A means of expression of Coco's creativity, the button for Chanel was never a simple detail but took on the function of a precious decoration without ever losing its functional value. True jewels that depicted tortoiseshell or lion heads, flowers or even Coco's initials, it was Haute Couture buttons that inspired Arnaud Chastaingt, Director Chanel Watchmaking Creation Studio, to create the Mademoiselle Privé Bouton watches in 2020, representing a marriage of goldsmith's craftsmanship and montres à secret with manchette bracelets.
In 2021, the collection was enriched with new, even more precious variants: instead of tweed, the bracelets are made of leather with matelassé motifs framed by bronze-coloured interlaces in red, black and bronze. Alongside leather, Arnaud Chastaingt has also included a Haute Couture version, in which the embroidered silk organza bracelet is made by Maison Lesage. In this version, the bracelet folds and closes at the wrist with a diamond-set button with a sculpted gold lion, Coco's zodiac sign and one of the symbols of her creativity.
In the variants with a leather bracelet with quilted decoration, the button is magnified by other symbols that tell of Gabrielle's world: a mother-of-pearl camellia, a Byzantine decoration forged from diamonds, cabochon rubies, cushion-cut orange sapphires and a brilliant-cut yellow sapphire, or Coco's own profile sculpted in gold. In each version, opening the button reveals a small diamond-set dial.
A further novelty for the collection was the idea of creating an alternative way of wearing the watch: 'I designed a ring embellished with a button. A camellia, a Byzantine motif and Mademoiselle's profile secretly conceal a timepiece," said Chastaingt. The watch thus becomes the secret guarded by the button of a precious gold and diamond ring.
