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 Starting with the pulling-off of the cap - I instinctively tend to smell closed perfume bottles when taking off the cap even if it is a spray bottle to get a sneak peak of the contents and insights into potentially indiscreet, volatile notes - Traversée du Bosphore lets out a distinctive, coquettish powdery rose-violet accord which conjures up KenzoFlower but also lets through more Oriental notes in the background:..
Continue reading "L'Artisan Parfumeur Traversée du Bosphore (2010): Aquarelle of a Sheer Iris-Leather Oriental or an Anatomy of Luxury & Appearances {Fragrance Review}" »
 The new packaging and an older one for Night Magic Evening Musk by Avon (upper right-hand corner)
Night Magic Evening Musk is said to be "the American version of Night Musk" according to a British Avon site for the direct-sales giant. It was apparently discontinued at one point then reintroduced. An UK-based cyber meeting place called The Friends of Avon Forum allows us to trace back the estimated launch date for the scent as being sometime in the 1980s-90s....
Continue reading "Avon Night Magic Evening Musk (1980s): Listening to the Perfume Radio {Fragrance Review}" »
Pretty Woman is the debut fragrance of Barbara Orbison, the widow of singer Roy Orbison. It was named after the 1964 hit song "Oh, Pretty Woman" which was later made part of two film soundtracks, American Graffiti (1973) and Pretty Woman (1990), a testimonial to the catchiness and increasing popularity of the tune...
Continue reading "Barbara Orbison Pretty Woman (2009): Soft Olivine Oriental with a Complex Sillage {Fragrance Review} {Niche Celebrity Fragrance}" »
 Balmain (blue) and Piguet (pink) models in 1951 Calypso is the latest recreation by the Robert Piguet label which aims to offer the luxury of vintage flair in a world full of recent launches by building in part on the excellent and even mythical reputation of Germaine Cellier's iconic scents from the 1940s, Bandit and Fracas. People will therefore tend to expect weightier compositions and bold signatures in a sort of noir-film atmosphere traversed by the haloed charm of a femme fatale or at least that of a bourgeoise wearing real mink. Instead of stimulating our need for newness the brand thus hopes to offer a sense of escape to a time when perfumery was more selective and attached to personality, true elegance rather than market shares, or so we like to think. In reality, commercial interests have been part and parcel of perfumery all along its history and multiple-launch phenomena are there to prove it since the age of Paul Poiret... 
Continue reading "Robert Piguet Calypso (2010): The Archetypal Vagueness, Conviviality & Lived-in Signature of a Parisian Chypre {Fragrance Review}" »
 
Portrait of a Lady is the latest opus to come out of the house of Editions de Parfums Frédéric Malle and is signed by perfumer Dominique Ropion. If Malle likens his work to that of a self-described editor of perfumes rather than books, he also readily translates his activity into more traditional lingo by calling himself an "evaluator." Despite the literary reference and the homage paid to the prestigious French publishing house of Gallimard in particular which inspires part of the aesthetics of presentation of the perfume house, Frédéric Malle rejects the notion that a perfume might start with a story, a narrative. As underlined in the interview he gave the blog, raw materials are the real sources of inspiration for his vision of perfumery. The collaboration between the two men - their 8th, including the creation of 3 home fragrances - here stems from their combined love and "avid" wearing of Géranium pour Monsieur which they also co-created in 2009. They both had the intuition of taking an accord found in the fresh, mint-laden masculine fragrance resting on benzoin, musk, sandalwood, patchouli and incense, with the prurpose in their minds of turning it into "a modern oriental fragrance." "Our mutual trust has become such that we sometimes dare start a fragrance without any precise plan or goal, hoping that our explorations will take us somewhere interesting. Portrait of a Lady is the result of one of these olfactory adventures." Malle has specified that the name of the fragrance comes from a general impression of aristocratic elegance exuded by Isabel Archer in The Portrait of a Lady by Henry James but does not aim to put the novel into a fragrance structure. The form of the perfume was complete when the name came to him and therefore probing the depths of the analogy could be done but with the caveat that most of it would be a reference to the unconscious and mainly interpretative on the part of the reviewer. I will offer images and impressions that the perfume evoked in me prior to doing the interview with some added comments post-interview. Perfume notes: benzoin, musk, sandalwood, patchouli, incense, white musk cocktail, Turkish rose essence, rose absolute,cinnamon, clove, red berries accord, blackcurrant, . Portrait of a Lady takes the genre of the deep, dark oriental rose and gives it further asperities, further dirtiness despite using some white musk to make it more feminine, exploring the limits of both pungency and sweetness and offering one of the darkest rose compositions available on the market. I like to think of it as having been devised with invisible, arachnean-like thorns, scratching the delicate face of a Victorian lady, whose pallor is half-masked by her hat veil. There is something smoky and blurry about the perfume which conveys this sense of mystery and sartorial smoke-screen playing, but also an undercurrent of masculinity which is not surprising and befits the independent persona of Isabel Archer...
