Yves Saint Laurent will launch Parisienne, a new rose-based floral fragrance for women fronted by model Kate Moss, in August. It will debut in the US in October.
Parisienne was developed by perfumers Sophia Grojsman (who also developed the original Yves Saint Laurent Paris fragrance) and Sophie Labbé…
In a sense, I was influenced by Après L'Ondée (1906). I love Guerlain fragrances, but I said to myself that, if I were to make Après L'Ondée today, it would be much lighter, airier, younger. Some pieces I wouldn't use. So Paris started as an imagined Après L'Ondée. Obviously, in Après L'Ondée, you don't have roses in the background, but I had the skeleton of a very creamy violet note. Then I worked on the rose to put with it.
That's perfumer Sophia Grojsman talking about the genesis of Yves Saint Laurent Paris (from Michael Edwards' Perfume Legends: French feminine fragrances, p. 200), her first fragrance. Paris debuted in 1983, and was the perfect fragrance for the time: I wore it, my mother wore it, some days it seemed like everyone wore it (and plenty of it, more about which below).
Paris opens fruity and bright and big, with a happy, optimistic air. The heart is lush, jammy roses softened by Grojsman's “creamy violet note”. Yves Saint Laurent had reportedly chosen the name Paris and the color pink before the fragrance was developed…
It was interesting to read the various opinions on Bvlgari as a fragrance house in the comments to Kevin’s article about their Aqva line for men. I think of Bvlgari as one of the better mainstream brands. No, the fragrances aren’t all wildly innovative, but to my nose, they’re all (ok, mostly) so nicely done. A perfect example: Bvlgari Pour Femme.
Bvlgari launched Pour Femme in 1994. It was the line’s second fragrance, following Eau Parfumee au Thé Vert, and it was originally known just as “Bvlgari”. They introduced it slowly in the United States, restricting it initially to about 40 stores, and I can’t resist quoting this oh-if-you-only-knew statement from a Chanel representative (a Chanel subsidiary was in charge of the US distribution):
We think that things are becoming a little too fast, easy and gimmicky in the fragrance business. Perhaps the best way to cut through the clutter is to be more quiet and tasteful about a launch. (via Women’s Wear Daily, 6/17/1994)
We’ll leave aside consideration of how well a “quiet and tasteful” launch would work in 2008…
Perfumer Sophia Grojsman talks about S-Perfume 100% Love.
Frederic Malle has launched a new fragrance, Outrageous, to be sold exclusively at Barneys and Barneys Coop stores. The new scent was developed by perfumer Sophia Grojsman.
The notes: caipirinha, clean laundry, green apple, orange blossom, amber and Texas cedar.
Frederic Malle Outrageous is available at Barneys in 100 ml for $110…
Another corpse flower has bloomed at Western Illinois U, & they're expecting 2 more... http://t.co/oRnROz6j (& they've got live video)