The usual open thread routine: talk about anything you like — the perfume you wish you could smell but that you can’t get your hands one, the last perfume that surprised you, whatever.
Or, ask a question about fragrance, then see if anyone else has asked a question that you can answer…
Note: image is Bamboo , Tokyo [cropped] by mskogly at flickr; some rights reserved.
Summer is: abundance, freedom, heat. Light citrus colognes are a “necessity” in hot, muggy weather, but it’s also good to have a big, brassy summer fragrance for cool nights, mild breezy days and body-numbing, overly-air-conditioned environments, a scent full of summer flowers, resins, as well as citrus. For me, that summer powerhouse scent is Boadicea the Victorious Invigorating.
When I read Invigorating’s list of notes, two notes in particular made me wince: dark chocolate and black licorice. I do NOT like chocolaty perfumes and licorice? Don’t put licorice in my food, drink or on my person, please. So, why is it that Invigorating has become one of my favorite fragrances?
Invigorating contains, apart from dark chocolate and black licorice, yuzu, bergamot, orange, rose geranium, jasmine, fir, rock rose and ambergris. The fragrance starts off with dense and sweet yuzu-orange “syrup.” After the rich and distinctive opening, Invigorating’s notes are well blended. I detect a touch of licorice, a hint of chocolate, but neither are big players in the scent…
Fragrance families cause a good deal of confusion, even among seasoned perfumistas. Two experiences, both involving the fruity floral category, illustrate the problem.
I once got a rather unpleasant email from a reader who was angry that I called a fragrance a “fruity floral” in a new fragrance announcement: she assumed that I was making an arbitrary assignment based on the notes listed in the press release, and that I was trying to make a critical statement about this particular fragrance.1 This nicely introduces the first point I’d like to make about fragrance families: you cannot determine the fragrance family by reading a list of notes. If you see a fragrance family listed in a new fragrance announcement, it came from the press materials or some other primary source.
Some time later I held a poll asking readers to name their favorite fruity floral perfumes. While most of the suggestions were, in fact, fruity, a rather large percentage of them were not, in fact, fruity florals. And that introduces the second point I’d like to make: you cannot determine the fragrance family just by the noticeable presence of certain notes, either…
I can almost hear the executives at Coty as they kicked around ideas for new fragrances. “What about Chloé?” one of them might have said. “Isn’t it time to come up with something new?”
“I don’t know,” another executive said, low-fat, extra hot, caramel latte at her side. “We’ve pretty much squeezed the life out of variations on the original fragrance.”
“Well, let’s look at the Chloé brand. Young, fashionable, casual. Super into khaki and tan leather this season. They don’t want anything complicated.”
“But we’ve already given them narcissus, rose, as well as the original tuberose. Then another take on the original’s name, just to confuse people into buying it by mistake. But wait,” the executive sat up straighter. “Marc Jacobs is making money hand over fist on his single-note splashes. Why don’t we try something like that — except more expensive?”
“Isn’t the market already saturated with lines of single-note scents? I mean, besides Marc Jacobs, there’s Jo Malone, all those Tom Fords, the new Van Cleef & Arpels —”
“Sure, but look how many companies churn out khaki pants? Still, Chloé pants are selling like hotcakes.”
And so a trio of single-note Eaux de Toilette was born…
Today we’re helping Lilian, who lives in Brazil and wants to find two new fragrances that will work in Brazil’s hot weather: one for work and one for not-at-work. She can buy online, and is also planning a trip to the US so will have other shopping opportunities. She isn’t worried about the price. Here is what we know about Lilian:
She’s a doctor in her early 30s, is active all day long, and says she is happy but introspective.
She wears “colorful but not fancy clothes” ranging from high heels to jeans and t-shirts.
She loves reading, watching movies, running, going to the gym and practicing yoga, and she also loves nature and camping with her boyfriend.
Lilian would like her daytime fragrance to be “fresh, a bit elegant and remarkable”, and she’d prefer something other than citrus…
I’ve never referred to myself as a “chocoholic.” I enjoy chocolate, but I’m an equal-opportunity sweets lover, and I’m usually more likely to seek out cookies or ice cream or a really good piece of apple pie than a cocoa-based dessert. Today, however, I rounded off my lunch with a slab of chocolate cake. I think the last long weeks of winter have finally gotten to me. In this spirit of unexpected cravings, I’ve rounded up a handful of chocolate-fragrance body products for your delectation.