Continue reading "Editions de Parfums Frédéric Malle Portrait of a Lady (2010): The Darkest Rose {Perfume Review}" »
The other day, as I was starting to jot down some notes about the latest Serge Lutens to be released, Boxeuses (an upcoming 2011 release Jeux de Peau has just been unveiled to the press), I realized I was writing in French. It went on for a little while longer. My conclusion as I was thinking about the fragrance with en français was that this was a "cuir de vanille," "a leather vanilla." The facet stood out as the most unexpected aspect of a perfume composition which I anticipated would probably be dramatically, perhaps glaringly leathery, potentially being a retake on the classical genres of either the cuir d'Espagne or cuir de Russie leaving here aside the Moorishly-styled Cuir Mauresque which had already been proposed by the house. The latter is incidentally more widely accessible this winter in a new non-exclusive limited-edition flacon. Setting to work in English, I had to make room for less Cartesian clarity and more complexity, becoming more sensitive to the hesitations, the transient truths of the fragrance than to the all-embracing resolution. Boxeuses, which means "female boxers" in French, goes more in the direction of a creative deconstruction of the leather fragrance genre, eschewing classical references to propose seemingly unlikely encounters of notes as if they were chancing upon each others in a bottle. The weaving of the ingredients appears to be designed to startle a bit as in the more difficult Daim Blond, also by Serge Lutens and Christopher Sheldrake. But while Daim Blond is challenging by being brash as well, Boxeuses is challenging and soft and intimate with just a dash of elegant self-consciousness in its drop of chypré sillage. Its poetical structure creates a world in which female boxers caress and even cuddle you... 
Continue reading "Serge Lutens Boxeuses (2010): Whimsical Vanilla Leather or The Poetical Structure {Fragrance Review}" »
Sartorial by Penhaligon's (see previous introductory article and the arty stop-motion video) opens on a burst of powdery gentlemanliness accented with a layer of shaving soap foam, like a woodier, sweeter, more animalic and more strongly typified Brut de Fabergé. It is an airier version of it as well thanks to its ozonic note. The eau de toilette belongs to this strange species of perfumes for men which covertly smell like coquettish damsels wearing rouge and powder high on the cheekbones and of which another classic, Canoe by Dana, reveals itself to be another quirky representative once you have forgotten about the tradition and rediscovered it impromptu. These scents easily suggest the brush of a downy houpette on a made-up feminine face, yet cater without a blink of the eye - or batting any lashes - to virile elegance...
