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 How It Wafts, At FirstWhat they say: A warm and romantic vetiver inspired by Paris in the late 20's and its
infatuation with African culture, art, music and dance. A mix of the
Parisian avantgardism and African culture shaped a unique and vibrant
expression. The intense life, the excess and euphoria is illustrated by
Bal d'Afrique's neroli, African marigold and Moroccan cedarwood.
Top: Bergamot, Lemon, Neroli, African marigold, Bucchu
Mid: Violet, Jasmin petals, Cyclamen
Base: Black Amber, Musk, Vetiver, Moroccan cedarwood
 The press release further states that the "croisière noire" by André Citroën, the so-called "black cruise" that took place across Africa in 1924-1925 was yet another source of inspiration.
Bal d'Afrique by Byredo, launched last February, opens on the scent of both soft grassy skin and violets succeeded by light sweet notes of marigold served on wood shavings soon followed by candied and juicy fruit sours (buchu?) notes of berries and grapes underlining the violet accord which recedes in the background. Buchu is said to have a sour smell and is used as a body ointment in Africa. The jasmine is very subtle and green with gourmandish indolic notes in the direction of angelica, which is actually the vetiver + cyclamen, and other things. The jasmine is used as an underlining facet rather than a focus. Dots of almond contributes to the sweet feeling operating at both the obvious and less obvious levels. The obvious level of candied notes is very in-your-face. This mostly exaggerated gourmand opening immediately strikes one as an interesting choice given the personality of the Byredo brand. In this context, the highly regressive accord cannot be mistaken for a lack of ideas but rather, is a willed effect. It is here with a purpose, but which one is not apparent right away. At first you think that it is as if the perfumer Jérôme Epinette had decided to take the candied facet of violet perfumes and pushed it maximally instead of just giving a tip of the hat to sugar-dipped violet petals as one of our most traditional violet associations. As Bal d'Afrique develops, it continues to defy the conventions of the well-bred, tasteful and urbane genre of a certain type of niche perfumery and next takes on a sticky, childish texture, to the nose, going now in the direction of syrupy but still counterbalanced by light green and woody notes, the vetiver facet, suggesting banana leaves, banana fruit and passion fruit. Cellophane-wrapped candies continue to impose their imagery. But in-between the literal scent of sweet-toothed sticky kids' fingers and banana - did I say banana, ah yes, of course, (a moment of enlightenment to the non-prejudiced), it is the banana girdle worn by Joséphine Baker in her legendary la danse des bananes - there is a more subtle and vague accord of vetiver introducing a bit more of the unstated quality of perfumery.... 
Continue reading "Byredo Bal d'Afrique (2009): Cake-Walking at the Bal d'Afrique {Perfume Review & Musings}" »
 Angel with Lit Wing by Joyce Tenneson, 2000.
You can read part 1: Scent of a Fallen Angel If you are interested in shades of olfactory whites, Tome 1 La Pureté is well worth considering If you like the idea of applying milk onto your skin, and smelling like it, you won't be able to resist it. If you are a Nostalgic of Le Feu d'Issey, please find here its heavenly white version. Zadig et Voltaire have called their debut perfume a "patchoulait", milky patchouli, and reportedly borrowed the theme of the fallen angel from the world of rock' n roll rather than that of religious art. The whiteness of the composition is meant to illustrate a vision of heaven. Thierry Gillier who calls himself a "Dadaïst entrepreneur" teamed up with Le Labo founders Fabrice Penot and Edouard Roshi to propose this first tome in a series of upcoming fragrances. The fragrance was composed by perfumer Nathalie Lorson. Tome 1 La Pureté interprets the theme of purity lost with a composition opening on subtle milky and "white-ambery" (my characterization) notes and ending on a hyper-realistic sweaty accord. There is actually a tendency in the top notes for the smell of alcohol to linger on a bit more than is usual, as if it had not been inhabited by perfume notes from the start, but after this lapse, the perfume appears. One should not ascribe too much depth to this theme of the fallen angel but it can be detected as a figurative motif in the composition. The perfume embeds a Nestlé-condensed-milk accord but weaved into a dream material rather than into a realistic and gourmand squirt of sugar-heavy milk syrup as in the comfort scent Matin Câlin by Comptoir Sud Pacifique. The copy uses the term "nurturing"; I am tempted to see milk here as a more literal and edgier replacement/complement for and of the nurturing and difficult-to-get-now Mysore sandalwood often noted for its maternal, lactic notes...