I’m fond of Villainess’ vaguely steampunk aesthetic, not to mention its range of unusual scents. Its Dulces en Fuego (“fire candies”) blend mixes cocoa with cinnamon and black pepper and a touch of musk. The dense, sugar-based Smooch! Warming Body Scrub actually does seem to give off heat when it’s first applied to the skin, and the matching Dulces en Fuego soap (shown above) looks dangerously dark before it foams. The scent of Dulces en Fuego reminds me of the tiny cups of rich, spiced “Aztec” chocolate served at Mariebelle in New York, although it probably doesn’t taste as good…
Iris is the first new fragrance to join the Donna Karan Collection, which up until now was made up entirely of relaunches from the line’s back catalog. The Collection scents are all done up in opaque black glass; the packaging is handsome if rather functional looking (see below) and the bottles have a nice heft. They’re in limited distribution, making this a sort of niche-from-mainstream kind of line along the lines of the Chanel Les Exclusifs or the Armani Privés, although the prices are more reasonable than that perhaps implies.
On paper, Donna Karan Iris smells at first mostly of iris — not the rooty, bold, turnips-just-pulled-from-the-earth sort of iris à la Serge Lutens Iris Silver Mist, but the buttery-soft sort of iris that you get in Chanel’s 28 La Pausa, albeit without that elusive Chanel touch that makes so many of the Les Exclusifs fragrances smell like money. Later, Iris takes on a more floral character…
People say there are so many products that they can’t choose, but a CD store has thousands of CDs and people can still choose. I think the market lacks inspiration, trendiness and edgyness. I see edgier things in fashion, music and architecture…In the last 10 years what has made you say ‘wow’?1
That’s perfumer Christophe Laudamiel, and I have no quarrel with the second part of his statement: the perfume industry would be in much better shape if we didn’t see so many entirely dull and uninspiring new launches. But I can’t make up my mind about the first part. I’ve long felt that the best thing that could happen to the perfume industry in terms of reinvigorating consumer interest would be to see far fewer new releases — maybe about half of the 1000+ new fragrances that we’ve been seeing every year for the past few years. So, a two part poll…
A quick reminder that we’ll continue to accept entries for the 2010 Prix Eau Faux through the end of the month: that means you have about 28 days left!
Bring on the stems, leaves, grasses — I’m always in the mood for ‘green’ fragrances. Green-tinged perfumes are refreshing and often “cool” in tone; they convey the idea of “growth,” especially new growth of plants. Spring is the perfect time for a green cologne to debut, and I’ve been looking forward to smelling Parfumerie Generale Papyrus de Ciane (No. 24).
Perfumer Pierre Guillaume has gotten a lot of online media coverage for Papyrus de Ciane and much of it references his use of a legendary component of early 20th century fragrances: Mousse de Saxe. I’ll let others discuss the chemical composition of Mousse de Saxe and its reconfiguration for Papyrus de Ciane; my only “concern” is: How does Papyrus de Ciane smell on me?
Papyrus de Ciane’s “published” list of notes is varied (online at Parfumerie Generale only five components are mentioned: galbanum, broom, mild plant note, Mousse de Saxe, Silvanone® Supra (musk); in interviews, Guillaume has also mentioned bergamot, neroli, mugwort, cistus labdanum, lavender, clove, vetiver, incense and hedione.
Papyrus de Ciane begins with a mix of citrus, “white flowers” and delicious and strong galbanum (the galbanum crystallizes and turns soft and powdery fast); Papyrus de Ciane’s green notes are not wild and sharp…
SJP NYC is the latest release from Sarah Jessica Parker. It’s a tie-in with her upcoming movie, Sex and the City 2, and is meant to be a reflection on the fictional character Carrie Bradshaw as opposed to a reflection on Sarah Jessica Parker herself. Which works out very well for Coty, apparently, since they’ve found that Sarah Jessica Parker is not always an easy sell:
In the case of actress Sara Jessica Parker, Coty has had varied experiences. Lovely, which was easily relatable to Parker’s television persona, was a success. Covet, meanwhile, which tapped into a different side of the celebrity, proved a bigger challenge. [Catherine] Walsh explained that Coty’s next launch with Parker, SJP NYC, again focuses on the personality that the consumer wants.1
And the personality that the consumer wants, apparently, smells like strawberry. I suppose I should stop here and admit that I was never a fan of Sex and the City, although I did sit through several episodes at the urging of friends who found the show mesmerizing…
Last week while killing time in a used bookstore, I leafed through French Chic: How to Dress Like a French Woman by Susan Sommers. It had a short section with some predictable advice on wearing fragrance (wear perfume for a few hours before you decide if you like it; fragrance comes in different formulations, etc.), but I did find an interesting quote by Sonia Rykiel. She said a fragrance wardrobe should start with a base scent, just like a clothing wardrobe has basics, then build on it.
