Like each year the Lilac Festival of Rochester takes place and with it comes the year's vintage edition of the perfume Highland Lilac of Rochestercreated in 1967 under the impulse of Dan Morgan. The fragrance was reintroduced in 2003. It is dubbed an American classic and reportedly was presented to a number of first ladies.
Lilac does not yield its perfume by classic methods of extraction and so its bouquet must be recreated as an illusion, but in this case it appears that the perfumers at IFF attempt to reproduce each year's particular notes....
Parfums de Nicolaï will host and give a talk entitled "Nicolaï créateur de parfum" on the history of the brand and their work in particular on home fragrances which can be discovered in their line Ambiance Nicolaï following this year's theme in the 2009 cycle of conferences sponsored by the Osmothèque. The talk will be offered by both husband-and-wife team Jean-Louis Michau and Patricia de Nicolaï, founders of the perfume house....
As previously announced, the lifestyle and apparel label Zadig et Voltaire launched their debut perfume this spring 2009 called Tome 1 La Pureté (Vol. 1 Purity). The world is certainly not lacking in new fragrance launches, so why review this one, why even pay attention to this launch? The answer for Zadig et Voltaire fans is probably obvious: the perfume is a new element in the boutique, tester sprays are strategically positioned, why not try?
For others, especially the ones suffering from blurred vision after seeing too many perfume bottles in their recent lifetime, there are still four elements that can be both eye-and-ear catching. 1) founder Thierry Gillier associated himself with a perfume house that has a reputation for preferring to err on the side of edgy rather than staid, i.e., Le Labo -- it could be interesting and there must also be a reason why Le Labo is willing to work on someone else's project; 2) The theme of the fallen angel is conceptually and visually if not morally intriguing and possibly translates into an interesting creative olfactory composition - you may choose between visuals of Barbarella (above) and Wings of Desire (below) to whet your appetite;...
The ad is fronted by model Karlie Kloss who not only looks like Kate Moss but whose name sounds like hers -- do they manufacture models too?
Going back to the age-old dichotomy of the virgin and the putana, albeit not in such a schizoid manner but in a watered-down and stylish form, Marc Jacobs has decided to add a sultrier sister to Daisy with Lola set to launch in August 2009 in the US. Worldwide launch is planned for September 2009.
It is also an opportunity for designer Marc Jacobs to convey a message about his conception of perfume which he sees as an accessory and an integral part of a person's fashion sense,
"Fragrance is just as important as accessories, bags and shoes are,"
said Jacobs. "Not only does it help set a mood, it's a luxury you can
have no matter what your size or height or wallet. I'm happy to keep
offering more choices. I know I like to rotate fragrances depending on
my mood."...
The Moschino Cheap and Chic line-up which is so quirky is going to see the addition of a newcomer in June 2009 in Italy at first then worldwide: LightClouds, developed by Euroitalia.
The description of the scent sounds appealingly light and fresh with a few notes that could make it smell less than banal like crunchy cyclamen and fruity-woody ambrette seed. It is said to smell "like the sky in springtime"
The perfume opens on peach and cyclamen then develops notes of lotus blossom, jasmine and rose before drying down on notes of ambrette, cedar and musk.
DKNY will launch a duo of fragrances for women and men in July 2009 called Love from New York inspired by "the excitement and energy of New York," and "that spirited, urbane, yet young spirit, and the promise that in New York, anything can happen," From a business perspective, it's the brand's first attempt to lure in travelers in airport boutiques as the scents are marketed as travel-exclusives. The packaging conceived of after the model of tourists' souvenirs will bear the statue of Liberty on the caps and postcards on the boxes.
The pair was developed by Trudy Loren and Evelyn Lauder of Estée Lauder Cos. Inc. together with perfumers at Firmenich, who shall remain anonymous at this point and perhaps for ever (my agenda for credits rolling at the end of a perfume project like they do at the end of a movie has still not been accepted)...
• Following up on Paris Hilton Teaser # 1, here is PH Teaser # 2. We can now reveal that...drum roll please...the next perfume by Paris Hilton, Siren, is a "creamy tropical floral" to be released in "June-July" (via press release)...
Thanks to the folks at the Makeup Show NYC, The Scented Salamander/Beauty and the Salamander/mimifroufrou.com readers have the possibility to enter a drawing for two free tickets to attend the Makeup Show in New York City on Sunday May 17 and Monday May 18 from 9:00 am to 6 pm daily at the Metropolitan Pavillion. The winners can each bring a guest.
"For the fourth time the Makeup Show New York brings the industry
together like no other trade event has before. The biggest brands. Top
industry exhibitors. Speakers from every area of makeup artistry. New
product introductions. Special Pro-only offers. Seminars, forums and
hands-on workshops. The best networking opportunity in the business.
It's a must-attend event for anyone involved in the makeup industry.
Two days of inspiration, education and community building in the global epicenter
of the beauty and entertainment industries - New York City."
Just
leave a comment and 2
winners will be randomly selected which will be announced
on Monday May 11th 2009.
I was foraging You Tube for some retro Chanel No. 5 ads to add some historic perspective on the advertising of the most famous perfume in the world, when I came upon two that made me smile. What you see is that while as always sophisticated women were featured to turn the No. 5 into an aspirational fragrance, back in the 1970s they did not hesitate to show a price list at the end of the commercial or even have Catherine Deneuve tell you the prices of the different products.
