Marc Jacobs Bang: Bang-A-Gong Get It On!

August 2, 2010

In the boring fresh and clean wasteland that is the men’s department store fragrance counter, a perfume lover despairs on ever smelling something new. You wonder if any new perfumer will ever take a risk on something that is not “fresh and clean” which is made to appeal to the Axe generation. That is why when there is a new mass men’s fragrance release that dares to go in a different direction I want to stand up and applaud. When it is as excellent as Marc Jacobs Bang is, I want to shout “Halleleujah!”

Thierry Mugler Womanity: Energize Mr. Mugler!

August 1, 2010September 5, 2010

Thierry Mugler has produced some singular perfumes under his fragrance label. Starting in March of this year Thierry Mugler began to beat the drums about their new fragrance, Womanity. In typical Thierry Mugler fashion it was full of flowery language and felt like it should have ended like the old opening to Star Trek with “To Boldly Go Where No Woman Has Gone Before!” Then the note list arrived and while there was much there that was familiar there was something there that was definitely a new, if not final, frontier in perfumery; a caviar accord. A caviar accord in a women’s fragrance? The truth is that Womanity and the caviar accord with it are much more subdued than you would expect and that quietness is perhaps the most surprising thing about Womanity.

The Fragrant Week That Was July 24-30, 2010: Hips Don’t Lie, Does Fragrance?

July 31, 2010

News and my favorite posts from around the Internet for the week of July 24-30, 2010 include new fragrances by Shakira and Britney Spears. Acqua di Parma goes black tie and why is there so much Blue/Blu/Bleu in men’s fragrances.

Montale Patchouli Leaves: The Patchouli Preciousssssss!

July 30, 2010

The last thing most of us need is to be nasally assaulted by Eau de Cheap Headshop Harvard Square, vintage 1972!
Migraine-inducing, monster-sillage, in-your-face hippie-dippy roll-on abomination.
For many, this is the only patchouli they’ve ever known; no wonder it has such a vile reputation…
Montale Patchouli Leaves is a fine choice for either men or women, perfectly suited for all seasons; it blooms in the heat, and comforts in chillier climates.
It is patch perfection, a Preciousssss that is affordable, even in these times.

Dabney Rose Amberleah Winners Are……

July 30, 2010

THe six winners of the mini cutie pots of Dabney Rose Amberleah.

Bois 1920 Le Voluttuose Collection: Women Are Venus

July 29, 2010

The Italian perfume house Bois 1920 has released a new trio of fragrances under the name Le Voluttuose (The Voluptuous). The three fragrances in the collection Kimono Rose, La Vaniglia, and Notturno Fiorentina all live up to the billing given the collection name as they all have curves and beauty in abundance. Another artist known for his love of the voluptuous is Peter Paul Rubens. One of his most frequent subjects was the goddess Venus, very often accompanied by Cupid. Rubens’ version of Venus was a full figured woman also full of curves and his paintings are perfect companions for the three fragrances in this new Bois 1920 collection.