This advice appeals to the part of me that loves patterns and relationships. Five years ago or so I attempted to chart my perfume wardrobe to find similarities between the fragrances I own. I grouped fragrances by their families and by categories I made up — “reading” perfumes, “going out” perfumes — and drew lines between them, seeking some kind of common ground. (All this when I could have been volunteering at the food bank! Or at least cleaning the basement.) I ended up with a large sheet of drawing paper covered with perfume names splattered like constellations, without even a Big Dipper to give it form…
Today’s subject is Jonathan. Jonathan lives in Berlin, and is looking for an evening fragrance — something to wear dancing at night. His perfect scent would combine traces of the grilled hazelnut from Hermès Vétiver Tonka, the floral aspects of Le Labo Rose 31 and the spices, the flint and the non-musk of Terre d’Hermès. He’s willing to spend up to $140.
Jonathan is in his 20s, and works in the engineering business. He compares himself to the man in the Terre d’Hermès commercial: a grounded dreamer…
Dogs have been a big part of my life. My first baby pictures feature a series of photos with Snowball, my aunt’s black (yes, Aunt Lois had a sense of humor) Cocker Spaniel. In those shots, Snowball has her tongue up my nose, in my ears and all round my mouth. (Ah, the long-ago days when the fear of germs didn’t rule our lives.) Judging from the pictures, I remained calm during Snowball’s onslaught.
How many dogs have I known by name? I stopped counting today at 40…the list is too long. I’ve known worthy dogs, wacko dogs, giant dogs and mini-dogs. My face has been kissed by dogs; my legs have been humped by dogs; and I, and my dogs, were bitten by “bad” dogs (I’ve already written about Shaggy). I still love dogs!
The last two canines in my life were Don Diego de Fontana (a pug) and The Hon. Brenda Catchpole (English bulldog). Since their “departures,” I miss their scent in my home. Over the years, I tried to identify the combination of aromas that comprised my dogs…
Yes, we’re late! But we are now accepting entries for the 2010 Prix Eau Faux, our contest to reward excellence in “creative fragrance writing”, e.g., fake ad copy.
We have assembled a distinguished panel of judges to judge this year’s contest, including Tania Sanchez of Perfumes: The Guide and several of us from Now Smell This (me, Angela, Christine, Erin, Kevin and Jessica).
The judges will select a group of semi-finalists, and then the readers will vote on a grand prize winner…
The usual open thread routine: talk about anything you like — what perfume you’re wearing today, what perfume you wish you were wearing today, the perfume house you wish would release something new, whatever.
Or, ask a question about fragrance, then see if anyone else has asked a question that you can answer…
Note: image is Trio [cropped] by bensonkua at flickr; some rights reserved.
Just as everyone’s clothing wardrobe benefits from a few low-key, comfortable items to pull on without thinking, perfume wardrobes need the same. Can you imagine how it would be to open the closet and find a row of late-1950s silk brocade Scaasi cocktail dresses? A dream come true! But what if they were all you had to wear? Before long you’d be desperate for a pair of well worn Levis and a cashmere sweater. I can easily see Parfums DelRae Mythique becoming my daily comfort wear.
Perfumer Yann Vasnier worked with DelRae Roth to create Mythique in 2009. Roth’s vision of Mythique was inspired by a painting of Diane de Poitiers, French king Henri II’s mistress and one-time owner of Chenonceau, a Loire Valley chateau with a dramatic, two-story gallery on stone arches extending over the Cher river (click here for a virtual tour). Roth mentions Diane de Poitier’s beauty, horsemanship, and habit of wearing only black and white as part of her fascination.
Others might find more interest in the fact that Diane was 19 years older than Henri II. Diane started her career in the royal household as Henri’s governess. When Henri turned 19, their relationship changed…
Denise, who says she is an “amateur perfumista at best”, is getting married in early May:
It will be a late afternoon Catholic mass in a beautiful chapel, followed by a reception at an inn built in the 1700s. So, it will be traditional but not super formal, with whimsical touches.
