Wednesday, April 29, 2009

Idylle by Guerlain: the new feminine by Thierry Wasser

In June we will be all sniffing and smelling the newest Guerlain to hit counters, the one on which Thierry Wasser the in-house perfumer has been working on for so long, apparently. [adding: the international release has been pushed to September] A witty commentator on this venue, March, when describing Wasser as lost-in-action was wondering if "he fell off the stairs" or something, it was so long since his name had been tied to a Guerlain project! (Last time, for those who forgot, was a year ago when he was credited with Guerlain Homme, shortly after the announcement on his head-perfumer position of the venerable house). We have highlighted the miss while commenting on the upcoming city releases, Paris-Moscow, Paris-New York and Paris-Tokyo as well as while critizing the recent exclusive release La Petite Robe Noire, the newest flanker of Mitsouko , Mitsouko Fleur de Lotus, or the limited editions of Fleurs de Shalimar. As I was safely predicting, the new fragrance could not be called Gold, as rumoured on online discussions, because this is the registered name of the very good lily fragrance by Donna Karan.

The new Guerlain feminine fragrance for mainstream distribution is therefore called Idylle , a name hoping to bring on an idyllic smile of daydreaming on our faces. It will feature floral notes with rose as the star ingredient: "Thierry Wasser created this fragrance using the Bulgarian rose as a star ingredient, in Guerlain’s Perfumer tradition he selected personally the very best roses ensuring the exceptional quality of the fragrance". The bottle design is created by Ora Ito, while the advertising face will be Nora Arzeneder, the young singer/actress of Faubourg 36. The advertising campaign will be materialized by Paolo Roversi, the mn responsible for the latest Shalimar commercial with Natalia Vodianova. Although that commercial was aesthetically successful and tasteful, I am holding out for a little less sexiness on this project. Too much sex in fragrance advertising somehow has started to look cliché.
Notes for Guerlain Idylle: lily of the valley, peony, freesia, lilac, Bulgarian rose, patchouli, white musk.

Idylle is available in 30, 50 and 100 ml of Eau de Parfum everywhere where Guerlain is sold.

Source : Stratégies via au parfum
Updated with ad pic via belezza.pourfemme.it

19 comments:

  1. Anonymous21:14

    Dear E,
    what a great news! I had a bad mood today, but thank you and this amazing news it is much better now! I can't wait to try it.
    Have a nice time!
    Lavinia

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  2. Dearest, hope you're feeling much better and that tomorrow will be a good day! Glad I helped if only a little tiny bit :-))

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  3. Rappleyea22:40

    Hi Helg! I'm wearing Vol de Nuit extrait today, and I have to confess, I've about given up on Guerlain despite being a diehard fan. I wish either Jean Paul would come out of retirement, or that M. Wasser is channeling his inner Jacques Guerlain with this one. We shall see.....

    I continue to enjoy your blog.

    Donna

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  4. That does sound well. Even if Wasser had seemed to have gone silent for a while, the notion that he had done so in order to concentrate on doing the next one "right" is just manna to the ears... eyes?

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  5. Anonymous04:02

    So that's what it is! I shruddered with the thoughts that we would have to witness "Guerlain Femme" and thank goodness it isn't the case. Thanks, you made my day--had the longest search for mother's day present (4 hours) and almost settled for diamonds. Thankfully I saw some wonderful gigantic moth orchids (the ones YSL adored and featured in the Opium ads) and found a rustic urn to go along with it. It's almost as tall as a 10 years old with about 25-30 blooms so I guess I'm off the hook for this year! Anyhow, gotta run. xoxo

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  6. Anonymous04:05

    PS. BTW Nora Arnezeder's filmography can be found here for those who are interested:

    http://www.imdb.com/name/nm2482391/

    A

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  7. NOW i am curious, indeed! Thx for the info!
    lillie

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  8. Donna,

    thank you for your sweetness :-) and what a BEAUTIFUL scent you have chosen!! (one of my dearest favs).
    Indeed I find myself disappointed with the marketing route the brand has taken. They do present some lovely perfumes from time to time (I have succumbed to full bottles of some), which makes it all the harder to reject them conclusively, but I wish they didn't act like they do...
    I have mixed feelings on Idylle, but I am hoping for the best. Floral sounds better than fruity floral or gourmand at this point and if Wasser has been working on it for a year, hopefully it might be good. We'll see, I guess...

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  9. Dain,

    that's what I have been hoping for, at the very least! It remains to be seen how much attention has been given. Although a lot depends on the concept as well, huh?

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  10. A,

    hi ya! Hope you're doing very well (I'm sure you are and loved the ref you made about the strange layering: Hiris should work well, I find it quite earthy)

    Diamonds would have made anyone's day, I bet (and they last), although I find flowers a more romantic gesture, their delicate beauty a sign of sensitive reflection on the ephemera. I hope she loves them!
    Those big orchids on the Opium ads are amazing! I agree. It's funny how the usual interpretation of orchid is powdery in fragrances, although there are so many kinds...(had elaborated on my Travel Memoirs Singapore on that aspect). The starched, ironed feeling of Opium does evoke a certain kind of orchid, though, doesn't it.

    Let's hope that proper attention has been given to such a major thing as the new feminine mainstream Guerlain that isn't a flanker! Last one was Insolence, no? It's been a while...

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  11. N,

    you're very welcome. And we will find out soon enough and it won't require too many favours and back & forth, just going up to the counter. What better?

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  12. VERY INTERESTING can't wait for more news!

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  13. Anonymous17:52

    Dear Helg, it was just a headache and then a book with surprisingly sad ending, but thanks for your care, your articles are always a big pleasure to read! Have a nice weekend.
    Lavinia

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  14. Glad it was as easy as that and thank you once again!

    Hugs!

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  15. K,

    it's somthing of an "At last!" moment, isn't it.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Anonymous03:25

    Oh, didn't Wasser mention that Annick Ménardo was involved in the project as well? (He mentioned that last year during a Le Figaro interview that he was developing a feminine fragrace with Annick if I'm not mistaken.)

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  17. Fiordiligi13:20

    Oh E, another new Guerlain? Should I be happy or sad, I wonder, as I sit here swathed in the gorgeousness of Chamade extrait?

    Now, is this the same as Le Parfum de Sophie which a perfumista friend sniffed recently? Doesn't sound like it but I believe that was also to be released in June.

    Yes Donna, I do so agree with you! Let's hope M Wasser is having a Jean-Paul moment, and I don't mean Gaultier.

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  18. A,

    I have heard about confirmation on that rumour (Menardo working with Wasser) and I know Menardo is working elsewhere now, so I hesitated to mention it. I surely hope so, as I admire her work a lot!
    (and Body Kouros is looking like it will join my stash in the near future)

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  19. D,

    this is the newest mainstream. Which is important exactly because it is a mainstream feminine after a plethora of flankers or "exclusives". It's more emblematic for the brand, so I hope they're giving it due attention.

    I can't say I am positive on it being the same as Parfum de Sophie, although the info on that latter one is preciously scarce.
    What I do know is that a new L'art et La Matiere is going to get released soon, focusing on a material that forms part of la Guerlinade (tonka/jasmine?) and this is official.
    ;-)

    I hope Thierry will be channeling Jean Paul, perhaps injecting a modern idea in there too. The world is waiting with baited breath.

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