It's a review of Headspace - and event in New York last Friday, where Chandler Burr, amongst others spoke. Included in the write up are some great anecdotes and stories about the world of perume.
Way back, when I thought any perfume that Luca Turin 'five starred' was a dead cert., I bought a sample of Fracas by Robert Piguet. After sampling some other of Turin's 'five star' perfumes like Secretions Magnifiques, Knize Ten, Cool Water, Jicky, Dune and Rive Gauche, I put Fracas at the bottom of my 'to try' box. Which, in retrospect is a bit of a shame.
This is how the tester packet describes Fracas:
Tuberose combines with jasmine, jonquil, gardenia, lily of the valley and iris in a lavish profusion of fragile white flowers.
Hmm. Interesting. I'm a fan of 'fragile white flowers', having been converted by L'Artisan's delightful La Chasse aux Papillons. But Fracas is entirely different. I've mentioned before the 'dirty pants' aroma of Joy by Jean Patou and Fracas certainly has a tinge of the dirty pants, which could be down to the jasmine.
In my ignorance, I had mistakenly confused rose and tuberose as one and the same thing for quite a long time. They are, of course, totally different. There was an excellent article in the Long Island Press which pictured tuberose amongs the midnight garden flowers. The lovely Stefanie, from The Lip Print, also pointed out that Michael Kors (one of my perfume staples) is a tuberose.
So, Fracas has at least two elements that I love, tuberose and the magical 'white flower accord' including jasmine. And, in summary it's a great perfume that I've been scared of for far too long. If I had to criticise it, I would say that it's a bit old fashioned. There's a bit too much going on, which for some people can smell sexy, but to me, just reminds me of old ladies' handbags.
If you're interested in Luca Turin's other five star perfumes, here's the list: 31 Rue Cambon by Chanel 100% Love by S-Perfume 1740 by Histoires de Parfums L'Air du Desert Marocain by Andy Tauer Amouage Gold by Amouage (Guy Robert) Angel by Thierry Mugler Apres L'Ondee by Guerlain Aromatics Elixir by Clinique (Bernard Chant) Azuree by Estee Lauder (Bernard Chant) Azzaro pour Homme by Azzaro (Gerard Anthony) Badgley Mischka by Badgley Mischka Bandit by Robert Piguet (Germaine Cellier) Beyond Paradise by Estee Lauder (Calice Becker) Beyond Paradise Men by Estee Lauder (Calice Becker) Black by Bvlgari (Annick Menardo) Bois des Iles by Chanel (Ernest Beaux) Boise de Violette by Serge Lutens (Pierre Bourdon and Chris Sheldrake) Boucheron by Boucheron (Jean-Pierre Bethouart) Breath of God by B Never Too Busy To Be Beautiful Calandre by Paco Rabanne Calyx by Prescriptives (Sophia Grojsman) Ca Sent Beau by Kenzo (Francoise Caron) Chamade by Guerlain Chinatown by Bond No. 9 (Aurelien Guichard) Cool Water by Davidoff (Pierre Bourdon) Cristalle by Chanel Cuir de Russie by Chanel Derby by Guerlain Diorella by Dior (Roudnitska) Dior Homme by Dior (Olivier Polge) Dune by Dior Dzing! by L'Artisan Parfumeur Eau de Guerlain by Guerlain Eau Savage by Dior (Roudnitska) Enlevement au Serail by Parfums MDCI Envy by Gucci (Maurice Roucel) Le Feu D'Issey by Issey Miyake Fracas by Robert Piguet (Germaine Cellier) Givenchy III by Givenchy Grey Flannel by Geoffrey Beene Habit Rouge by Guerlain L'Heure Bleue by Guerlain Homage by Amouage Insense by Givenchy Insolence eau de parfum by Guerlain (Maurice