Continue reading "Zadig et Voltaire Tome 1 La Purete (2009) - Part 2: Patchoulait {Perfume Review} {New Fragrance}" »
 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;...
Continue reading "Zadig et Voltaire Tome 1 La Pureté (2009): Scent of a Fallen Angel - Part 1 {Perfume Review} {New Fragrance}" »
 Like each year, Guerlain releases its anniversary Muguet (Lily of the Valley) perfume (see the 2006 edition). Tomorrow April 30th, you will be able to discover the 2009 version in the Guerlain boutiques worldwide, but for just one day. Guerlain traditionally releases a muguet scent each year in anticipation of the 1st of May when sprigs of muguet are exchanged as charming tokens of spring renewal and good luck in France. As if mimicking the ephemeral quality of the fragile muguet scent which is both strong and little-lasting over the days, the Guerlain Muguet is like a bouquet of lily of the valleys to be enjoyed for a short span of time. Subtitled " Un Jour, Un Parfum"(One Day, One Perfume), the one-day launch is an event charged with both traditional symbolism and luxury acumen. How It WaftsThe opening of Muguet 2009 is quite literally and pleasantly soapy (it smells like a refined soap), almost bubbly like Badedas fizz, fresh, green (grassy), but at the same time contrasted with raspy and indolic, almost masculine jasmine notes. Soon a more dramatic sense of intoxication and amorous abandon of the senses momentarily concludes the opening stage. This beginning I see as an olfactory shock meant to provoke an emotion in the smeller/wearer. It is a way of telling you, "see what I am capable of", but the perfume soon calms down. Le Muguet by Guerlain immediately appears to be a stylized yet natural-smelling muguet.The stylization effect rests on both exaggerated traits and added-on ones. There is an enhanced indolic accord of honeyed lilac and muguet mingling with softer green and white floral notes and more angular, sharper leather and nail-polish notes surfacing from the base then overtaking the stage. This "violence" or tempest, in a bottle, soon recedes while the underlying, heavier floral notes remain of a raw, raspy, bold nature...
Continue reading "Guerlain Muguet (2009): A One-Day Limited Edition, Available on April 30th {Perfume Review} + A Prize Drawing" »
 Continuing my exploration of green freshness in contrast to the more widespread canvases of aquatic and airy freshness which as I pointed out earlier are more attention-drawing nowadays, I wanted to call attention to a home fragrance by L'Artisan Parfumeur called Parfum de Feuilles (The Scent of Leaves). It is inspired by "the aromas of a Tuscan garden" in the springtime and features notes of tomato leaves, basil and mint. L'Artisan calls it "elegantly rustic". As its name indicates and as the scent delivers in full it is all about that feeling of bruised grass blades and raw sap oozing on your fingers and staining your skin after you have played with leaves to release their aromas...
Continue reading "L'Artisan Parfumeur Parfum de Feuilles {Home Fragrance Review} {Fresh Notebook - Green Freshness}" »
 Chanel Cristalle Eau Verte Eau de Toilette Concentrée is the latest flanker to the original Cristalle Eau de Toilette. Notes are: Sicilian lemon, bergamot, neroli, jasmine, magnolia accord, abstract white flowers. The BackgroundThe original Cristalle Eau de Toilette was launched in 1974 as a fresh abstract floral counterbalanced by a classic touch of chypre (my characterization). It was followed in 1993 by an Eau de Parfum version in answer to customers' requests for a more lasting version of the Eau de Toilette. This utilitarian motivation translated into a variation attributed to the then Chanel in-house perfumer Jacques Polge (at a time when nose François Demachy was also active at Chanel's) that perfectly fit the bill: to this day it is a bit louder, lasts more at a slightly amplified volume perceptible by more people, with some differing facets. But beyond this dutiful attitude, it was not able to eclipse Cristalle created by Henri Robert with its perfect balance of ingredients and its winning subtlety. For Chanel, it was reportedly an opportunity to reach out to their " younger" and " more hip" beauty customers and make Cristalle more mainstream. As Chanel president Arie Kopelman stated at the time, " Our goal is to convert Cristalle from a niche fragrance into a broader business,". The new Cristalle Eau Verte Eau de Toilette Concentrée (Cristalle Green Water Concentrated Eau de Toilette) which just came out to welcome spring 2009 is separated by several more degrees of liberty from the original composition of 1974...