Continue reading "Penhaligon's Sartorial (2010): From Naked Man to Vested Gentleman {Fragrance Review}" »
Manoumalia was released in 2009 as the fourth permanent opus offered by Swiss perfume house Les Nez Parfums d'Auteurs founded by businessman René Schifferlé. The story and experience behind the fragrance, signed by perfumer Sandrine Videault, opens an interesting avenue in the exploration of culturally-motivated perfume re-creation, for we have to speak of a recreation in this case rather than of a true creative act. If we take the example of Paprika Brasil by Hermès penned by Jean-Claude Ellena and inspired by a similar culturally-constrained motif but as filtered through the literary and ethnographic account of Levi-Strauss in Tristes Tropiques, then we get more of an interpretative distance in the fragrance resulting from this type of work. With Manoumalia, there is by contrast a relationship which anthropologists call "participant-observation" in which the perfumer was invited by a lady called Malia to take part in ceremonies involving fragrance rituals. The perfumed result is both an attempt at a faithful homage it seems and a filtering of the culture observed through one's own reference points. Manoumalia seems authentic but it is as close to authenticity as one could get rather than the real deal. Perfumery-wise, academic references, which were not evinced, seem to anchor it in the tradition of European perfumery just as much or even more so than in the soil of New Caledonia. Notes: fragraea, vetyver, tiare, sandalwood sawdust, ylang-ylang, ambery accord The Eau de Toilette opens on an intense, exotic floral accord with this giveaway sign of big white florals, a Concord grape nuance due to the material Methyl Anthranilate, while the bouquet is characterised by both sweetish and indolic-rubbery facets, a bit as if you had sifted some Fracas through a black ribbed rubber hose. The restrained force of the white floral bouquet which recalls also some of the pushier nuances of Amarige, soon abates but continues to be both syrupy-sweet and camphoraceous with faint earthy nuances let out by the vetyver...
Continue reading "Les Nez Parfums d'Auteurs Manoumalia (2009): Perfume in Search of a Textual Support {Fragrance Review}" »
 Coeur de Vétiver Sacré (Heart of Sacred Vetiver) ( see flacon here) is the latest fragrance to have been released by niche perfume house L'Artisan Parfumeur. The composition is signed by perfumer Karine Vinchon of fragrance company Robertet, who also did the organically-certified L'Eau de Jatamansi for the house. More recently she seems to have been particularly appreciated by Omani perfume house Amouage as one of their go-to noses. She is the author for them of Opus III and Memoir Man, the latter still upcoming this fall 2010. The common point in her work these days appears to be a focus on an Eastern / Middle-Eastern sources of inspiration. L'Artisan Parfumeur is well-known for the stock it puts on exoticism and far-away travels to renew its inspiration (see for instance Dzongkha; Fleur de Liane). This new vetiver composition while remaining vague about any particular locales which might have been concretely visited does reference the East as the scent is seen as being " An offering to the gods, a mystical journey between West and East, a woody fragrance, light and magnificent..." The East is here characterized as " magic" and constitutes the final destination of a " dream voyage" rather than being presented as a page torn from a travel diary. Notes: bergamot, orange, black tea, tarragon, date, dried crystallized
fruits, saffron, ginger, pink peppercorn, vanilla, incense, musks.Coeur de Vétiver Sacré opens on a delicious, complex mix of scents which smell principally to my nose of green banana leaves, black pepper and dark leather...
Continue reading "L'Artisan Parfumeur Coeur de Vétiver Sacré (2010): Sweet Vetiver {Fragrance Review} {New Perfume}" »
 Aventus is the latest fragrance composition by Creed
est. 1760, first as a tailoring house in England. Later they became one
of the chosen few to have the privilege of belonging to the exclusive
French syndicate of Haute Couture as a felicitous consequence, further
down the road, of their transplantation to Paris in 1854. They are now
better-known for their fragrances as well as longevity as a
family-operated business for 6 generations with Oliver Creed and Erwin Creed as the latest representatives of the dynasty.
Once
more, as is their consistent tradition, the establishment-oriented
perfume house turned their sights to a historical figure, Napoleon Bonaparte this time (see also Jackie Kennedy), to inspire their creation, which "...honors traits of virility,
power, strength and vision, inspired by Napoleon, the man who crowned himself
emperor of France and all Europe, a self-made king who waged war, peace and
love on terms he set."...
Continue reading "Creed Aventus (2010): Eating the Royal Pineapple {Fragrance Review}" »
Sensuous Noir by Estée Lauder ($48; $60) is the latest feminine launch by the beauty company. It arrives on the market two years after the original Sensuous which was seen as a move to step back from the floral portfolio at Estée Lauder and surf on the woods trend for women. The fragrance was reportedly developed by Karyn Khoury, Senior Vice President, Corporate Fragrance Development Worldwide and Evelyn Lauder, Senior Corporate Vice President in cooperation with Firmenich's perfumer Annie Buzantian.