Roucel) Invasion Barbare by Parfums MDCI (Stephanie Bakouche) Iris Silver Mist by Serge Lutens (Maurice Roucel) Jicky by Guerlain Joy parfum by Jean Patou (Henri Almeras) Knize Ten by Knize (Francois Coty and Vincent Roubert) Knowing by Estee Lauder Kouros by Yves Saint Laurent Lavender by Caldey Island (Hugo Collumbien) Lolita Lempicka by Lolita Lempica (Annick Menardo) Loulou by Cacharel (Jean Guichard) Missoni by Missoni (Maurice Roucel) Mitsouko by Guerlain (Jacques Guerlain) MoslBuddJewChristHinDao by Elternhaus (Marc Buxton) La Myrrhe by Serge Lutens (Christopher Sheldrake) Nahema by Guerlain New York by Parfums de Nicolai (Patricia de Nicolai) No. 5 eau de toilette by Chanel No. 5 parfum by Chanel Odalisque by Parfums de Nicolai (Patricia de Nicolai) Opium by YSL Or Black by Pascal Morabito Ormonde Man by Ormonde Jayne (Linda Pilkington) Ormonde Woman by Ormonde Jayne (Linda Pilkington) Osmanthe Yunnan by Hermes (Jean-Claude Ellena) Oud Cuir D'Arabie by Montale Patchouli 24 by Le Labo (Annick Menardo) Pleasures by Estee Lauder Poison by Dior Pour Monsieur by Chanel Pour un Homme by Caron Private Collection by Estee Lauder Promesse de l'Aube by Parfums MDCI (Francis Kurkdjian) Rive Gauche by YSL (Jacques Polge) Rush by Gucci Sarrasins by Serge Lutens Scent by Theo Fennell (Christophe Laudamiel) Secretions Magnifiques, by Etat Libre d'Orange S-eX by S-Perfume (Christophe Laudamiel) Shalimar by Guerlain Sycomore by Chanel Le Temps d'une Fete by Parfums de Nicolai (Patricia de Nicolai) Timbuktu by L'Artisan Parfumeur Tocade by Rochas (Maurice Roucel) Tommy Girl by Tommy Hilfiger Le Troisieme Homme by Caron Ubar by Amouage Vanilia by L'Artisan Parfumeur Vol de Nuit by Guerlain White Linen by Estee Lauder Yatagan by Caron Yohji Homme by Yohji Yamamoto
Thanks to Basenotes for posting this fabulous interview with Andy Tauer at Esxence. Andy talks about his new perfume packaging as well as his new fragrance Orange Star.
It's quite special to hear from a perfumer, they have a particular aura. You can also watch this interview with Francis Kurkdjian.
Hugo Boss's Orange is today's SOTD, and it's not a winner on my skin. I'm generally pretty sceptical when people say that a fragrance reacts badly with their skin. Often it seems to be a polite way of saying that they don't like the fragrance. Orange reminds me of the odour of burnt skin, (as in when you walk out of a tanning booth). However, I quite liked it when it was sprayed it on a tester blotter. So I'm coming round to the idea that some perfumes do, in fact, "react badly" on some skins.
There are several fragrances that I'm keen to try at the moment. (untitled) by Maison Martin Margiela has had a lot of publicity, and its mystique has genuinely sucked me in.There's a great post over at Dossier Journal featuring some moody photos about (untitled).
Yesterday I read that Clarins have just brought out a new fragrance named Eau des Jardins. As a long-time fan of Clarins' Eau Dynamisante, I am desperate to try their new creation. Vogue magazine describe Eau des Jardins as "Eau de Uplift". A fragrance that gets that kind of praise has to be worth a try.
The Beautiful Mind Series has also had a great deal of publicity, but is very hard to get hold of. And, let's be honest, incredibly expensive. But something about the fact that Christiane Stenger, the Grand Master of Memory is the muse for this fragrance makes it somewhat intriguing.