Continue reading "Chanel Cristalle Eau Verte (2009): Unfettered Flanker or The New Freshness of Magnolia {Perfume Review} {Fresh Notebook}" »
 The new Escale à Pondichéry by Christian Dior was recently launched in India and is due out in July 2009 in the US market. It is the second stopover in the Christian Dior Escales collection inaugurated last year with Escale à Portofino...
Continue reading "Christian Dior Escale a Pondichery (2009): Hedonistic Cologne {Perfume Review}" »
 As reported last time, Géranium pour Monsieur is the latest Editions de Parfums launch due out in May 2009. Evolving from a brash and super fresh opening to further green crushed freshness then floralcy and dark woodland obscurity, it is touted as an innovative take on the traditional showcasing of geranium (not the rosy kind, but the green leafy kind), a key note used in masculine colognes called fougeres (fern) in reference to their eponymous ancestor Fougère Royale by Houbigant (1882) a creation by perfumer Paul Parquet made possible thanks to the synthesis of coumarin by Perkin in 1868 with its freshly mown-hay nuance. In a slight departure from the overall professed unisex creed for the house, it is the third perfume by Frédéric Malle to appear with a more marked masculine persona after Vétiver Extraordinaire and especially French Lover (French-market name)/Bois d'Orage (US-market name)... 
Continue reading "Editions de Parfums Frederic Malle Geranium pour Monsieur (2009): Brash Masculine Floral or a Green Fougere Gone Black {Perfume Review}" »
 The Eyrignac garden in Périgord by cytonick As far as I can tell the perfume brand Parfums Gobin-Daudé founded by perfumer Victoire Gobin-Daudé was commercialized ca. 2001 and during its short life-span managed to garner the kind of favorable rumoring that ought to equate its career with enduring success. In this case however a discrepancy became apparent as the buzz lived on while the brand went down ca. 2003, whether for marketing or personal reasons mainly, or both, I am not clear about this. But still today whenever a Gobin-Daudé bottle is dug up from oblivion, a little feverishness ensues.  Sous Le Buis (Under the Boxwood) is on one level a delightfully fresh, scrupulously rendered yet poetic take on the addictive, for me, smell of boxwood. For anyone who thinks that a fraction of paradise can be had by burying one's nose in the scratchy leafage of a round-shaped boxwood sculptured like a stone architectural element salvaged from an old castle, Sous Le Buis allows you to prolong that sensation beyond that short-lived rapturous moment experienced during a walk. The scent of boxwood, like that of violets, also seems a bit elusive when you stay too long with it although it characteristically permeates the air in French public gardens. On another level, Sous Le Buis is like an excerpt from a roman à clés rich with symbolism with a little touch of enchantment borrowed from an atmosphere comparable to that of the film La Belle et La Bête (Beauty and the Beast) by Jean Cocteau. It is intriguing, not easy to decipher at first with its strange co-mingling of green and animalistic overtones which later on make sense in reference to the sexed history of boxwood...
Continue reading "Parfums Gobin-Daude Sous Le Buis (2002): Green Leafy Animality {Perfume Review & Musings} {Fresh Notebook}" »
 All American by Stetson
is the latest Stetson cologne to see the bright light of day. In
advertising images, the effort is spearheaded by the persona of
Patriots' quarterback Tom Brady. Nothing unusual so far. Brady,
like actor Brad Pitt, seems to be the very mainstream, and for the most
part, convincing incarnation of the classic All-American folk hero, the
one who seems to have spent his childhood on a Midwestern farm running
on a background of cornfields before reaching for the stars and getting
national attention as the best possible outcome to the popular
successful-story master narrative, with roots.  All American Barn by Marty Martinez
But
what I find truly fascinating about this new mass-marketed cologne is
the way in which the successful contributions to America's perfume
culture that were made in the last few years by celebrities from
minority groups were purposefully taken into account and weaved into
the scent by perfumer Harry Fremont of Firmenich. Just
by reading the PR-released interview with him, I would have never
guessed. In fact I was wondering how to make use of one interview so
controlled was it in its tone, its total lack of spontaneity, a little
bit as if he were answering sitting in a confinement room in the
pressure atmosphere created by two former KGB operatives giving him the
steely eye each time he might be tempted to depart from the official
party line.  All
American is no old-fashioned Stetson cologne, or at least, the idea was
adapted. The idealized cowboy imagery is still up on the new billboards
(the folksy hat is gone but the rancher's gloves remain) but the
perfume itself has already started to smell like a mix of real-life
influences and cues taken from Jennifer Lopez in her most Hispanic phase, Sean John (see review), and Usher. They have all been very successful at impacting America's fragrance culture through the celebrity-perfume niche. I
am now starting to understand better in what ways celebrity perfume may
not be such a trivial topic as it is helping define America's identity
smell-wise. If you look at celebrity perfume developing as one of the
major entrepreneurial niches for minority celebrities; if you realize
that those celebrities brought different sensitivities to the notion of
a smell-good perfume; if you acknowledge the fact that American
olfactory culture has already been hit by the change...then one better
understands how mass-market gorilla Coty is making a politico-cultural
statement with Stetson All American. I would have never suspected that
so much could arise from the inclusion of a guava natureprint® note
(and other notes) spotted from early on. One could have just imagined a
slightly trendy and forward-thinking fruity men's scent along the lines
of Calvin Klein Man (2007) and The One for Men by Dolce & Gabbana (2008), say...
