanel N°5 that’s inside the spray bottle, but rather L’Eau, a modern interpretation created by Chanel In-House Perfumer Creator Olivier Polge in 2016. So, what, from a fragrance aspect, are the differences in ingredients between the classic N°5 and N°5 L'Eau? “My idea was to only keep the essential facets that make N°5 a perfume different from any other, which is mainly composed of flowers (jasmine, rose, ylang-ylang) and aldehydes, and play with different proportions, adding certain facets like citrus that brings a new zesty impact of the aldehydes, or adding cedarwood to bring more vibrancy and dynamism in N°5,” Polge says.

The result is a perfume that stays true to the floral fantasy of the original, but with a fresher, more modern spin that feels airier and lighter. That notion is reflected in the bottle, which looks and feels crisp and cool in the palm of your hand—where it was intentionally designed to nestle—and is notable for its portability.