The new fragrance, Eva, by Eva Longoria will be launched this week... Armani to launch new fragrance Acqua di Gioia... Clive Owen has been named as the face of a new fragrance from Bvlgari which will be launched in September... Jude Law has been filming a new Dior fragrance commercial at the Eiffel Tower, directed by Guy Ritchie... Byredo has just launched a new fragrance called La Tulipe... Prada just launched latest fragrance Infusion de Tubereuse... The name of Avrile Lavigne’s new fragrance, Forbidden Rose, has come under close scrutiny this week... Carolina Herrera’s new fragrance Garden Party... Jo Malone’s new Cologne Intense series of four fragrances Amber & Patchouli, Oud & Bergamot, Rose Water & Vanilla and Iris & White Musk available August... New fragrances to be launched in April include Chanel's Chance Eau Tendre, Burberry Summer 2010, Eau de Cartier Essence d'Orange, DSquared² He Wood Ocean Wet Wood and She Wood Crystal Creek Wood, A Scent by Issey Miyake Florale, and Kenzo's Les Eaux Parfumées Bienfaitrices de Kenzoki... Atelier Flou fragrance range now exclusively available at Harrods – fragrances include Paradis Paradis, Shamsin and Sloane Rose...
My huge thanks to Peter Olson from Peter's Paris for contributing these lovely photos of the Caron boutique at 90 Rue du Fauborg Saint-Honore. This is part of MyPerfumeLife's Shopping for Perfume series. Peter has kindly agreed to photograph the main perfume addresses in that beautiful city.
Ernest Daltroff opened the first Caron shop in 1904. Félicie Wanpouille became his artistic adviser and muse. The relationship between Daltroff and Wanpouille was the inspiration for many of Caron's successes.
Key Caron creations include N’Aimez que Moi (1916), Tabac Blond (1919), Pour un Homme (1934) and Fleurs de Rocaille.
To escape persecution Daltroff fled to America in the 1940s. Félicie managed the perfume house until her death aged 93 in 1967.
Caron was revitalised during the 1980s when a store was founded on Avenue Montaigne. In 1998 Caron was taken over by Patrick Ales.
Here's a list of sample size perfumes that I would love to swap. If you would like to swap, please do let me know - I'm open to any swapping suggestions.
Perfumistas are the new cool hunters, according to a recent article in London's Evening Standard.
You can read the full Evening Standard perfumista article. Well, one thing's for sure. There are certainly some great shops and boutiques in London for perfume shopping. Liberty's perfume department stocks Annick Goutal, Diptyque, Serge Lutens and many more. The Le Labo store in Marylebone has got attitude in spades. Definitely worth visiting, just for the experience. And the latest addition to London's perfume boutiques is Avery in Mayfair.
Can perfumes fundamentally change your character? I don't think so, but Grazia recently featured scents to make you smarter/nicer/slimmer. Here is what they suggested.
To make you smarter, try
Manoumalia by Les Nez Parfums d'Auteurs
Fire From Heaven by CB I Hate Perfume
Intelligence & Fantasy by The Beautiful Mind Series, Vol 1
Those fragrances are all pretty. But MyPerfumeLife's top floral fragrances would probably include Jardin Clos by Diptyque - a hyacinth fragrance that's particularly good for spring. Second on my list is Fleur Nocturne by Isabey, a white flower accord that, sadly, doesn't come cheap. My high street selection would be Stella McCartney's Nude, the quintessential modern, sparkling rose fragrance.
Ninfeo Mio has been around for a few months now. But something about the stoopid name put me off.
Cast aside all pretentious twaddle about 'inspired by a garden in Italy' and 'the scent of fig leaves'. Ninfeo Mio captures the lush greenness of English countryside. It reminds me of playing in a wet spring garden. Specifically, stinging nettles can sometimes almost take on a minty quality, and Ninfeo Mio captures this leafy lushness perfectly.
The 'CB I Hate Perfumes' range dramatically evokes picture perfect scenes. In particular, Eternal Return distills the scent of a briney summer seaside. By the same token, Annick Goutal has distilled the essence of a rural idyll into this beautiful fragrance Ninfeo Mio.Don't miss it.
As featured in London's Stylist magazine this week.
Photos from Liberty's perfume department. Unfortunately I didn't manage to get the main room. However, this is part of the perfume department at Liberty.
A big thank you to NappyValleyGirl for providing this touching guest post. Lovely to hear about the fragrances you've worn.
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My first bottle of perfume was stolen goods. Not by me, I hasten to add…..but by a boy called Michael Carter, who I used to walk to school with aged about 7. He ran up behind me one day, blushed, and slipped something into my satchel. Back at home, my mother and I had a look - it was a bottle of Charlie. We reckoned he must have stolen it from his mother or older sister, and given it to me as some kind of love token. I can’t recall whether we attempted to give it back – possibly it was too embarrassing for all concerned.
