Posted by Robin
on
29 June 2007
We all know better by now than to expect celebrities who have done original or exciting work in their “areas of expertise” to carry that spirit of innovation over into fragrance. For most celebrities, perfume is a easy way to make money, plain and simple, and making a scent that appeals to as many consumers as possible is the logical outcome.
Still, many celebrity scents seem like reasonable olfactory representations of the stars in question, or at least, of their public personas. Despite their respective troubles, it seems fitting that Britney Spears Fantasy smells like cupcakes and musk…
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Posted by Robin
on
14 February 2006
Songes is the latest fragrance release from the house of Annick Goutal. It was created by Camille Goutal in collaboration with perfumer Isabelle Doyen, and was said to have been inspired by the scent of frangipani flowers at sunset on the island of Mauritius. The notes are frangipani, tiare, jasmine notes, incense, vanilla, copahu balm, pepper, ylang-ylang absolute, vetiver, sandalwood, amber and styrax.
Songes starts with a trio of tropical flowers: frangipani (also known as plumeria), jasmine, and a hint of gardenia. It is sweet and strong, but not quite heady, although bear in mind that I am trying it from a sample vial — sprayed, it might be quite another story. The jasmine, lightly tinged by green, takes over in the early stages, and it is simply gorgeous. It settles into a softer blend of white florals, sandalwood and resinous notes, all with a velvety, whisper-of-powder finish…
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Posted by Robin
on
4 January 2006
Since Frederic Malle’s Carnal Flower turned out to be so quiet and well behaved for a white floral, I thought I’d try a little shock therapy today. I’m wearing Olène by Diptyque, created by perfumer Serge Kalouguine and released in 1988. The notes are listed, not very helpfully, as wisteria and narcissus.
Olène is probably the sort of fragrance that creates a white-floral-hater. The first 15 minutes are heady, to put it lightly: an explosion of honeysuckle, and not just any old honeysuckle, but a very sweet honeysuckle. On steroids. That calms gradually — you won’t want to spray this on and walk right into an elevator full of innocent bystanders — into a lush blend of florals, with the wisteria and narcissus as promised, along with quite a bit of jasmine and a light musky base…
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