Fragrant Gift Ideas

We are in the midst of the holiday season! Stores everywhere have decorated themselves, hoping to tempt shoppers into finding the perfect gift within. Below are some of my top picks for the season.

Yves Saint Laurent Nu is back! Originally launched in 2001, this gorgeous, dusky oriental was sadly discontinued. Nu is one of my favorite incense fragrances and has been in heavy rotation this winter season. Rumored to be a flop in part due to faulty packaging (a metallic, violet-grey hockey puck of a dispenser which sadly leaked) Nu has received an elegant makeover. Let’s hope that the beauty and originality of the Jacques Cavallier creation is still intact. Nu can be purchased directly from the YSl site here.

Chanel No 5 Intense Bath Oil – this luxurious bath oil scented with one of the most beloved fragrances of all times is deeply nourishing for the skin and feels positively sinful. Add it to the bath or apply directly to the skin for a rich veil of scent. A little goes a long way and since the bath oil comes in a large 8.4 ounce flacon, it could last you for many holidays to come. The last time I checked it was sold out on the Chanel website but was available at my local Nordstrom.

Scented candles always make a thoughtful holiday gift, especially if you are uncertain about the recipient’s favorite fragrance (or in the case of many of my readers, she already has too many fragrances!). I have already waxed poetic here on the candles made by Carrière Frères Industrie and this season they have a new Cinnamon candle available here, the perfect scent for creating a warm holiday ambience at home.

Another favorite candle for the home comes from Restoration Hardware. The French Oak scent immediately transports me to the sitting room of a glorious chateau in the Loire Valley, while Belgian Linen has all the elegance and solemnity of a Gothic cathedral at vespers.

Marni by Marni has been one of my favorite releases of the year. A subtle mix of rose and incense, it is a perfect go-to fragrance for all occasions. Marni is joyful enough for holiday mornings spent with friends and family and soft-spoken enough for the office once the reality of the new year beckons. At least you will smell divine once you are back at work! Marni is available at most major department stores.

Reminder

Just a quick reminder to all to set your clocks, watches and sundials for the Guerlain mini-tour scheduled for today at 5:30PM Paris time. The link can be accessed here or directly from the Guerlain site.

Virtual Tour

Not surprisingly, it has become Guerlain week over here, as it has quite frankly been impossible to focus on anything else after seeing the incredible images of the newly-refurbished 68 Champs (see here). And if that weren’t enough, on Friday, November 22nd at 5:30PM (Paris Time), the Guerlain site will be offering its own virtual mini-tour of the new store on Google+ which can be accessed here.

Don’t forget to set your clocks, with adjustments for your time zone (Paris is 6 hours ahead of the East Coast at present). And to get the full effect of the tour, I recommend wearing your favorite Guerlain. I myself may actually wear several at once to simulate the effect which walking into a Guerlain boutique has on me – I am immediately tempted to cover myself in as many perfumes as possible!

Fur Perfumes

One of the aspects that I most enjoy about vintage perfumery (aside from the obvious enjoyment of the scents themselves) is the exploration of different historical and cultural trends and the influence they had on any particular creations. Similar to trends in fashion, perfume houses and noses were often seen to develop variations on a fragrance theme, usually sparked by some scent innovation or indeed the discovery of a new fragrance substance, not unlike the way Thierry Mugler’s Angel spawned countless imitators. The post-war 1920s were certainly no exception and indeed the era witnessed the creation of entirely new subcategories in perfumery. While some of these, notably the Russian Leather or Cuir de Russie, are still available today, there are others which did not survive the passing of their era. Among these is a category of perfumes based on a series of accords which would give the impression and scent of fur, and indeed was often used to perfume fur stoles or collars, several of which utilized the name faun in their title, a reference to the mythological Satyr.

While the mention of fur today sparks a variety of social, political and often visceral reactions, fur had long been used by humans out of necessity as a means of warmth and occasionally even shelter, later evolving to a symbol of status and wealth. While the more “democratic” fashion trends for women in the 1920s represented a distinct departure from the lavish and elaborate Belle Epoque style, it was not completely without its opulent trappings. Flappers often adorned their slim silhouettes with cloche hats and fur coats and wraps, accessories that would come to identify the youthful exuberance and excesses of the Jazz Age. Women sought and to some minor degree achieved a level of emancipation never before seen and they were eager to flaunt it, by smoking, dancing and reveling, fairly innocent activities things modern women take for granted.