Anyway, it was my first taste of the potency of fragrance. As a child, I watched my mother spraying on some of the Eighties favourites with darkly dangerous names: Poison, Opium, Obsession. They smelt deliciously heady and glamorous, and usually meant she was heading off to some smart expat cocktail party (we were living in Hong Kong). Perhaps taking inspiration from her tastes, when I was about 14, I requested a bottle of LouLou by Cacharel for Christmas. This, too, was potent and vampy - but a massive marketing drive through the likes of Just Seventeen magazine had made it a brand much-coveted by teenage girls.
Then the eighties ended and everything changed. The scents we wanted were the antithesis of the heady 80s brews we had all desired - clean, floral and perhaps a little boring. My sister wore a lemony Calvin Klein concoction while for years my fragrance of choice wasWhite Linen by Estee Lauder phase. It made me imagine I was wafting, serene and beautiful, and in lovely neutral clothing along a windswept beach. Very 90s.
During my first years as a business journalist, I travelled widely for business and would always try on the latest brands in airports. Trouble was, I couldn't stick to one – I always went for a quick squirt of Chanel as well and no doubt I would have been turning up to press conferences with dour German businessmen smelling like a brothel.
Then I took a job on a beauty trade magazine. What a revelation. I had to attend, and write about the latest launches too (and I learnt that it's always 'fragrance' - perfume is a dirty word in the beauty industry.) I learnt how to decipher ridiculous press releases about new scents (usually written in very bad attempts at poetry) and how to interpret the language of fragrance - of top notes, florals, sandalwood, musk. And I received loads of free samples, some of which lasted me for years.
But that was ten years ago and now there are justtwo bottles of scent on my dressing table - Diorissimo, an old favourite which I love, and Gucci's Flora, a Christmas present from my sister which is light, floral and not so overpowering you can't wear it during the day. At home with the kids, I rarely wear any fragrance - I have to remember to put it on. Add to that a husband who has virtually no sense of smell, and I often wonder what the point is. Yet to me, spraying on delicious scent is always an essential part of the ritual of preparing for an evening out; filled with promise and glamour.
Neroli is one of my favourite ingredients in any perfume and L'Eau de Neroli is just perfect. This fragrance is almost not a fragrance at all - it's just how people 'should' smell. Diptyque package this fragrance as a cologne. Not sure if this means unisex or just for men - but it's definitely a great smell for men and women.
If, like me, you're a fan of neroli, you could also try Neroli by Annick Goutal, Fire Island by Bond No. 9, Fleur d'Oranger by L'Artisan Parfumeur or Galatea by Strange Invisible Perfumes.
Diptyque in Paris - taken by Peter Olson of Peter's Paris.
Lara Stone is the new face of Prada fragrance... Jo Malone has launched a collection of five candles with paint company Farrow & Ball... Jennifer Aniston to launch signature fragrance... the peony has inspired the latest fragrance line from L'Occitane... Green Witch fragrance has been launched by Roxana Illuminated Perfume... Orla Kiely is developing a range of fine, body and home fragrances... Singer Akon has released male and female fragrances in bottles shaped as handcuffs... the Beyonce Knowles fragrance Heat has sold US$3 millions' worth in its first month... a male fragrance Eternity Aqua has been launched as part of Calvin Klein's Eternity fragrance line... Ma Dame has now been released as and EdP by Jean Paul Gaultier
Parisienne by YSL is a fragrance that I've tried a few times. The first time I hated it. The second time I thought it was rather nice. Today - I'm thinking that it's okay, but definitely not one for me.
Parisienne is such a lovely name for a fragrance, that you want to love it, and daydream about Paris.
According to the YSL website there are three main notes to Parisienne: Blackberry Damask Rose and Sandalwood.
Ultimately Parisienne is simply a sweet a rose fragrance, but a bit too sweet and a bit too cloying. If you're looking for something that is based on rose, but with a modern 'sparkling' twist, then try Nude by Stella McCartney.