Continue reading "Stetson All American (2009): The Smell of America's Melting Pot {Perfume Review & Musings}" »
 Stephen Jones EDP is a violet composition from 2008 that I had wanted to add to the Violet Notebook for a while. It, I think, makes its mark thanks to interesting decorative touches rather than an overhaul. Like the tilted hats of milliner Stephen Jones, olfactory colors and brush strokes are added to the sides of the scent, on the edge of a form that itself remains traditional. But at the same time those touches create mini changes of atmosphere like a change of hats. It is not however a revolutionary pamphlet on violets reworked from the bottom up by a perfumer, in this case Antoine Maisondieu of Givaudan who worked with Adrian Joffe and Stephen Jones. I think that Editions de Parfums Dans Tes Bras by Maurice Roucel is more structurally re-thought as a violet perfume than this one. I was really glad to find an illuminating quote (and then a few more again later on), or so I think, from Stephen Jones himself about Stephen Jones Eau de Parfum (at the outcome of having reviewed the scent) because I could not quite explain to myself why in the most evocative phase of the perfume I saw the crooked steps of an eccentric medieval church ascending towards god knows what, a church high in the air yet undefined, a church tucked on a promontory on the edge of the sea, maybe at the Mont Saint-Michel. Jones did not hesitate to use the expression "other-wordly" to describe his conception of both millinery and perfumery, "Millinery, I think, is closer to fragrance than fashion. A hat, like a perfume, is an evocation of something nebulous, ephemeral, and other-wordly." and about his signature perfume itself, "There's something innocent and romantic and otherworldly, as well.
A perfume, like a hat and a poem, has the power to evoke a whole poetic universe in a very short form. The brevity of the form conditions the possibility of experiencing perfume, like a hat and a poem, as a shock, an aesthetic experience that unleashes its effect over a very short span of time, like a coil...  Wash and Go by Stephen Jones from the current exhibit at the V & A Hats: an Anthology by Stephen Jones
Continue reading "Stephen Jones EDP with Comme des Garcons (2008) {Perfume Review & Musings}" »
 La Nuit de L'Homme by Yves Saint Laurent is the latest men's fragrance to be issued by a brand that has shown in the past that it could create some fascinating masculine compositions even and especially when you were not necessarily going to wear them. But at least scents such as Kouros and M7 made you, arguably, pay attention and L'Homme is, for all of its popularity, somewhat edgy. The new La Nuit de l'Homme (The Night of the Man) on the other hand is safe, oh-so-safe a launch in a time of recession and a big let-down in terms of creativity although it can still pretend to the designation of " sent-bon" (a smell-good scent), undeniably and unsatisfactorily so. Three obstacles were not surmounted it seems: 1) being an interesting flanker 2) being a celebrity scent that made sense when compared to the person embodying it 3) managing to add a big dose of warm oriental amber without losing all of its edge as that scent is so round and skin-friendly. To refresh our memories we can turn again to the original L'Homme which I reviewed last week and which reveals itself to be a much more interesting concept with its central duetto of bilge and
florals, like a gentler, more pastel version of Sécrétions Magnifiques.
