Dawn Spencer Hurwitz has launched a trio of limited edition fragrances, Viridian, Quinacridone Violet and Prince, as the Chroma: color series 2 collection, which joins the Parfums des Beaux Arts range.
This new collection is a continuation of the color exploration that I began in 2007, but with a twist: this time around I chose two distinct “artist colors” (color pigments or paint that an artist would buy for their work) and a rather obscure textile color that was all the rage with the 17th Century, Paris ~ Versailles crowd.
Viridian ~ “A true GREEN aroma that is deeply saturated an unmistakable. Based on a semi-transparent, green-blue-green artist’ hue (paint), Viridian embodies the concept of a rich foresty green color in aromatic form.” With notes of angelica, artemisia, bergamot, celery seed, aloe accord, chrysanthemum absolute, galbanum, orris, sandalwood, vetiver, green oakmoss, lovage, myrrh, patchouli, and violet leaf.
Quinacridone Violet ~ “This aroma-color, based on a vibrant, man-made fuschia – pink – purple artist hue (paint), is strangely wonderful and vibrantly modern in every way. Many artists find this color addictive…we feel the same about the scent.” Featuring notes of cherry blossom, lime peel, plum, quince, alaia flower, neroli, osmanthus, sweet pea, violet, violet leaf, cedar, cassis bud, incense and musk.
Prince ~ “While researching for ‘The Perfumed Court’ Collection, I came across a reference to an obscure yet prized 17th Century textile color called Prince ans I was immediately captivated. It was described as ‘indigo-blue-black shot through with crimson red’. I knew I must make this color in fragrance form.” With absinthe, lavender, narcissus, star anise, wild chamomile, rose, jasmine, orris, sandalwood, spices, ambergris, castoreum, civet, cocoa beans, leather, oppopanax, tobacco and tolu balsam.
Also joining the Parfum des Beaux Arts collection is Jitterbug for Men:
Jitterbug for Men ~ “A scent worn by the God Pan to allow free movement among humans. Jitterbug for men IS that divinely earthbound fragrance. Hand made from essences that bespeak his travels: resins from his native Greece and flowers from Egypt. But can you fetect that most exotic note? It’s absolutely mysterious.” Featuring bergamot, blackberry, lemon, pimento, benzoin, rose, clove, jasmine, ambergris, cedar, ciste, frankincense, labdanum, musk and patchouli.
And two new fragrances join the Essense Studio range, Silver Fir and Wasabi Shiso:
Silver Fir ~ “Get into the Holiday mood with Silver Fir, our delightfully refreshing, spirited and festive new unisex scent. Inspired by crisp winter evenings, the sparkle of glass Holiday ornaments and the infamous radiance of “the tinsel tree”, Silver Fir is an unexpectedly unique twist on the ‘Conifer’ scent.” The notes include bergamot, cassis, pink grapefruit, plum, Siberian fir, spearmint, green tea, olibanum, cedar, sandalwood, balsam fir and treemoss.
Wasabi Shiso ~ “Whoosh! What a rush we get from this Autumn’s scent, Wasabi Shiso! It’s green, peppery-freshness (the wasabi) and unusual fruit-like leaf note (shiso) give our new creation true originality.” With shiso, wasabi, yuzu, bergamot, holy basil, pittosporum, rose, vetiver, elemi, sandalwood and patchouli.
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Viridian, Prince and Silver Fir sound like they could be nice.
But what I really want is a perfume called Jitterbug.
Actually, my friend is reading a book called Jitterbug Perfume. I should get it for him!!!
wait, are the book and the perfume supposed to be related?
There is also an older Jitterbug for women, and honestly can't remember if it was related to the book or not.
You know, I don't think it was so many launches at once — I think a) she didn't update her website for quite some time and then b) I stopped checking her website frequently. So I'm announcing them all at once, but Wasabi Shiso, for instance, I know was her “Autumn” scent for the ES line, and has probably been in her store for some time.
