Coco Mademoiselle

In 1984, Jacques Polge had created Coco, an opulent, spicy oriental fragrance paying tribute to Gabrielle Chanel’s baroque apartment on rue Cambon. Seventeen years later, he imagined its little sister: Coco Mademoiselle, designed for a new generation and for the spirit of the young Gabrielle — free, impertinent, always on the move.

The fragrance plays on contrast. At the top, the sparkling freshness of orange and citrus; at the heart, a limpid bouquet of rose and jasmine; at the base, a modern patchouli wrapped in vetiver and amber notes. Neither entirely fresh nor entirely oriental: a balance that has won over millions of women and made it one of the most-worn fragrances in the world.

Kate Moss was its first face, from 2001. From 2007, Keira Knightley took over in a series of now-cult films, including the one where she crosses Paris on a motorcycle in a catsuit. More recently, actress Whitney Peak has carried the torch.

The bottle takes the clean silhouette of the original Coco, a simple glass block closed with a black stopper: straightforward elegance, very Chanel.