Have you noticed? Lucky charm jewelry is everywhere. Interlinked charms, cascading amulets, personal talismans acting as intimate totems. Chanel embraces the trend and adds its own twist: turning time into a piece of jewelry. But not just any piece. A lipstick, a lion, a camellia... all familiar symbols that form part of Gabrielle Chanel’s DNA. She, who made accessories the signature of her looks – the 2.55 bag, the little black dress, No. 5 perfume – viewed every detail as a statement. These time-telling pendants carry on that philosophy. Boldness, glamour, elegance: the winning trio taken to the extreme. And use is reimagined, too: time is worn around the neck, elegantly linked, gem-set, dial hidden. It’s the triumph of secret time: we carry time with us, but no one knows.
Time for a Touch-Up
The Kiss Me watch is a brilliant example. A lipstick that doubles as a timepiece, dressed in black titanium and yellow gold, set with twenty baguette-cut beryls (a total of 7.20 carats). Who would have thought a makeup stick could tell the time? And yet, here it is: a cult everyday object, reimagined and elevated. Chanel transforms makeup from glamorous to a statement. It’s playful, refined, and slightly retro. The piece evokes those secret watches of centuries past, when etiquette forbade checking the time in public.ed charms, cascading amulets, personal talismans acting as intimate totems. Chanel embraces the trend and adds its own twist: turning time into a piece of jewelry. But not just any piece. A lipstick, a lion, a camellia... all familiar symbols that form part of Gabrielle Chanel’s DNA. She, who made accessories the signature of her looks – the 2.55 bag, the little black dress, No. 5 perfume – viewed every detail as a statement. These time-telling pendants carry on that philosophy. Boldness, glamour, elegance: the winning trio taken to the extreme. And use is reimagined, too: time is worn around the neck, elegantly linked, gem-set, dial hidden. It’s the triumph of secret time: we carry time with us, but no one knows.
The lady with the camellias
Another interpretation: the Mademoiselle Privé Camellia Button pendant watch. Gabrielle Chanel’s favorite flower, chosen for its perfect symmetry and understated beauty, the camellia blooms here in white mother-of-pearl, its petals set with a central diamond. Engraved yellow gold hides a black lacquered dial, encircled by a fine gourmette chain and brilliant-cut diamonds. Hanging from the neck, the pendant plays a double game: high jewelry and secret timepiece. Every detail recalls the Roaring Twenties, a taste for discreet ornamentation, while embracing radical modernity. An object designed to transcend time, completely in the Chanel spirit: both vintage and contemporary.
Lion with a chic rising sign
But Chanel is also the lion. Gabrielle’s astrological sign, her spirit animal, a symbol of strength and authority. In the amulet watch, it appears – feline and majestic – molded in matte gold over a protective rock crystal. “Its image belongs to Mademoiselle’s intimate universe,” says Arnaud Chastaingt, Director of the Chanel Watch Creation Studio. “It’s an inspiring symbol, whose authority and elegance I admire.” The craftsmanship is striking: a yellow gold chain set with 47 brilliant-cut diamonds (3.18 carats) and a necklace requiring 350 hours of work on its own. Time, quite literally sculpted – for a “beastly” take on timekeeping.
Instigator of a bold and liberated fashion
The final model is a playful tribute to Gabrielle Chanel herself. Her silhouette, draped in an iconic suit, becomes a pendant. A white gold chain adorned with onyx beads and diamonds plays out a black-and-white composition – Mademoiselle’s ultimate harmony. On her head, a small boater hat encircled with a ribbon of diamonds conceals a hidden dial. A whimsical touch, a deliberate twist. In a world where everything is on display, Chanel makes time a private affair.