This event looks fascinating: Making Scents The Art and Passion of Fragrance. It takes place at Longwood Gardens, 30 miles from Philadelphia. Sadly I won't be flying my family across the Pacific to visit. Would love to hear from anybody who does. It runs until November this year.
Highlights include
Experiencing the flowers behind specific perfumes
Making your own basic fragrance
Stacks of special aromatic plants and flowers to smell
Witnessing the technical aspects of perfume making - natural and synthetics
Special Friday events focusing on vanilla/mint/lavender etc
If you manage to visit, then I'd love to hear from you!
DKNY's 'Delicious Candy Apples'. Perfect if you like to smell sweet.
Sweet Caramel (the green one) has notes of candy apple and pear. Then, wait for it, marshmallow and whipped vanilla! Alternatively dunk yourself in a pot of rocky road.
Ripe Raspberry (the red one) - yikes, it gets worse. Blah, blah, blah... peony, lily, lime and COLA!
Juicy Berry (the purple one). Blackcurrant, blackberry, pear, lychee and apple blossom. Phew! Wondered where they could go with the third one.
Just heard about this new Guerlain fragrance, which is supposed to be great for Spring. Flora Nymphea is not going to be released until May - but I'm hoping to get a sneaky sniff before then.
Thierry Wasser is the creator of this perfume including notes of seringa, wild grasses and orange blossom.
It occurred to me yesterday that I haven't really mentioned Luca Turin and Tania Sanchez for their fabulous book "Perfumes The A-Z Guide". Reading the Guide was the motivating factor for me to start writing about perfume.
The authors clearly know a huge amount about the perfume industry. And it seems that they know many of the most influential perople personally.
What I found most interesting about the Guide is how it puts things into perspective. For instance, I'm by no means a fan of Thierry Mugler's Angel, but when I read the review of Angel I can understand how it was a landmark perfume at the time it was created. It was something that had never been done before and has proved to be a huge commercial success.
Most of all, the Guide gave me the confidence that there is no right or wrong. A case in point is Michael Kors, which I think is a pretty and extremely wearable fragrance. The Guide gives it one star and comments, "Shrieking hair raising horror, probably first rejected for use in industrial drain cleaner. One of the worst ever."
Finally, The Guide has the courage of its convictions. In the question and answer section in the introduction, there is a question, "Why don't you include the year of release, the official list of notes, the perfumer etc., for every fragrance." And the answer is, "We have no passion for data entry." Simultaneously down to earth and extremely pompous. Brilliant.
Sadly, the fragrance is about as annoying as the song. It's sweet. It's irritating and should just have been called Honeysuckle. True to form I've looked up the meaning of Olene. Various interpretations, the best of which is that it comes from Helene and means ray of sun.
Spring is a great time for blossom and light florals. Jardin Clos, which I reviewed yesterday, is much lighter and altogether more enjoyable. Miller Harris Noix de Tubereuse is also a lovely floral mix with an almost almond base.
At 9 Bond Street between Broadway and Lafayette Street. West Side and Chinatown are two of Bond No. 9's top fragrances. The most recent addition to the range is High Line. Bond No. 9 is available in London at Harrods.
At 93 Wythe Ave at N 10th St, Williamsburg, Brooklyn. My favourites include Eternal Return and Black March. In London Liberty also stocks the CB I Hate Perfume range.
Jardin Clos is a gorgeous new find of mine from Diptyque. If you like hyacinth and lilac fragrances, then I would urge you to go out and try it. Happily my husband managed to get a few samples of Diptyque when he was in Liberty's on Friday. Having tried a few different Diptyques, this is the first floral fragrance of their which has appealed to me.
Top notes include water melon and white lilac. What really makes this stand out for me is the hyacinth - a note which I love, and this is the first time I've tried it in a perfume. The base notes include oakmoss, which again is a favourite for me, and cedar, which is only slightly perceptible. Jardin Clos is going to be seeing me into spring.
My French language skills are a bit patchy, particularly when it comes to perfume names. You may recall my confusion about Jardin Sur Le Nil. Equally, I've been a bit confused by Annick Goutal's 'Monkeys'. 'Who wants to smell of monkeys?', I thought. Doh - That's 'singes'. Songes means dreams.
