Visit the home of Chanel No.5 with Swedish tastemakers Linn Eklund and Fanny Ekstrand

The serene landscapes of Grasse hold a special allure for fragrance aficionados. After all, it is here that the story behind Chanel's iconic No.5 fragrance began when, in 1921, Chanel nose Ernest Beaux opted for the delicate Grasse jasmine as an integral note in his olfactory creation. Today, the importance of this region in the perfume industry continues to resonate as the likes of the French Maison partners with family-owned manufacturers to protect the area's aromatic heritage.

Swedish content-creating duo Fanny Ekstrand and Linn Eklund ventured into this olfactory haven, where they witnessed the meticulous process: from collecting fragile jasmine blossoms adorned in Chanel's already quintessential rainbows at dawn to seeing the on-site rendering of the flowers first-hand.

Below, discover Ekstrand and Eklund's French adventure, topped off with an aprés-harvest jaunt to the Côte d'Azur:

"The days in Grasse and Saint Tropez with Chanel were a dream come true for us. Of course, we've been such fans of the house since we were small girls. So coming to Grasse and seeing the fields of which the flowers and greens grow and the process of making the iconic Chanel No.5 (among others) was truly mind-blowing and something we will keep close to our hearts forever. To see the precision and love going into each moment was inspiring."

"The tweed is such an icon for the Chanel house so, when we were to choose looks for the trip to Grasse, of course we had to pick matching tweed looks. Twinning – often in the same pieces – has become kind of our thing, and we love to wear the same things but style the pieces differently."

"For the first night, we went up to Saint-Paul-de-Vance. A truly iconic little town home to many great artists over the years. We had dinner at the hotel and restaurant La Colombe d'Or and of course, had to pay a visit to the well-coveted pool. You may recognise it by the large Alexander Calder mobile statue. What we didn't know until we got inside the old villa was that their art collection actually is even more impressive than the Calder piece. Apparently, artists have been coming to La Colombe d'Or for decades and decades to stay and paid their tabs with art. Of course, we wore two gowns from the Chanel autumn/winter '23 collection."

Related: Mother of all roses: The single plant at the heart of Chanel’s iconic scent

"In the fields of Chanel in Grasse, we learned how to harvest the unique jasmine of Grasse. The delicate flower is an essential ingredient of Chanel No.5 and has been ever since it first launched in 1921."

"The harvest process of the Jasmine of Grasse differs a lot from other flowers. The delicate little flowers start to bloom early in the morning and stop around lunch, making the harvest a very rapid one. Then the flowers go directly to the distillery and the process of extraction proceeds – this is all during the same day no to lose any of the flower's unique scent."

"In the fields of Chanel of course there are Chanel wellies to keep your feet chic during harvest."

"Ever heard of aprés-harvest? Neither had we. But after the harvest we went down to Sankt Tropez and Club 55 for lunch. Of course, we dressed appropriately in bow-tie blouses, patent leather skirt and jacket, and cashmere dungarees. The perfect attire for an early fall day by the azure blue ocean."