The Classics

As in every other sector, the beauty world has got its own cult products. Products that have been around for a while; that have made a statement in the beauty world and won’t be disappearing very soon. Products that have made their way into our stash for one reason and one reason only; they’re just really good products that every woman needs to own.

The first product is the well-known Chanel No. 5 Eau De Parfum. This elegant bottle of golden goodness was the first perfume created in 1915 for the fashion brand Chanel, by the Russian-French Ernest Beaux, who was a chemist and perfumer. The design of the bottle has remained the same ever since.

Gabrielle ‘Coco’ Chanel wanted to create a perfume that would ‘release women from the monotonous, ordinary scents’ and said that ‘a woman should smell like a woman, and not like a rose’. To meet the requirements of Coco Chanel, Beaux created to series of perfumes numbered 1-5 and 20-24. Without a doubt, Chanel chose the fifth perfume; she believed number 5 was her lucky number, which is why she also chose to release the perfume on the fifth day of the fifth month, in 1921.

The packaging of Chanel No. 5 is what made the little bottle of perfume a designer classic. Being simple and square, the flacon is identical to the map of the Place Vendôme in Paris. The simple packaging guarantees that women give more attention to the perfume itself instead of the packaging, which is timeless, but still modern. I think the perfume smells really grown-up; it contains aldehydes (which makes it one of the first perfumes which contains aldehydes sold on a mass scale), orange-blossom, jasmine, rose from Grasse (if you haven’t read Perfume yet- do it. You won’t regret it), ylang ylang, sandalwood, vetiver, musk and vanilla. When I smelled it for the first time, it reminded me of old-fashioned soap and baby powder, but after a while, the scent evolves and transforms into something really beautiful. Its fans being Andy Warhol, Catherine Deneuve and Marilyn Monroe, the sales only went up and up to this day it still remains one of the most sold perfumes ever. Marilyn Monroe even claimed that it was the only thing she wore to bed at night, which made the perfume world famous. I'm wearing it right now and I just can't stop sniffing myself!

The second product I’ve chosen for this edit is the YSL Touche Eclat. It was developed in toe early ‘90’s, and up until now YSL claims that one of these highlighter pens gets sold every ten minutes. Claims go from ‘it’s the only make up product you ever need’ to ‘the secret of make up artists around the whole world’. The golden container holds 2.5ml of luminizing products that brings radiance to the skin, brightens your entire complexion and cleverly conceals any signs of tiredness and fatigue. Contrary to common belief it’s not a concealer; it truly is a highlighter, and its sole purpose is to add light to the face to create the appearance of lifted eyes. When applied with care and attention, light gets drawn to the light-reflecting particles in the product, which is why everyone loves this so much as it makes you look younger, better rested and highlights your best features, whilst still not concealing everything.

So there you have it; a 500-word essay just on two beauty products that I absolutely adore and think everyone should own. Not just because they’re both really good and timeless, but also because of the chic packaging and to inject a little bit of glamour in our lives. What do you think of these products? Do you own one (or both!) of them? I have to admit that I stole both of these from my mom for the sole purpose of taking a picture of them. I might have stolen them a few times before for ego-based purposes, but ssshh...