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People who wear Chanel No. 5 don't just like the iconic powdery-floral fragrance — they adore it. Nearly a century old, it has collected thousands (if not millions) of fans over the years, including Marilyn Monroe, Celine Dion, and my friend Kara, who can't imagine having worn anything else for her recent wedding. "It's classic, elegant, a little old-fashioned, but also totally timeless," she tells me, adding that her mother wore Chanel No. 5 for her own wedding in 1976. But while she's one of many people who's willing to drop at least $80 on the eau de parfum version of the superstar scent, a $30,000 edition of Chanel No. 5 Parfum Grand Extrait is a tempting yet understandably long-shot purchase.
That's right: There's a $30,000 bottle of Chanel No. 5. In fact, there are 55 of them, one of which is currently on display at Le Rouge Chanel, the brand's gorgeous new pop-up space opening to the public in New York City today. It's an absolutely enormous flask, containing 30.4 ounces of "the most precious form of the fragrance," the parfum, which comes to roughly $1,000 an ounce. But considering you can get Chanel No. 5 parfum for around $350 an ounce every day, there's obviously something else extra-special about what's the brand is calling No. 5 Limited Edition Grand Extrait.
"Hand-crafted from the finest crystal and dressed in red for the first time ever, this grand flacon is a true keepsake for fragrance connoisseurs," the Chanel website reads. "A tribute to Gabrielle Chanel’s favorite color, the red hue showcases the 'rouge à l’or' expertise of Baccarat. An incomparable technique that consists of gradually fusing clear crystal and 24-carat gold powder at precisely 1,004°F." Furthermore, the bottle is sealed with baudruchage, a special hand-crafted technique that ensures the purity of the liquid inside, and it's presented in a white lambksin leather case.
Chanel is calling it "the ultimate gift for the true fragrance connoisseur," but I'd argue that it's more like the ultimate gift for the true Chanel No. 5 superfan specifically. Luckily for Kara and most of the other devotees who may not have $30,000 to casually drop on floral aldehydes, Chanel is offering a limited-edition eau de parfum in a smaller (3.4 ounces, to be exact) but equally beautiful red bottle for $130. But if you're in New York City between now and December 23, it's free to gawk at the big bottle at the Le Rouge Chanel pop-up on East 57th Street.
More on Chanel:
- Chanel Just Launched a New Mascara With the First 3D-Printed Wand Ever
- Chanel Gave the Ponytail a Cool-Girl Makeover
- Chanel Is Launching Boy de Chanel, a Makeup Line "for Men"
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