You can only say that there was a sophistication learning curve for Chanel No. 5 advertisers if you compare those ads with the more recent ones that are made to look like glamorous trailers for Hollywood feature movies. Jacques Helleu and Baz Luhrmann were very conscious about that new model. Helleu even said that Luhrmann's Chanel No. 5 film is NOT a commercial, it is a short movie. And Chanel got even more publicity for the huge amount of money the brand spent on the Nicole Kidman non-ad. As Helleu delineated his mission back then to Luhrmann: how are you going to help No. 5 stay No. 1?
And so now, god forbid, no prices are whispered at the end, not even with a distinguished British accent or a sexy French one.
The 1970 British advert makes an implicit parallel between art and perfumery: if you are an aesthete and appreciate the fine arts, then the No. 5 is part of your universe...
We got a really interesting comment by a reader named Nlb/Angela on a post published in May 2006, so I decided to reproduce it in the section The Readers Talk Back.
Since a blog is also a diary, I am keeping those posts as reflective of a state of mind and reflection early on in my journey as a perfume blogger, but it is manifest to me that I have evolved on a number of the points evoked then. I am grateful though that the blog medium allows you to keep that quality of the daily life and the ephemeral that are so important to me.
From reader Nlb/Angela:
This post fascinated me enough that I'm compelled to comment years after you've posted it. It reminded me of what some art critics say of what's patronizingly considered "decorative art" and "illustration" rather than "Fine Art"; there's always this distinct hierarchy of importance, where some art is deemed significant and provocative, while others just "pretty...only pleasant to look at". While "Guernica" by Picasso might be important for what it tells us about humanity, how does "Daybreak" by Maxfield Parrish tell us any less about ourselves?...
I Promise to be a Good Mother by Jamie Diamond, 2007
Today, I found two images that I am posting about for slightly different reasons. I Promise to be a Good Mother by Jamie Diamond taken in 2007 is immediately pleasing to the eye thanks to the cheer joy that emanates from the picture and the dynamism and playfulness of the mother-child interaction. We all can relate to this simple expression of happiness although there is the possibility that it might be painful for some to watch, so "vanilla" it is in appearance and a far cry from what a number of people have experienced. Yet despite this ideal moment captured in time, the title of the work turns the composition into more of a reminder that this perfect moment is seen as more as set against the frailty of life and the challenges to come. But the photography remains optimistic in essence because it says that you can always look up to that moment in time, later on, to remind you of how joyous and generous the mother and child love can be, and of what promise it held. One day, in a very long time, the child will be able to look at this photography and marvel at how young and full of hope and life his mother was.
Mother Always Used Too Much Perfume by Patrik Andiné, 2008
In the next picture, which is more complex, less easily legible I was attracted by the title of the work: Mother Always Used Too Much Perfume. The painting is by a Swedish artist called Patrik Andiné and dated from 2008. I find it interesting because the relationship between son and mother is a central expression of the painting but in a very distanced way; it is a sense of distance emphasized by the presence of a curtain between the two invisible, absent-present protagonists. The mother is all-present, yet invisible to the eye but not to the sense of smell. The symbolism is very economical with a strong emphasis on the notion of limits and threshhold (of tolerance). The painting is seemingly about a complex, love-hate relationship and as one interested in perfume in the context of society it is interesting to see perfume be clearly seen and used as a symbolic language about human relationships.
Here is a caricature of Coco Chanel by Sem (Georges Goursat) dating from 1923 which makes fun of the great couturière. He turns her first name into a dirge, in reference to the origins of her nickname: Coco stuck with Gabrielle Chanel after a song she used to perform in a cabaret in her youth.
In 1923, two years only after the official launch of the No5 by Chanel, the perfume bottle shaped after the Place Vendôme in Paris is showcased already hinting at its future iconic career....
By Kilian have followed up on a previous announcement to say that they will launch two new perfumes this year. As previously reported about, there is a tobacco fragrance composed by perfumer Calice Becker of Givaudan due out in September 2009 whose name has now been revealed to Cosmetic News in an interview given by Kilian Hennessy.
The new scent is titled Back to Black Aphrodisiac. It expands the Black Masterpiece collection...
Picture:
Scheherazade Went on with Her Story. Arabian Nights. Penn Publishing Company, 1928.
Victoria's Secret have launched yet another feminine boudoir perfume meant to highlight their lingerie collection called Sexy Little Things Noir. It features - readers of Proust will appreciate - a floral note of Cattelaya orchid, which was turned into a haunting trope of feminine beauty and even into a newly coined verb denoting sexual intercourse in Remembrance of Things Past.
"At once elegant and playfully provocative, it's an enchanting blend of
sparkling nectarine, sultry amber and exotic cattelaya orchid."....
Wallpaper has quite the comprehensive interview with perfumer Jean-Paul Guerlain and his successor Thierry Wasser. It is almost touching to see Wasser's sense of intelligent humility, faced with a historic treasury of knowledge and monument such as Jean-Paul Guerlain. There are many insights about the collaboration between the two men, and what one can interpret not just only as the continuation of the name of Guerlain but as the preservation of a national and international patrimony in perfumery. J-P Guerlain is dispensing "some" of his experience and knowledge, as he says so himself, but at the same time, it is not as straightforward as that and Wasser has to figure out a number of things by himself.
An interesting possibility is evoked with the meeting of Thierry Wasser with Jean-Paul Guerlain's eldest grandson; apparently, it might not be impossible to see the heritage of the house go back to the guardianship of a Guerlain after it would have skipped a generation...
Like each year the Lilac Festival of Rochester takes place and with it comes the year's vintage edition of the perfume Highland Lilac of Rochester created in 1967 under the impulse of Dan Morgan. The fragrance was reintroduced in 2003. It is dubbed an American classic and reportedly was presented to a number of first ladies.
Digg This
Stumble
Facebook
Del.icio.us
