Art of Packaging Awards: The Art of Estée Lauder's Compacts
Each holiday season, Estée Lauder launches a limited-edition collection of compacts. Like pieces of art, each compact is unique. The metal compacts are refillable and contain a range of products, from solid perfume to pressed powder.
"There is a entire subculture of Estée Lauder fans who collect these compacts as if they were works of art. We've even seen them all over eBay," says Wayne LoPrete, vice president of package development, The Estée Lauder Companies.
Last holiday season, round compacts were made from solid brass and electroplated in gold. One compact created exclusively for Bloomingdale's last fall has a teal blue swirl design. "This design was based on Estée's favorite compact created in the 1970s. We modernized its look by changing the proportion of the swirls and adding stones," says Sarah Kloman, vice president of package design, The Estée Lauder Companies.
The compacts aren't made in a traditional factory or by usual methods. "Each design begins with a sketch, then a watercolor painting," says Kloman. The design is then given to a jeweler to interpret. "The design process is very old-world, which [adds] to [the compact's] overall beauty."
The compacts are made in China by craftsmen. "The stones are hand-applied, and the enamel is hand-painted," says LoPrete. The designs are all inspired by trends in jewelry design, as well as the brand's own archives. "We have a huge heritage in these compacts," says Kloman.