Who’s ever bought a perfume for the utter gorgeousness of its bottle design? That’s me… always!
But in the case of Lancôme’s new Idôle Eau de Parfum, this works pretty well as you are buying into the pinnacle of perfume bottle design for the 21st century: Namely, the world’s thinnest perfume bottle.
Yup, at just 15mm thick, the Lancôme’s Idôle perfume is housed in the world’s thinnest fragrance bottle EVER.
Created by architect and industrial designer Chafik Gasmi, the peach-and-rose-gold bottle is so slim that the outer packaging simply seems to disappear and what you see is the inner bubble holding the fragrance.
In fact, it’s so slim that it’s pretty difficult to shoot!
The base of the Lancôme Idole perfume is too slim to be freestanding — it’s to be laid flat on your vanity. Which does take up more space but then that’s the cost I am willing to pay for innovation.
The Lancôme Idôle perfume bottles are also refillable — from gorgeous perfume fountains, no less — to minimise environmental impact. Which I think is an initiative more brands should emulate.
The fragrance itself has been created by three female perfumers — Shyamala Maisondieu, Adriana Medina, and Nadège le Garlantezec.
It’s a bright floral with hints of chypre, calling upon four different roses as a base — including the sustainably sourced Isparta rose petal essence from Turkey that was made exclusively for Lancôme, and the Centifolia rose from France.
Added to this are notes of bergamot, Indian jasmine, pear, pink peppercorn, vanilla and white musks that make for a clean, sweet scent that’s neither overpowering, nor underwhelming.
In short, it’s not the most innovative juice in the world but it’s beautiful and I have found myself reaching for it almost every single day in the past weeks.
And it’s got good wear time – 5-6 hours on a hot afternoon, which is pretty good on my skin.
Plus, it tucks easily into the smallest of handbags, making it great for on-the-go touchups.
Though don’t be like my friend, who tucked it into the pocket of her jeans — it’s slim enough to fit unobtrusively but sitting on it accidentally was not the best move she made that night (*hello shattered glass*)!
Anubha Charan is a powerhouse in the luxury beauty industry, with over 15 years of expertise shaping the global beauty narrative. As the former Beauty Director at Marie Claire, she worked with the magazine's French headquarters to craft cutting-edge beauty content for international audiences.
Anubha's bylines have appeared in some of the world’s most prestigious publications, including Vogue, Cosmopolitan, Travel + Leisure, WebMD, and Architectural Digest. She is also the co-author of Paris Bath & Beauty, a Simon & Schuster book on French beauty rituals.
Bill Smith says
Amazing perfume, the fragrance seems to be really nice.
Vanessa Plowden says
Love it!!!!
Angela says
I love the perfume but that is the stupidest bottle that has ever existed and it’s even more stupid to brag about it as though it’s a good thing. The thing doesn’t stand up. I do not want a perfume bottle that doesn’t stand up. I have to keep it in a large coffee mug so that it isn’t lying flat with the potential of leaking.
Viv says
I totally agree! I actually took the bottle back to Boots as thought it was a fault and they agreed! They refunded me and I went to buy another one but noticed they all fall over!!! So annoying as I love the perfume but I don’t really want to have to store it lying down!