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The Scented Salamander Blog A Culture & Beauty Blog: from Olfaction to Imagination in Perfumes, Movies, Beauty Products, Food, Literature, & Fashion, Mostly. "Perfumes' & movies' common point: you smell and watch them better in the dark" Latest Fragrance Reviews Dior Escale à Parati Prada Infusion d'Iris EDP Absolue Ferragamo Signorina Thierry Mugler Miroir des Majestés Jo Malone Plum Blossom Madonna Truth or Dare Roberto Cavalli Eau de Parfum
Carolina Herrera 212 Sexy 8 Best Perfumes to Herald Spring Stella McCartney L.I.L.Y. Guerlain Parfum Initial L'Eau: Going Back to the Purer Language of Perfumery Guerlain Parfum Initial L'Eau: Un Langage Plus Pur pour la Parfumerie Fragrance Essays Perfumes & Candies are Kissing Cousins: Anis de Flavigny & Guerlain Anisia Bella Jicky, The Ultimate Aphrodisiac for Both Sexes? Jicky, L'aphrodisiaque ultime pour les deux sexes? Best Rose Fragrances for Valentine's Day: The 2012 Edition How I Think about Perfume when I Review Them: a Practical-Theoretical Outlook on the Perfume Shopping Culture Bint el Sudan, The Other, African Chanel No.5 - Interview with Nick Evans of IFF Smelling Tommy Girl Now: When the 1990s Smell Like The 1940s White Accords in Perfumery: So Long The 70s Liberace Wore Perfume, So What? Homosexuality as Given Away by an Indiscreet Fragrance Trail in the 50s
Reviews of New Perfumes Diptyque Eau Rose Isabel Derroisné Eclat Eternel Sisley Eau d'Ikar Mary Greenwell Plum Parfum d'Empire Azemour Les Orangers L'Artisan Parfumeur Batucada Les Parfums de Rosine Glam Rose Clinique Aromatics Elixir Perfumer's Reserve Prada No.11 Cuir Styrax 6 New Celebrity Fragrances to Try Out this Fall The Body Shop White Musk Libertine Cartier L'Heure Convoitée (English Version) Cartier L'Heure Convoitée (French Version) Karl Lagerfeld Karleidoscope Maître Parfumeur et Gantier Cuir Fétiche Estée Lauder Wood Mystique Thierry Mugler Angel with Bitter Cocoa Powder Diane Von Furstenberg Diane Bottega Veneta EDP From the Archives Bath & Body Works Warm Vanilla Sugar: An Euro-American Curio Reviews of Past Fragrance Launches First Impressions on the Thierry Mugler Coffret Based on the Novel by Süskind.
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August 2009 Archive
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 Gianfranco Ferré will launch a new perfume this fall which already comes announced with a certain glam, cinematic ring to it by referencing the cult movie by Wong Kar-wai In The Mood for Love although the only quotes available about the project so far are more business-like in tone rather than cultural. It is also, more culturally put again, the latest jus by perfumer Maurice Roucel of Symrise who as could be expected has inserted his famous magnolia note in the composition. I don't know if the name of the perfume goes beyond a very general familiar-sounding reference to the movie but in Chinese it is originally titled The Time of Flowers. Meanwhile we mostly get a marketing-angle explanation, "From its joyful title, modern flacon, sunny advertising campaign and
fresh juice, the approach with this scent just radiates a positive
attitude and prestige,"...
Continue reading "Ferre In the Mood for Love (2009): Cinematic Ring {New Perfume}" »
 After reading a both funny and sad article on marketers attempting to push the Christmas-in-July agenda with such immortal lines as " Given the dreary economic climate, we thought we could bring customers
a little more cheer in the middle of summer," said QVC Chief Executive
Mike George", I had to wonder: have we seen this happen with perfumes?...
Continue reading "Do You Think We're Seeing a Christmas-in-July Trend with Perfumes?" »
 Launch of Giorgio Armani "Idol" Perfume at Cafe de l'Homme on July 7, 2009 in Paris, France.
