Mixed feelings

Posted by Robin on 7 February 2024 2 Comments

Even [Fabrice] Penot has said he has mixed feelings about its success—the scent that put his brand on the map often overshadows Le Labo’s other fragrances.

But for all the jokes and memes, Santal 33 drove “strong double digit” growth for Le Labo in every region of the world for the first quarter of 2024. And it has held our attention for far longer than most. “Santal 33 is the icon fragrance of an entire generation, male and female,” said John Demsey, the former executive group president of the Estée Lauder Companies. Not many perfumes can claim that.

— Read more in The Tragedy of Santal 33—Everyone’s Signature Scent at The Kit.

Another to skip

Posted by Robin on 6 February 2024 14 Comments

A powdery smell is another to skip, as these kinds of fragrances "tend to appear old-fashioned," [Elizabeth] Kosich says.

"Violet and lilac floral notes in particular can skew powdery, conjuring up images of yesteryear. Known as a particularly 'powdery' fragrance, Chanel No. 5 is known to many as the classic 'old lady' scent," she notes.

— Read more in 7 Perfume Scents That Age You, Experts Say at BestLife.

It carried me…

Posted by Robin on 5 February 2024 Leave a Comment

For her graduation project, a men’s ready-to-wear line based on cashmere and linen, she created a multisensory show in which each garment was associated with a scent. Her proposal did not go unnoticed. After graduating, she received two job offers: one to design clothes at Martin Margiela’s atelier, and another to be a researcher of olfactory trends at Firmenich, the Swiss giant that dominates the perfume and flavor business. “I took the second one. Every morning, a senior perfumer had me smell raw materials. One day he gave me a bottle of triplal, a herbaceous, green leafy aroma, very similar to that of pine or freshly cut grass. It carried me... I don’t know where, but it carried me. That’s when I thought: ‘I want to dedicate myself to this, to creating fragrances that carry people.’”

— Read more in Delphine Jelk, the perfumer who creates custom fragrances that cost over $135,000 at El País USA edition.

I stood tall x 2

Posted by Robin on 2 February 2024 2 Comments

Sydney Sweeney for Giorgio Armani My Way Nectar. Below the jump, the ingredients / bottle porn spot.

Read the rest of this article »

This is where she tortured perfumers

Posted by Robin on 2 February 2024 Leave a Comment

“The minute I sold my company to Estée Lauder, I said that I wanted to do this,” says Malle. [...]
“This is where she tortured perfumers,” Malle says with a laugh, gesturing around the ornately-decorated, jewel box-like space. (The view of Central Park is so breathtaking, one has to wonder if visitors ever found it distracting during meetings.) Malle is, of course, not being literal, but referring to Lauder’s famously high standards for fragrance. For example, Beautiful, a blend of orange flower, mandarin, and rose that launched in 1985 and went on to become one of the brand’s bestsellers, was the result of “many, many months” of Lauder mixing iterations at the very same desk that sits in the corner of her office today, says Malle.

— Frédéric Malle on the upcoming Estée Lauder Legacy Collection. Read more in Reinventing a Beloved Fragrance Is Risky Business at Allure.

« Newer articles

Older articles »

Now Smell This

a blog about perfume

Mixed feelings

Another to skip

It carried me…

I stood tall x 2

This is where she tortured perfumers