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Perfume review: Guerlain Anisia Bella, with an aside on Etro Anice

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Guerlain Anisia Bella fragrance

Anisia Bella was launched in 2004 as part of Guerlain’s Aqua Allegoria range of fragrances. It was created by perfumer Aurelien Guichard, and has notes of aniseed, orange, bergamot, basil, star anise, violet, jasmine, liquorice wood, and cedar.

I love anise-based perfumes, and Anisia Bella is one of my favorites for warmer days when Serge Lutens Douce Amere or Caron Aimez Moi are too heavy. Anisia Bella opens with lightly sugared citrus; the anise is pronounced from the start and stays central through the dry down. There is a minty-peppery undertone from the basil and a bit of sweet violet drifts in and out, but for the most part it is all about the anise. The base is musky and woody, with a fair amount of cedar…

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On perfume storage, Tan Giudicelli Annam, and other random thoughts for Friday

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Tan Giudicelli Annam

I have spent much of this morning searching in vain for my decant of Tan Giudicelli Annam, and have come to the conclusion that I need a new storage system for my perfume.

Annam, for anyone who has never tried it, was a wonderful fragrance from designer Tan Giudicelli, who launched his own fashion label in 1984. It was created by perfumer Benoît Lapouza, and smelled like a creamy-milky rice pudding, lightly spiced, with floral & woody undertones. It was a gourmand scent, but not overly sweet, and it had a kind of Asian feel in keeping with Giudicelli’s background (he was born in Indochina). It was very reasonably priced at ccb-paris, but was discontinued some time ago…

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Perfume review: Paula Dorf Zita

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Paula Dorf Zita fragrance

Paula Dorf started as a make-up artist and eventually launched her own line of color cosmetics in 1997. Her first (and so far, only) fragrance, Zita, was released in 2003. It was created by perfumers Cecile Krakower and Ralf Schwieger, and has notes of tea rose, fresh cut grass, freesia, galbanum, peach, pink peony, iris, sandalwood and musk:

“I had this vision of walking with my mom as a little girl,” said Dorf, who noted that childhood memories were the main inspiration for Zita, which is also her middle name.”The smell of the grass, the flowers, I’ve always had that scent in me.” (via Womens Wear Daily, 1/31/2003)

Zita starts as a very green, very grassy floral…

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IUNX to close fragrance boutique

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Thank you to Neela for the news that the IUNX boutique in Paris, and their stand in the Printemps department store, will be closing in March. The line is backed by Shiseido; the fragrances are all by perfumer Olivia Giacobetti. If you are a fan, now might be a good time to stock up. The line is also available at Senteurs d'Ailleurs in Brussels.

Fragrance review: Fragonard Soudain

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Fragonard launched the Confidentiel line this year with four fragrances, all created by perfumers at Givaudan: Mensonge, Cette Nuit La, Apres Tout, and Soudain. The fragrances are priced higher than usual for Fragonard and the packaging has a more modern aesthetic; this would appear to be an effort to capture some of the upscale niche fragrance market. Today I am trying Soudain, which has notes of Italian green mandarin, lemon, Guatamalan cardamom, jasmine, orange blossom, Paraguayan gaiac wood and musk…

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