Armani is so excited to conquer the feminine segment of the market that is ready to worship the brand that after coming up with the right name for the project, Idole d'Armani, they announced two different feminine icons for their next big launch. In June the news reels were talking about model Kasia Smutniak. Dutifully reported here. Then in July, there was a little media explosion with the news that Angelina Jolie was going to save Armani from perfume stagnation -- ok, to be fair, just could-be-more-stellar-perfume-business. So it's hard to tell what is going on exactly but for people who thought that Angelina Jolie could not possibly be the face for yet another Armani for Women this fall/winter, please consider the pictures of the Paris launch for Idol with Kasia Smutniak dated July 7, 2009 that is, after the official announcement came in that Jolie was the next Armani bella donna...
Continue reading "Will Kasia Smutniak or Angelina Jolie be Armani's Idol? -- Update" »
 Yves Saint Laurent is inviting you to count the days before their major feminine fragrance launch fronted by Kate Moss, Parisienne. You might be twirling your toes on the beach or taking it slow but meanwhile it doesn't mean glamor is taking a rest. So today is J-14 in the Parisienne calendar...
Continue reading "Who is Parisienne? -- Qui est Parisienne? by YSL" »
 Claudette Colbert in Cleopatra (1934) by Cecil B. DeMille: What to wear this morning? I can't concentrate with all these ladies in waiting swarming about me.
Perfume history buffs will appreciate the effort put out by Japanese company Kanebo and in particular its chief perfumer Ryoichi Komaki in attempting to recreate two fragrances that Cleopatra would have loved to wear in her days. This historical-reconstitution project was undertaken to add a layer of sensory depth to the touring exhibition Egypt Sunken Treasures, now in Yokohama...
Continue reading "Two Cleopatra Perfumes by Kanebo" »
 An article in the Wall Street Journal takes a gloomy look at the spiraling down of the Christian Lacroix brand. Despite the known qualities of the vision of the couturier, the problem has always remained that unlike Christian Dior who consciously defined haute couture as part art, part commercialism, Lacroix stuck too much to an artistic conception of high fashion. That and other reasons. What the article stresses is that the launch of C'est La Vie in 1988 which was a flop marked the beginning of the end for the couturier. It is hard to judge the importance of that factor. What we learn is that Lacroix did not have his way with the design of the bottle and found it "disgusting". Apparently he is still sensitive to the trashing he got in the press because of that bottle design. It seems a bit blown out of proportion but it is true that the Lacroix perfumes never succeeded in being as cool as the Yves Saint Laurent ones, say, also a newcomer to the world of fashion who was luckier in that he got the unwavering support of business man and life partner Pierre Bergé. As for C'est La Vie, I just remember how, without thinking of a human heart and finding the bottle "disgusting", I felt uninspired by the color of the brown glass which looked a lot like that of cheap glassware favored by retirees with staid tastes...
Continue reading "C'est La Vie by Christian Lacroix Faulted for First Difficulties" »
A small enterprise named His Witness Scents in Athens, Tennessee is attempting to put some virtue back into perfume naming and fragrance appreciation. After noticing that too many fragrances seem to advertise inappropriate conduct and bad-mouth their wearers, two women decide to take issue with this laissez-faire attitude by proposing perfumes named after verses of the Bible such as Above Rubies, a reference to Proverbs 31:10 ("Who can find a virtuous woman? For her price is far above rubies") and praying on the scents. A His-Witness-Scents offering might smell of Psalms 45:8: "All thy garments smell of myrrh, and aloes, and cassia, out of ivory palaces, whereby they have made thee glad."...
Continue reading "His Witness Scents Reflect Christian Values" »
 Hermès launched this spring and summer a set of three eaux de cologne. As the summer is heating up to the drum of the dog days, I thought that it was high time to review these descendants of Kölnisch Wasser. Eau d' Orange Verte (1979) Notes: orange, lemon, mandarin, buchu, blackcurrant bud, mint, oakmoss, patchouli. This by now iconic eau de cologne was created by perfumer Françoise Caron in 1979. It was reportedlly originally inspired by the vision of a wet undergrowth covered by morning dew. When it came out there had already been the justifiably famed Eau de Roche/Eau de Rochas authored by Nicolas Mamounas in 1970. Caron brought a decorative, furnishing spirit to this feeling of a fresh, crisp, light oakmossy eau de cologne with her orange grove motif and her insistence on the sensation of bitterness. Fresh could be slightly startling, even spectacular if one paid attention to the chiseling out of the citrus accord, and not just refreshing. The cologne opens on a bitter orange and mint leaves accord with an undercurrent of softer, fruitier citrus notes and a foresty dryness. The buchu echoes the tartness and fruitiness of the blackcurrant bud note which itself adds to the muskiness of the composition. The scent while keeping its bitter edge becomes softer and more pungent at the same time as the musky facet of blackcurrant releases its sweaty note. The scent is dual, oscillating between a clean, fresh-river like facet and a more dirty animalic one, like a shirt marked with light sweat left on the same river bank as its proprietor took a dip in the water...