This desire for liberation was reflected in several perfume styles of the era, as though deliverance could be achieved by the use of a provocative perfume. As a side note, I find it fascinating that while women today have arguably achieved greater social autonomy, there appears to have been a fragrance backlash, a sort of re-trenching phenomena taking women back to the days when the ultimate goal was simply to smell pretty without provocation or intellectualization. In this light, the inverse relationship between a fragrance’s character and that of its wearer are puzzling, as though the woman is apologizing for autonomy.

The Faun is a Greek mythological figure characterized as being half-man and half-goat, possessing qualities of each. The Faun, a companion of both Pan and Dionysus, is often represented in pastoral settings playing a flute or a small set of pipes, a hybrid creature bridging the human and natural worlds. As a companion of Dionysus, the Faun is understandably a devotee of wine, women and sensual pursuits, presumably with the forest nymphs with which they are frequently depicted. Needless to say, the use of “Faun” in the name of a fragrance is intentional and meant to invoke various connotations, alluding to a certain playfulness which conceals an animal and even sexual nature.

Over the next series of posts, I will be exploring various fur perfumes, a deep and animalic fragrance category which is not afraid to reveal its sensuality.

Guerlain Rumours

A good friend of mine and fellow perfume collector who lives in Paris recently alerted me to some disturbing news about the beautiful Guerlain flagship store at 68 Champs-Élysées in Paris. Apparently the masterminds at LVMH have commenced another “renovation” project which has resulted in the demolition of some key historic design elements of the store. According to my friend, authorities have stopped the project and the store has been temporarily closed.

Unfortunately, I have been unable to find any news on this Stateside to confirm the news and get additional details. Needless to say if this is the case, it is highly disturbing. For those of you unfamiliar with 68 Champs, this location has been the home of Guerlain for close to 100 years. The boutique is a wonder to behold and embodies all of the grandeur and elegance of the traditional Guerlain name. I leave you with a few photos and ask that anyone with news of this please comment or write me.

Serge Lutens – Barney’s

I recently posted here, here and here about some of my recent fragrant adventures in New York. No matter what part of town I was in, I had everything I could ever want at my fingertips, which is one of the things I miss most about the city. This brings me of course to Barney’s NYC, which features an entire glorious beauty level full of cosmetics, lotions and potions, and of course fragrances.

I passed counter after counter of the best the beauty world has to offer, but given that I had a schedule to keep, I sought out the object of my desire: the Serge Lutens counter. With the exception of Les Salons du Palais Royal, Barney’s is one of the few places where one can see (and sample) bottle after glorious bottle of Monsieur Lutens’s greatest creations.

Selecting a fragrance in a major department store can be a daunting task, especially given the number of houses and limitless new releases available today. Needless to say, it helps to have a sales associate who can provide guidance. While we cannot expect everyone in the world to be passionate about perfume, there is nothing more frustrating than finding that the person who is there to assist you knows less about the fragrance than you do. Sadly, many fragrance houses simply do not invest the time or resources in ensuring that associates receive more information beyond the press release, focusing instead on their next new release. Is it any wonder then how fickle the consumer has become as a result?

Fate would have it that the Serge Lutens sales professional was there in person and extremely knowledgable about the brand to boot. Not only could she tell her Gris Clair from her De Profundis, but to my very happy surprise, like an accomplished singer, she knew the notes by heart. Based on my stated preferences, she guided me to some fragrances I may have overlooked, a thoroughly refreshing experience. She helped me sample some of the European exclusives that I had not seen in person before, as well as a few in the export line missing from my collection of bottles and samples. She also gave me a lovely wax sample with Tubereuse Criminelle, Boxeuses, Rose de Nuit and Sarrasins, plus a spray sample of L’Eau. She apologized for not having sample bottles but I took her contact information so that I could get in touch upon my return home.

We have since been in contact and, as promised, she sent me some very generous samples which would qualify as a small decant anywhere else. I will be posting about some of these over the coming weeks as I try to decide which cloche to purchase. Overall, I was very impressed with the service at Barney’s and thrilled at finding a stateside contact in the world of Serge. While Barney’s policy does not permit me to release the name of the professional who assisted me, please contact me if you are interested. Barney’s is located at 660 Madison Avenue in NYC, (212) 826-8900.