Deal at avon: get free shipping on orders of $5 or more with coupon code HEAT2009, good through 6/29.
Deal at beautyhabit: with any order of $50 or more, get a 7 piece sampler of products from the UK with coupon code UKSUMMER, good through 7/7.
New at luckyscent: By Kilian 100 ml refills.
New at nordstrom: D&G Anthology available for pre-order.
Few fragrances induce the instant love-it-or-hate-it response of Yves Saint Laurent Opium. Right now, you’re probably either thinking, “Opium! I’ve had some of my most memorable nights wearing that perfume…” or “I can already feel the migraine coming on.”
When Opium hit the market in 1977, women bought it by the gallon. Opium was so much more than a fragrance. It became an identity. Just as Chanel No. 5 showed its wearer as someone elegant and timeless (or at least trying to be elegant and timeless), the woman who wore Opium signaled that her life was rife with exoticism and secrets, even if she lived in a split level in the suburbs. The Yves Saint Laurent marketing machine fueled this image with print advertisements of mostly naked women surrounded by crimson and shadows…
In honor of Ma Dame's first anniversary, Jean Paul Gaultier will launch two new limited edition collector fragrance bottles under the name Rose 'n Roll (the Ma Dame juice is unchanged). One is in 75 ml Eau de Toilette (above left) and one is in 50 ml (above right).
Below the jump, a promotional video made in collaboration with French DJ and producer Martin Solveig. The song is Boys & Girls, featuring Martina Sorbara of Dragonette. The video was filmed at Gaultier's couture house in Paris. Update: video is no longer available, sorry!
Unlike huge companies who rule the fragrance world, we get to see our perfumes go from raw materials to finished product. We can also take chances making some challenging scents that might not be for everyone.
— D.S. of D.S. & Durga, from On the Job: Snooping Around Perfumers D.S. & Durga's Live-In Laboratory at Refinery 29. Many thanks to the kind person who sent me the link, and I'd thank you by name if I hadn't lost your email. Do comment and take credit!
Paris Hilton will launch Siren, her sixth fragrance for women, in July. Hilton noted that she “felt like Ariel from The Little Mermaid” during the photo shoot for the ad.
Siren was developed by perfumer Honorine Blanc. The fragrance notes feature mandarin, apricot nectar, frangipani, honeysuckle, coconut orchid, water lily, vanilla beans, sandalwood and creamy musk…