Continue reading "Hermes Eau d'Orange Verte (1979), Eau de Pamplemousse Rose, Eau de Gentiane Blanche (2009) {Perfume Reviews}" »
 Guerlain says that the Gloss Cashmere Lip Gloss is inspired by traditional lip powder used by Indian women from the subcontinent. It probably sounds more exotic and interesting than to say "No need to powder your lips anymore after applying lipstick to make the color stay on and look matte." This is exactly what it does as an obvious new-generation lip gloss with an almost alien texture it is so high-performance...
Continue reading "Guerlain Cashmere Lip Gloss in Rose Pondichery 01 (2009) " »
Comedian Jon Stewart covers the topic of the freed journalists from North Korea by focusing on Clinton. The skit includes a short segment on how to best apply cologne, P. Diddy's Unforgivable as it turns out, presented here as a secret weapon in the arsenal of diplomatic tricks that have worked or ought to work. The gag starts at 1:00 minute and ends at 1:15 minutes but the whole skit is very funny. It looks like Unforgivable just came down an advertising billboard and made it into pop culture.
 Nora Arzeneder in Faubourg 36
As we discussed previously, Idylle is the next big Guerlain launch for women. It is not quite out yet as the official date of release is September 14, 2009 but the internet as always very indiscreet has made sure everyone caught glimpses of the upcoming perfume. Today WWD is offering a more "official" report yet still withholding the ad visual which can be seen on numerous sites on the net as well as a comprehensive list of notes. Here is what we are authorized to know, today. I excerpted some details that are sort of interesting to retain from a historic perspective beyond the marketing speak of Idylle being aimed at all women and young women in particular...
Continue reading "Guerlain Idylle: The Slow Unveiling" »
 Carol's Daughter is thrilled to be able to contribute to what the brand considers a landmark moment with the release of the new Disney movie The Princess and the Frog featuring for the first time an animated character of African-American heritage in the lead role. To accompany this event, Carol's Daughter has created a limited-edition line of hair and bath & body products which they say is very effective and made with natural ingredients such as aloe leaf juice, cranberry extract, sunfloower seed oil, olive oil etc. Although everyone can use them, African-American hair was specifically kept in mind when devising the products...
Continue reading "Carol's Daughter to Launch Disney Princess Tiana Line " »
 DIESEL
ONLY THE BRAVE AND
GRAMMY-WINNING ARTIST COMMON
HOST A PRIVATE RED
CARPET PERFORMANCE
In
partnership with Macy's, Diesel Only The Brave is giving consumers the
opportunity to celebrate bravery with Common, the face of the brand's courageous
fragrance, at a intimate live performance at Capitale on Wednesday, August 26th,
2009.
Beginning
August 10th, the first 500 people to make a Diesel Only The Brave purchase of $117.50
or more at Macy's in Herald
Square and
other select locations will receive TWO general admission tickets to this
exclusive concert...
Continue reading "You Can Win 2 Tickets to a Private Red-Carpet Event with Diesel Only The Brave & Common" »
 The Jardin or Garden series which includes Jardin en Méditerranée, Jardin sur Le Nil and Un Jardin Après La Mousson is now available in a new format of 200 ml which is meant to be used as a bath & body product. In French it is called Eau d'Abondance Parfumée (Perfumed Water of Plenty) like an invitation to be liberal with the scent as you step out of the shower. In English they are called All-Over Sprays. They smell like the originals with perhaps a slightly lighter, more aqua orientation as far as I could tell from the bottle. The text on the packaging mentions some hydrating and softening virtues. A 200 ml bottle is priced at 91€ or $130 at current exchange rate.
 One of the most anticipated celebs scents this fall is Vintage by Kate Moss, the fourth fragrance launch for the top model. Vintage has been in the news for a while (see here and here), but now come the more concrete details. The scent is said to be a fruity-floral oriental with powdery and fresh facets...
Continue reading "Kate Moss Vintage (2009): The Ad, The Notes {New Perfume}" »
August 2009 Archive
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