According to the press release, the idea behind this new iteration is the following, "Sensuality as an experience and as an emotion has a very broad spectrum of expression. There are many moods, many facets, many shades of sensuality, which range from the more luminous expression of Sensuous to deeper, darker, more mysterious expressions," says Karyn Khoury, Senior Vice President of Corporate Fragrance Development Worldwide, The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. "This concept of further exploring a darker, more mysterious olfactive territory and deeper shades of sensuality inspired the creation of Sensuous Noir."
Notes: Exotic purple rose, night blooming jasmine, rose essence, black pepper / melted woods Nature Print, crème noir, richly faceted, earthy and elusive Patchouli Prisma, spiced lily / benzoin, creamy vanilla, rich honey, glowing amber.
The fragrance opens on a honeyed woody impression which quickly becomes more animalic and musky. There might even be a hint of leather, an illusion which can be created by a benzoin note. The fragrance after letting out these facets settles for a more linear mode. The composition then gently deepens, becomes more tangibly woody-buttery, thus reconnecting with the signature accord of its forebear, Sensuous (2008).
The woody accents this time combine the famous "molten woods" sensation with drier, dustier notes of wood evoking cedar and later sandalwood in the drydown. The alliance of musk and cedar together with light florals is particularly felicitous and pleasurable to smell. It recalls flower beds fertilized with cedar wood chips to my nose.
The scent is warm and welcoming. The honey is soft. The amber betrays a hint of water so as to acknowledge the taste for freshness and in order not be polarizing. The woody accord is centering...
Continue reading "Estée Lauder Sensuous Noir (2010): Sensuous in the Evening, in Public Spaces {Fragrance Review}" »
Mary J. Blige My Life by Carol's Daughter is one of the latest celebrity fragrances to appear on the market and certainly the one which was most talked about in recent memory for its record-breaking sales on HSN on July 31st 2010, the day of its exclusive on air and online introduction. According to Harlem World, During the first 6 hours, 10 000 bottles of perfume were sold each hour. 20% more customers tuned in. 10 000 people signed up for regular shipping of the fragrance. And all this was based only on Mary J. Blige's charisma, the link her fans feel with her and perhaps a phenomenon of instant, real-time mutually encouraging shopping spree and unfolding popularity. As the media commented again and again, the bestseller's takeoff was solely based on intangibles such as trust and love for the person behind the scent as no one could tell for sure what fragrance would come out of the heart-shaped flacon gilded with the words "My Life." The one note that was released in advance must have been the most laconic press preview ever: expect tuberose. Then 4 days before the HSN launch, Blige unveiled a little more saying that My Life was for women "who love tuberose, love jasmine, love fruit," she says. "It's all there." The name comes from one of the singer's albums, the one through which Blige says her fans have most connected to her. The decision to launch My Life on HSN was deliberate and bold. Next to nothing filtered prior to the official introduction and there was a strategic reason for it. According to the Associated Press,
"A year ago, we were strategizing and asking, `What could we do to
differentiate ourselves in the beauty business?'" adds HSN CEO Mindy
Grossman. "The whole experience of buying fragrance now: I don't find
it compelling. I think it's a big opportunity. ... Buying a scent is
buying a smell, but you're also buying what it means to you, what went
into it."....
Continue reading "Mary J. Blige My Life (2010): Sweet Melopia {Fragrance Review}" »
 As previously said, Bang is the new Marc Jacobs scent for men after an 8-year lapse in masculine perfumery since Marc Jacobs for Men. Coty reportedly approached Jacobs with the idea of a new men's launch. While the fragrance is not officially a celebrity juice it was conceived in a similar spirit, in my view, by a company which specializes in this type of autobiographical fragrances. No perfumer names are given except the name of company Givaudan and that of fragrance developer Ann Gottlieb whose name is behind many commercial successes in perfumery. Added: The fragrance was actually composed by perfumers Yann Vasnier and Ellen Molner.