Its transparent fruity undertones, including a trace of cool cucumber, make for a
more complex, aerial blend than LNDLH. Although on a blotter the new
La Nuit de L'Homme seemed in the first moments to project a stronger personality than its progenitor, on the longer run
it turns out to be a more mechanical and conventional version of a
masculine perfume. It is the difference between showing off and imparting a smidgeon of inner life to your perfume.  The obvious structural difference to my perception is that the new
flanker went by a pattern, re-utilizing, the skeleton of L'Homme but
emptying it of its inspiration and originality and decided to
incorporate a twist. That new element is noteworthy in and of itself, or
rather noticeable, but creativity was very limited. La Nuit de l'Homme is a true commercial flanker,
unlike, for example the very personal Kelly Calèche EDP 2009 which is
based on a perfumer's leitmotivs and feels authentic using the flanker
category as a vehicle for personal variations rather than appearing to think in
terms of mechanically applied "codes". You know when you read the word "code" all over the
place that the marketing forces had a heavy hand in the design of the
scent and in this case the perfumers complied, a little too obediently. If sometimes, you are delighted to find the perfumer(s) using a secret language in her or his composition to say something a little more interesting than found in the official spiel, here it looks like they went by the marketing book. The trio of noses are the same ones that worked on L'Homme: Pierre Wargnye, Anne Flipo, and Dominique Ropion...
Continue reading "Yves Saint Laurent La Nuit de L'Homme (2009) {Perfume Review} {New Fragrance} {Celebrity Juice}" »
 L'Homme by Yves Saint Laurent was released in 2006 and has become a bestseller. It is ranked as the 6th most sold men's fragrance in France. The jus benefited from ample advertising budgets as well as the contributions of actor Olivier Martinez as the celebrity face of the scent. The talent of architect Jean Nouvel was added to the mix for a limited-edition bottle shaped as a homage to the male member (officially it is a test tube on a base). The tapping into the nuts-bolts-and-screws imagery obviously was a hit in general, with a bottle design inspired by the Bauhaus aesthetics. The cologne also arrived in a context where the simple name "L'Homme" was still capable of sounding distinctive and ear-catching a year after Dior Homme breathed new life into the masculine world of fragrances thanks its overdosed floral iris accord imagined by perfumer Olivier Polge (the sleek design-conscious packaging by Hedi Slimane counted as well to define the identity of the Dior perfume). Since then, numerous men's colognes touting a spare manhood label have been added to the point of drowning that sense of being simply a man's fragrance and standing apart thanks to a lack of fussiness. Sensing this, Yves Saint Laurent just released a more narrative flanker cologne titled La Nuit de L'Homme as a sequel to L'Homme (our review of the new scent is up next)...
Continue reading "Yves Saint Laurent L'Homme (2006): Modern Man in a Museum {Perfume Review}" »
 When people say that the perception of a perfume is entirely subjective, they ought to turn to the phenomenon of copycat scents that seems to contradict their claim and get back to me. Well, one supposes they could pull out a single note and declare the composition to smell entirely different. Or that it reminds them of their aunt Irma who smelled of leeks and therefore the perfume must smell of leeks... 
Continue reading "Nina Ricci Love by Nina (2009): Oooh, I Love That Little Green Dress! - Hasty-Review" »
 Kelly Calèche Eau de Toilette was launched in the summer of 2007 followed in 2008 by a pure parfum version. The Kelly Calèche Eau de Parfum iteration is the latest olfactory form and incarnation of Kelly Calèche to come out of Hermès in-house perfumer Jean-Claude Ellena's perfume organ. While the first-in-the-series composition was not unpleasant, it had come across to me as being on the conservative side and I put off reviewng it for lack of any very definite ideas about it. The new EDP on the other hand has more personality and a winning softness and fruitiness. It also shocks you with the liberty it takes with the original rendition. More than just being an intensified version of the original eau de toilette (In fact, it is softer; I have not smelled the parfum form, but it looks like it has been re-worked to new effect as well), it is a new interpretation of the formula, different enough to be considered a major variation, perhaps even a slight departure from the initial more Hermès-focused theme with its more palpable and central reference to the house's vault of precious skins. The initial concept of a precious floral leather has become even more subtle in its treatment of the leather notes made buttery-creamy and soft. And here comes the surprise, it is also much fruitier, showcasing a green melon note that we saw last year in Un Jardin Après La Mousson... Official notes are: Barenia, Agneau Plongé, vegetable vine rose, irisey violet, a veil of vanilla...
Continue reading "Kelly Calèche Eau de Parfum (2009): More Than A New Concentration, More Than A Flanker {Perfume Review & Musings} {New Fragrance}" »
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The press release further states that the "croisière noire" by André Citroën, the so-called "black cruise" that took place across Africa in 1924-1925 was yet another source of inspiration. 
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