Laurice Rahme of Bond no. 9 will be at the downtown Pittsburgh Saks Fifth Avenue from noon to 6 pm this coming Friday and Saturday to introduce the line's latest fragrance, Andy Warhol Lexington Avenue. She'll also be doing custom blending and signing bottles. Call 412-297-5383 for an appointment. (via post-gazette)
Paul Yacomine Parfum de Coiffeur ~ hair perfumes, part 2
Paul Yacomine is a London-based hairstylist with a glamorous client list of celebrities and models; he is also the creator of a hair-care line that specializes in the high-tech delivery of beneficial ingredients. A trio of hair perfumes was recently added to the product list: called Parfum de Coiffeur, it promises to treat hair gently while adding shine and fragrance with natural oils.
The Parfum de Coiffeur packaging is coolly attractive: its three metal spray bottles, each holding a different scent, look like they should contain top-secret serums or vaccines, and the set is presented in a Mission Impossible-worthy canister of silvery metal and clear plastic. When removed from their niches, the sprays dispense their fragrances — Bergamot, Frangipani, or Amber — smoothly and evenly…
Lazy Friday poll ~ International Talk Like A Pirate Day edition
Avast, me hearties, it’s Talk Like A Pirate Day!
I’ve always loved Talk Like A Pirate Day in theory, but sadly, I don’t speak Pirate (and if you don’t either, you can cheat with this nifty English-to-Pirate translator). But that doesn’t mean we need ignore the holiday altogether. Go ahead, nominate a fragrance for that most famous pirate of all, Captain Jack Sparrow…
Van Cleef & Arpels Feerie ~ perfume review
Féerie, by Van Cleef & Arpels features an unusual bottle design: the cap is metal (or metal-like?) and features a fairy sitting on a twig (it was inspired by their Midsummer Night’s Dream jewelry collection). From what I’ve read so far, it’s probably shaping up to be one of those love-it-or-hate-it bottles, but my own initial reaction was ambivalent. After seeing it in person, however, I’m firmly in the hate-it camp. The blue glass bottle is pretty, but the “sculpture” on top just isn’t as luxe as its price*, and it’s all a bit twee for my taste — my taste, apparently, runs more towards plastic doll heads. Besides that, even the sales associate acknowledged that eventually, you’re gonna poke your eye out with that thing.
The scent, advertised as a woody floral violet by perfumer Antoine Maisondieu, started out difficult on paper: a screechingly-pitched blast of sweet berry over creamy-powdery violet (the notes: violet, red berries, mandarin, rose, jasmine, iris and vetiver). It gets nicer (and drier) soon enough, but it’s markedly better on skin, where the top notes fade from cloying to merely sweet much faster, and the earthy base helps to balance it out…
Online fragrance shopping
Deal at beautyhabit: with any purchase of $75 or more, get an 8 piece "Global Beauty Sampler" (includes 10 Corso Como, Tocca Touch, assorted Carthusia scents) using coupon code GLOBALBH, good through 9/31.
New at bloomingdales: Miller Harris line, B de Boucheron.
New at dillards: Emporio Armani Diamonds Intense.
New at macys: Shiseido Zen (new version; and they still have "Classic" Zen).
New at nordstrom: Thierry Mugler body line (newly reformulated).
Deal at victoriassecret: with any purchase of $50 or more, get a free beauty tote with 9 samples using coupon code FREEBTY, good through 10/15.