A dedicated Bang website has been set up.
The main olfactory idea behind Bang - and not just its starting point as I found out - relies on the effect of showcasing Marc Jacobs's personal taste in fragrance. The designer explained himself that,
"I wanted to do something that I would love," said Jacobs. "I particularly like spice notes, especially pepper, so that became a starting place."
Smelling Bang is discovering, as befits the genre of celebrity-wardrobe-fragrance (see Fergie Outspoken), a remix of favorite scents worn by Jacobs already available on the market, but condensed, blended together.
Notes: Pink, black and white peppercorns, "warm primal masculine woods", elemi resinoid, benzoin resin, vetyver, white moss, patchouli...
Continue reading "Marc Jacobs Bang (2010): Niche for the Masses {New Fragrance} {Perfume Review & Musings}" »
 The dark blue color of the sky above Deauville at dusk © The Scented Salamander Bleu de Chanel is the latest masculine to be launched by the luxury house of fashion. You can read more about the background story here, here, here and here. The composition is signed by perfumer Jacques Polge who usually works with input from perfumer Christopher Sheldrake. Polge said of Bleu, "With Bleu de Chanel, I wanted something frank, direct and pure in a
masculine scent,..I did trials with all of the raw
materials that we are constantly fine-tuning, and I searched for what
we could do and say that was different from what has already been done.
And of course, something that could strike a chord with men today. Bleu
de Chanel is reduced to its essential elements, in other words:
freshness, spiciness and dry woodiness. It's also a very sexy
fragrance!"
While the meticulous fine-tuning is perceptible in the new composition, Bleu de Chanel is not what one would call a flashily original perfume, but rather it is a subtly original work. The sum of the efforts that were put in the fragrance does translate in the end in a perfume with unique qualities, but if you were to think of originality as being like a shift in a paradigm as evident as the clap of thunder, this is not what takes place here. However, accepting the scent of Bleu de Chanel will mean accepting the idea that a marine accord is not just for sportswear but universally elegant, accept a certain dreamy, poetical quality associated with a mainstream fragrance, and accept a certain blurring of the lines in terms of gender. Notes: citrus fruits, deep blue sea accord, grapefruit, peppermint, pink pepper, nutmeg, ginger, cedar, jasmine, patchouli, frankincense, labdanum. Bleu de Chanel opens on a complex and addictive accord of seascape smells and woods, all this with a suggestion of salty booziness, energized by a wedge of lime, warmed by ambery fruits. The composition evokes a familiar outdoorsy accord of masculine perfumery only here it has been both refined and intensified and made in my view to feel utterly seductive...
Continue reading "Chanel Bleu de Chanel (2010): L'Heure Bleue by Chanel {Fragrance Review}" »
 Nina L'Elixir is the latest addition to the Nina portfolio which was inaugurated in 2006 to popular commercial acclaim with Nina Eau de Toilette. Perfumer Olivier Cresp working in tandem with Jacques Cavallier then, continued doing with it in a way what had been his signature, lucky pairing of sensual oriental notes with gourmand ones in Angel by Thierry Mugler, but also to a lesser degree in Light Blue by Dolce & Gabbanna with its crisp Granny Smith apple note, both major commercial successes. Other Nina flankers have been added yearly both sustained by and encouraging of the success of Nina which has reportedly sold more than 11 millions bottles worldwide. Nina L'Elixir is not just another slavish flanker but a real revisit of the composition by Olivier Cresp signing solo this time. One should not stop at the notes description nor official age-targeting for thinking about experiencing the perfume. The fragrance weaves complex aromatic codes which makes it a veritable mirror of the olfactory sensibilities of today. But most of all it is also a very good composition with a distinct, recognizable and easy-to-remember signature, a rare and coveted quality which can be said to be a holy grail of perfumery achievement...
Continue reading "Nina Ricci Nina L'Elixir (2010) {Fragrance Review}" »
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