She wants to find something that will make her feel classic and elegant. It should be substantial but not overwhelming, and although she has a number of perfumes in her current rotation, she wants something new and special for her wedding. She can pay up to $200, and she lives in New York City so has excellent access to perfume stores. Here is what we know about Denise:
She’s in her late 20s, and doesn’t like to go to bed on time…
I do hope the person at Vera Wang who came up with the idea of Princess has been given a hefty raise, and maybe some extra vacation time.1 The original Princess — born to rule! — launched in 2006, and we’ve since seen Flower Princess, Rock Princess, and now the new(ish) Glam Princess. The first two flankers were pretty much as advertised: Flower Princess was more floral than the original, and Rock Princess was that clean fruitchouli that you usually get from a mainstream flanker with “rock” in the name.
Glam Princess is pretty close to the original Princess, close enough that it’s hard to see why you’d need both…
Today’s poll was suggested by Jaimie, who wants to know what you would smell in amortentia. Amortentia is a love potion introduced in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, and purportedly everyone who smells it smells what they are most attracted to. Hermione smells freshly mown grass and new parchment; Harry smells broomstick handle and treacle tart.
What would you smell?
Ancient Egyptians believed sycamore trees grew on the border between the land of the living and the realm of the dead. Greek myths tell of humans transformed into trees. In Japan, pine trees represent longevity (even immortality) but cherry trees’ fleeting blossoms are a reminder that life is brief. Where I live, several Northwest Coast Indian tribes carve clan histories into revered cedar wood, creating large totem poles and house posts. I’ve always loved the story of Siddhartha Gautama reaching enlightenment (and becoming the Buddha) while meditating in the shade of the Bodhi Tree at Bodh Gaya in India.
Trees are interesting as cultural and religious symbols, but they’re also beautiful plants whose bark, wood, roots, resins, leaves and fruit make perfumes smell “divine.” Infusion Organique Buddha’s Fig Eau de Parfum was inspired by a particular Bodhi tree — the ancient Sri Maha Bodhi located in Sri Lanka.
Buddha’s Fig contains certified organic fig extract, rose geranium, lemongrass oil, hyacinth, iris, wood, and amber. Buddha’s Fig begins with notes of fig leaf and “green”/barely opened hyacinth flowers…
Kim Kardashian, in case you didn’t know, is a “TV star, entrepreneur, model, actress, and trendsetter”, in addition to being “one of the world’s most idolized women”. So says Sephora, where Kardashian’s eponymous debut fragrance recently launched and is reportedly a top seller.
Kardashian said she wanted “something rich and creamy and sexy, but still youthful”;1 what she got was a big white floral, very similar to the recent Mariah Carey Forever, which of course was very similar to Marc Jacobs for women. Kardashian’s effort, developed by perfumer Claude Dir, is lusher than Forever, and heavier on the tuberose…
To me, Guerlain Chamade Eau de Toilette is spring in a bottle. Spraying it is like encountering a bank of daffodils on a grey day and realizing birds are chirping and winter is on its last legs. Spraying Chamade you can practically see a bouquet of purple hyacinths, stems and all, materialize, complete with a hummingbird whirring in for breakfast. While snow pummeled the East Coast, it has been unseasonably balmy here, and crocuses splatter across lawns. It’s Chamade season.
Jean-Paul Guerlain created Chamade. It launched in 1969, and in The Book of Perfumes, John Oakes writes that Guerlain spent seven years and made more than 1,300 trial versions before he perfected it.1 Guerlain’s website calls Chamade an “oriental fruity floral” and mentions cassis buds, hyacinth, and Guerlinade as its notes. Jan Moran’s Fabulous Fragrances lists Chamade’s top notes as greens, galbanum, bergamot, hyacinth, and aldehydes; its heart as rose, jasmine, lilac, and clove; and its base as vanilla, amber, benzoin, sandalwood, and vetiver.2
If you’ve read anything about Chamade, you probably know that a chamade is the name of a pattern of drumbeat the French troops used back in the day to communicate retreat…
Today we’re helping Lauren. Lauren is interested in perfume, but says she’s not yet a perfumista. She works as a nurse, and she wants to find a versatile signature scent that isn’t so strong that it will nauseate her patients. At the same time, she’d like it to be flirty and chic. She hasn’t set a budget for her new fragrance. Here is what we know about Lauren:
She’s in her early 20s and lives in Chicago…