In case anyone is interested, Marcello reviewed Jitterbug perfume here:
http://www.nstperfume.com/blog/_archives/2006/4/13/1883380.html
Gena, I just checked her site and it looks like she's had a Jitterbug (for women) for awhile, based on the dance/40s vibe. Jitterbug for Men is new, but that description involving Pan sure sounds like it ties in with the book. Maybe it inspired her. After checking out her site, I'm kind of smitten and want a lot of samples. Sigh.
me too. I just spent so much money on samples this weekend, so I think I'm just going to pretend that I never site ever
Thanks for pointing me to the NST review of the Robbins novel. At first I thought you meant it was a review of the original Hurwitz Spencer “Jitterbug” scent. LOL. Really, it's one of my favorite books. Robbins is a really clever and funny writer.
I have been seeing the popularity of DSH on swap forums, and was wondering if any experienced perfumistas would like to weigh in on the quality/price ratio of this line for me. Would you be able to compare them to any other line(s) such as MDCI or Frederic Malle? I'm looking for top quality these days, as I've got the quantity angle all-too-well-covered!!!
OOPS…I said it was a review of the perfume but that isn't what I meant to say, obviously! Sorry. It's a review of the book. As you saw.
Gosh, it's a little indie artisanal line, so no, it's not Frederic Malle by any stretch. But they make some nice things at reasonable prices. You can get a roll-on of the Wasabi Shiso for $24, or a purse spray of the Viridian (or my favorite, Cimabue) for $27, just to give a few examples.
Hmmm- lots of beets in the book. I recall “Even Cowgirls get the Blues” having a lot of yams…I will put this on my Christmas list.
These DSH's have beautiful names (Viridian)- makes me want to try them
LOL — like the idea of a “grid-at-a-glance” but would rather shoot myself than try to come up with one!
They are great names, agree.
I read Cowgirls but gosh, can hardly remember it. Been a long time.
Oh, gawd, yes, it would be a nightmare.
But, Robin, if there was EVER a chance you might one day attach a kind of price range designation to your Perfume Houses?? I'm thinking along the same lines as a restaurant or wine review — you know, where you put one dollar sign for inexpensive up to five dollar signs for the likes of Clive Christian?? I know with wine, it's possible to do a range as well — for example, for those houses that come up with super-duper Baccarat crystal LEs as well as their standard range, show them as $$$ – $$$$$ kind of thing. Dawn Spencer Hurwitz would be $$, Serge Lutens $$$, Amouage $$$$. . .you dig me!
Pretty please??
P.S. Note that I'm not asking for a Quality rating, too, you hard-working gal; I'm sure you'd rather pull your fingernails out!
Seriously, unless the pace of new releases slows down drastically, there's no way I'll add any new features of any kind to NST. I can hardly keep up as it is — not complaining, mind you, but I doubt most people have any idea how long all this takes.
I think I have a little bit of an idea, so probably doubling that would be the realistic total. I can only hope that you're still enjoying it, Robin, because we adore you!
You're very kind
I do enjoy it — there are just days when there are too many new scents to keep up. It was easier in 2005 and 2006 before it all went crazy.
Ah, that legendary golden era. That was just a little before my time, niche-wise. I hear that, back then, you could get samples for super-cheap on eBay: halcyon days for sure. I envy you that magical couple of years in history, R. I sometimes read your first reviews, and see the responses from that wonderful core group of first-wave perfumistas you were part of, and I catch the excitement and bright, shiny newness of it all.
I read NST all the time and would be lost without it — and you. Seriously. Thanks for hangin' in there.
R, I think the loss of ebay has been hard, on the other hand, there seem to be fewer & fewer things you can't get from the niche retailers here, and also, there's so much product that I no longer care if there's something I can't manage to try. I'm certainly more jaded than I used to be, and wonder how much of that is just the daily grind of blogging and how much is due to the changes in the industry? It's rare now that I get as excited about a new perfume as I used to. So I miss that bright shiny newness too
Ach, lassie, 'tis probably a wee bit o' both! You've been at the daily grind for a good, long stretch now, and things ARE different, and that's bound to make a girl feel a mite weary of it all. I do hope you find some things to keep the ol' flywheel spinning. xo