I am not a famous enough 'blogger' to receive Assouline's publications to review, but my friends over at NOTCOT are.
And in the beautiful Chanel publication put out by Assouline, there was a bit of folklore that is so interesting, but hard to believe.
I have reprinted the article from NOTCOT for you, so the first person voice you're reading is that of Jean Aw.
Of the many stories, myths, and just all around Chanel lore that i can’t seem to get out of my head yet (expect a few more posts just so i can clear my head)… the one i woke up with that was driving me crazy was that Coco Chanel designed her first Chanel No.5 bottle to perfectly match the shape of Plaza Vendome (where the Ritz is, and where she basically lived… although her apartment for inspiration and taking guests was just behind it on Rue Cambon… but more on that in a few days). They also claim that it is unknown whether this matching shape was intentional… and its not like THEY had google maps back in 1921. So i HAD to check. The designer in me had to know for sure, while the rational part of me assumed the Chanel folks wouldn’t just make something like this up. And as you see, they weren’t kidding. Below, more images… and also some quick pics from the Assouline set of Chanel books they left on my bed… its really fun to see the old sketches of the bottles, and even how they have evolved over the years… but still fit the Plaza Vendome proportions.
