Come into Bloom

THERE ARE MANY OUTSTANDING perfume creations but nothing quite as iconic as the Chanel No 5. Gabrielle Chanel had requested for “a woman’s fragrance that smells like a woman”, which perfumer Ernest Beaux duly delivered in 1921. He designed an unorthodox scent that broke perfumery norms then, mixing floral notes, including those from the May rose, jasmine, ylang-ylang and sandalwood, with aldehydes.

Chanel No 5 would go on to become an icon of the house, and nearly a century on, its formula remains faithful to the original despite various